Survival
Archive
The anonymous finder now has a million-dollar headache
This spring, photographer Kiliii Yuyan gathered his camera equipment and, practicing social-distancing guidelines, explored the West Coast to find out how it's been faring in the age of COVID-19
Filmmaker Eric Hanson describes a harrowing account of how serious flash floods can be
Gina Rae La Cerva's 'Feasting Wild' is a delightful culinary travel book. It's also an adjustment to the way we think about what that buzzword actually means
Homesteaders were ready for this. Here's how to kick your self-sufficiency skills into high gear.
A deeply personal story of one rider’s painful saga—and what we can all learn from it
Rugged, high-clearance, all-wheel-drive vehicles are great for getting out there—but at what cost to cyclists and pedestrians?
I was biking home when you barreled into me with your car and left me to die
Being involved in a crash with a driver while on a bike or on foot is bad enough, but the trouble doesn’t always stop when you get yourself to safety. Navigating the justice and insurance systems afterward can also be an ordeal.
COVID-19 is going to limit and slow relief—and increase the importance of personal preparedness
When it's highly diluted to clear water of pathogens, it could save your life
Wouldn't it be great if there was a technique that would allow us to vanquish fear and beat back stress?
In his new book, 'The Wedge,' bestselling author Scott Carney travels the world to investigate the surprisingly effective methods humans have developed to rewire our brains and control our response to stress. And it all starts with taming fear.
The military's toughest training challenges have a lot in common with outdoor sufferfests like the Barkley Marathons and the Leadville Trail 100: you have to be fit and motivated to make the starting line, but your mind and spirit are what carry you to the end. A Ranger graduate breaks down an ordeal that shapes some of the nation's finest soldiers.
A crew of daring twentysomethings had a half-baked plan to canoe through the jungle. Not surprisingly, they ran into all sorts of trouble.
Last December, around 100 tourists set out for New Zealand's Whakaari/White Island, where an active volcano has attracted hundreds of thousands of vacationers since the early 1990s. It was supposed to be a routine six-hour tour, including the highlight: a quick hike into the island's otherworldly caldera. Then the volcano exploded. What happened next reveals troubling questions about the risks we're willing to take when lives hang in the balance.
A slab of snow fell and trapped her in a streambed in a place where few skiers dared to go
In Oregon's Clackamas County, a fight between a sheriff and an elite search and rescue unit reveals how local politics can collide with recreational safety for residents and visitors alike
“You could pull this thing out of a flooded basement, rip it open, and start filtering water immediately,” says MSR Product Developer Owen Mesdag
As we confront the reality of COVID-19, the idea of living self-sufficiently in the woods, far from crowds and grocery stores, doesn't sound so bad. Lynx Vilden has been doing just that for decades, while teaching others how to live primitively, too.
America's patchwork laws on big-cat ownership create all kinds of problems—like when people let their dangerous kitties go free
When the Discovery Channel invited me to audition for its popular survival-challenge reality show, I knew it was going to be rough. What followed was one of the most intense experiences of my life.
The hardest thing for Blair Braverman wasn't being naked on national television—it was the fact that people thought it was fake
Here are the tools Blair Braverman prepared for her time on 'Naked and Afraid'
Yes, it's serious, and it's time to start taking some practical precautions
This is one of the most common issues dog owners face
On Labor Day weekend 2019, the 'Conception' left Santa Barbara, California, for a diving trip to the Channel Islands. Six months later, authorities are still trying to determine how what should have been a routine excursion became one of the deadliest maritime disasters in U.S. history.
The story of how three crewmen lived more than a week in the middle of the Pacific in a wrecked sailboat with almost nothing
Dogs can't tell you if they're hurt, so it's up to you find out if they are
Here's what you need to properly care for your injured pup
Portuguese big-wave surfer Alex Botelho nearly drowned at the inaugural Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge
Make your favorite pieces last longer with these quick stitches
Colin O'Brady completed the first solo crossing of the Antarctic landmass under his own power and with no resupplies in 2018. In this excerpt from his new memoir, 'The Impossible First,' he reveals the moment that nearly ended his historic feat.
