We make it annual event in our week long instructor training trips. It is full survival, but low stress and...dare I say it...FUN! An uncomfortable debris hut is one that needs fixin'! We have one instructor who took five years to finally get it. No suffering, complete luxury without need of knife, cord, or fire. It's a reality, but it takes a number of mistakes before getting it all ironed out. (well worth it though)
I was taught the debris hut in 1989 by Tom Brown jr. as a student @ the Tracker School, but really didn't get a handle on until my 12th or 13th experience. The measurements & the approach to building it are specific to you & the environment you find yourself in. You can make the measurements with the bulky outer layers off & use them where needed (door plug, under hips, etc,) or keep them on to do your measurements & leave them on overnight. My coldest night was -12 in a pair of shorts.
Don't feel bad. We get lazy and bring knives too! Heck, half of us got forges now and are learning how to make 'em! A knife makes most things easier, but they do make noise and a visible amount of sign. Box cut saws and a good wire or chain link hand saw are quiter and leave less of a signature if stealth is a consideration. Still, at the risk of emphasizing hypocrysy, the old saying, "convienience kills" still hold true. Lighters are easy, but fire off the landscape makes them easier.
@nervouschicken Debris hut requires some practice before you get the measurements right. Once you have it, it doesn't rewuire a fire and can keep you comfortably warm and dry well below freezing, or through prolonged rain events. Built correctly, it will keep you warm and accelerate the drying process even if you and your materials are wet during construction. It isn't dependent on a fire,you can isolate you cooking fire away from you sleeping area for hygene, safety, and avoiding critters.
@irai1984 As long as the walls are steep and roughly two feet thick (60cm), it should repel water. In warmer climates, the cold comes more from the ground than the air, so a thick layer of debris or matting on the ground may still be needed. Let us know how it goes!
No, biggest problem is too much air exchange caused from lack of experience in building/ living in one for multiple below freezing nights. Perhaps, due to the lean-to mentality we are conditioned to at an early age? Debris hut is a 1 person survival shelter that uses the same principles as a mummy sleeping bag, & should thus be just as snug. As for wind/ rain, we regulary dump 5 gallon buckets of water in the ones constructed at our beginner classes (leak test) & N'or Easters, no problem!
What I was saying is why not just forgo the pretense of the frame and simply lie under and over a big pile of leaves with a hose sticking out to breath? Doesn't seem like it would be very heavy and even if it did get heavy because of rain you could just make a cage around your chest to allow your lungs to move and sleep with a rope tied from your wrist to a tree to pull yourself out in the morning. If we're talking about efficiency then it's more efficient than your system.
Thank you, that's very kind. We work @ sharing from direct experience & lots of mistakes. W/ regard to the door, it's the saving grace w/ regard to cold as well as biting insects. A tight door keeps mosquitos & blackflies out. Athough there's usually one that manages to get in & use audio psychological warfare by buzzing around your ears all night. All told, debis hut should be a comfortable experience to -20 provided you have the experience (made lots of mistakes in the past), & materials.
Good Motivation! Like you said, a pile of leaves approach seems simpler, but when I tried it, each time I woke in what amounted to a debris bird nest, cold and bummin'. From that point til dawn your burrowng back in after brief, fitful sleep. I don't toss around much either. I tried that this w/ a lot of variations...the energy expended is about the same as debris gathering is where 95% of the effort is. Keep experimenting with your own designs! I would love to learn a new way that works!
Yes, or any other material that will trap escaping body heat and keep it around you. Fire is important, but not as eficient for shelters as dead airspace in keeping you warm/alive. In urban areas, corrugated boxes and crumpled newspapers with a weather barrier employs the same concept. In colder climates durng power outages, mattresses, clothing, and couch cushions can be made in to a debris hut. We do teach shelters that require fire, for debris poor or long term situations.
Ummm...MAINE primitive skills school!?! C'mon! We teach from experience, not theory. I just walked across the top of a two year old debris hut last weekend to demo the durability to a new instructor...in Augusta, Maine...New England..USA.
@primitiveskills Your work is amazing and I have been admiring it. Unfortunately, I have an issue with creating my own. I live in the mountainous alpine of Colorado, therefore, I only have pine needles and acorn tree leaves to work with. I have seen it done in the heavy forests where the needles stay dry all year until winter, yet everything around me is damp. Is it still possible to create something like this up here? My attempt was not so well-thought out and ended up being too small, haha.
Yeah, but say a beaver is running around drunk, waving a torch? I bet you die a horrible death!! Also, what if lightning hits you? Does the debris protect against lightning and drunk, pyromaniac beavers? Yeah, I didn't think so!