How one snowboarder found himself facing the worst possible choice
One person was killed and another seriously injured at Alpine Meadows in California
Wes Siler shows you how to address a flesh wound
Wes Siler has some basic tips anyone can use to forecast the weather using clouds
Don't worry, this tale has a happy ending
After losing the trail and his shoes, hiker Nick Noland descended 4.5 miles in 16-degree weather
A painful crash helped remind one dad what really matters
After losing his bear spray, Colin Dowler was caught with nothing but a tiny Buck knife
What two TV hosts learned from subjecting themselves to the agony-inducing defenses of insects, snakes, lizards, and fish
We keep hearing about the supposed dangers of shared e-scooters, but the numbers tell a different story
Be prepared to go into the backcountry with our expert knowledge, advice, and gear recommendations to stay safe
Two years after he was saved in a remote canyon, our host talks with one of his rescuers about coping with life-altering trauma
What happens when you find yourself on El Cap with a badly injured partner? Former Yosemite Search and Rescue (YOSAR) worker Josie McKee and climber Quinn Brett found out.
Keep the cold at bay with these 9 moves that you can do anytime, anywhere
One day, while felling trees in Wisconsin, Gary Edinger severed his leg clean off when a tree exploded underneath his chainsaw
It took an epic effort to get him out. Two years later, the healing for him and his rescuers continues.
A monthly payment may be scary, but, man, it feels worth it when your loved one gets into a crash
Last spring, ϳԹ's features editor watched pro mountain biker Paul Basagoitia's documentary about the spinal-cord injury he sustained at Red Bull Rampage. Ahead of its HBO release this month, she and her partner viewed it again after their own life-altering experience.
When she realized a mountain lion was stalking her, Dee Gallant knew exactly what to do—blast some heavy metal
As our country has grown more divided, so has the outdoors. But Seeker's Wild is bridging the gap between the two camps who love spending time in nature.
Forget the hatchet—the Buck Compadre Froe has your camp wood-processing needs covered
Don’t let a little precipitation keep you inside
Expedition kayaker Scott Lindgren knocked off first descents of the most remote and dangerous rivers on earth, from the Himalayas to the Sierra. He paddled with an aggro attitude and saw weakness as an unforgivable trait in himself and others. But when a brain tumor started to derail his athletic performance and threaten his life, everything changed.
When it comes to navigation, nothing beats the reliability of an old-school paper map and a compass
The year's most dramatic story of a bear attack offers potentially lifesaving lessons for anyone venturing into the wild
In May, Kirby Morrill was nearly murdered during a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. Four months later, she climbed Maine's highest peak, the route's terminus.
Over the past ten years, more than 160 Tibetans have committed self-immolation—the act of setting yourself on fire—to protest Chinese occupation of their country. Has this had any lasting effect? In an extraordinary journey to Dharamsala, India, the center of Tibetan culture in exile, a journalist and a scholar talk to family members about the meaning and costs of the ultimate political sacrifice.
After a climbing partner became ill, high winds stranded Yev Krasnitskiy and his team on the upper reaches of Mount Rainier for five days with no way to go but up
Contributing editor Kyle Dickman recaps his harrowing snakebite tale in this animated short
Wes Siler on proven dog-recall training techniques
In April, alpinists David Lama, Jess Roskelley, and Hansjörg Auer went silent during a harrowing expedition in Canada. The climbing community mobilized, first for a search and then for a memorial. In the wake of the tragedy, writer Nick Heil examines the motives of cutting-edge climbers and wonders: How close should we stand to our own mortality to feel alive?
Want to go into the woods without disturbing wildlife? The first step is to learn how to move silently.
This is what nightmares are made of
With deaths spiking on pavement, riders are choosing to go where cars can’t
The explorer’s crossing of Antarctica put him in the spotlight. His skill in presenting himself to audiences hungry for vulnerable heroes will keep him there.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police are searching for Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, suspects in the murders of three people on remote highways in British Columbia. The teenagers are alleged to have spanned one territory and at least five massive provinces, leaving burning vehicles in their 2,000-mile-long wake before plunging into the Canadian backcountry.
A 24-year-old woman drowned while attempting to reach the abandoned bus made famous by Christopher McCandless
In the fall of 2018, the 26-year-old American missionary traveled to a remote speck of sand and jungle in the Indian Ocean, attempting to convert one of the planet's last uncontacted tribes to Christianity. The islanders killed him, and Chau was pilloried around the world as a deluded Christian supremacist who deserved to die. Alex Perry pieces together the life and death of a young adventurer driven to extremes by unshakable faith.
When you spend months each year in the backcountry, things are bound to go wrong eventually
After running for her life from a knife wielding attacker, Sheryl Powell disappeared on Friday, July 12. Monday, she was found alive.
This discontinued model is still reliable decades later
From earthquakes to fires and floods, here are savings on the supplies you need to survive
Who says dystopian climate sci-fi and mountain-survival stories aren't beach reads?