Great tip. One thing to remember is, tarps are treated with nasty chemicals from the manufacturer... especially newer tarps. You don't want those nasty chemicals in your body. Use a clean plastic bag,pot,poncho...ect.
I was also coming here to make that same comment. I would add this, in a true situation where survival depends on the water, you might just have to weigh the risk of the chemicals and get out of the situation.
That's why I like my backup cheap $1 shower curtain - much cleaner. Desperate situations where it is really needed typically are intense but short lived, like needing water AND rest at the same critical time. After some rest the challenge may be dehydration or hypothermia (I've been there). When the rain stops or slows down with daylight, then a better water source can often be found, but then making it potable becomes an issue...fire. Best part about fresh rain on a clean plastic sheet is that it is ready to drink.
Keep in mind what has dropped on the tarp. A lot of times, larger tarps collect bird dropping etc. Even Small will do do the same. If possible, still santise/process. In Aus, there is a constant smatter of this on any small or sizable tarp/shelter. If a fresh setup, raining right then, and clean, then a bucket at the run-off corner (fairly normal for us to set that up) to a bucket is lovely, clean water. Gold.
Hey man. I live in north jersey. Same conditions around here. I actually used this technique on the Appalachian trail in Vermont one time when it rained for 3 days straight, and had no usable water to use from the rivers and streams due to the sediment. Much easier to use this setup to not have to pre-filter the sediments out of the water. Not saying there won't be sediment from this setup. There is some leaves, and materials from the trees that sometimes make it through.
Yep, it's really tough to keep it pure like fresh snow. Think of the drips from your own nasty outdoorsy body falling into the mix...probably the worst part, but how often do we stick that dirty figer in our mouth when it squirts blood from a nasty thorn? I suspect the odds of getting taken out by contracting something that way are less than getting hit by lighting. That was not part of any of the Giardia cases I have ever heard about.
On one of my own adventures my water filter had a catastrophic failure. A heavy wet storm got me soaked and that was followed by seven 24h days of below freezing temperatures although midday sunlight was not bad. I was partly saved by numerous rock icicles that I munched on while staying half a step ahead of dehydration and maybe two steps ahead of hypothermia. I did collect some runoff during the last of the rain, but it was a very difficult process to make it drinkable.
Great technique, just make sure you use a spot where water comes directly from the sky.. If it runs from a tree there's a chance you get some bird poop in there
If you do this technique then you probably wouldnt worry about it since the water you would drink would be saturated with the chemicals leeching into it from tarp runoff
@@davidh376 Excellent point. Amazing how few people comprehend the difference between chemicals and waterborne pathogens (giardia, etc.) also the difference between sanitizing (boiling) and filtering. I wonder how many people would become less enthusiastic about boiling if they realized that it just kills anything alive in the water. The microscopic corpses, chemicals and sediment all still remain.
@@treebeardtheent2200 Generally 8x10. They are large enough to use separately and when combined provide more than enough shelter [ keeps my wife and daughter quiet ].
A wise man once said carry enough tarps to stay dry and add one. That was me. A poncho or space blanket or even a painters film tarp (which is ultra light) can be used to collect rainwater without reducing shelter capacity.
I do typically carry one along with a backup compactor bag which is my primary waterproofing for dry clothes, etc. The large lawn bag I have used a lot as a complete pack cover. While my gear stays dry inside my pack, the pack itself can hold more extra water weight than I really want plus the bag also protects from mud, etc. The spare shower curtain or tablecloth I carry has much more area than the garbage bag without any cutting or much fussing. They are also multi-use semi-disposable items like the bag.
I sometimes carry a cheap backup shower curtain or even tablecloth. The latter has some thermal layer benefit if temperatures drop below freezing. While essentially disposable, they both have superior waterproofness over some more durable gear that gets worked hard (lots of my gear). Being that they are back ups, I can use them for whatever and still keep my main tarp up as prrsonal shelter. I personally like the center scoop method - find or dig a little depression where the center of my shower curtain goes, then tie off corners using sticks, stakes or whatever.
Quick add on: While the rainwater will obviously be clean and free from bacteria , your tarp is most likely not going to be. Its right there with you in the woods in the dirt, and (if you’re anything like me) packed back into the bag still moist, and sometimes its going to stay in the bag untill the next time. Thats a perfect environment for germs, and people do get sick when collecting water that way. It happens. Thats not the rainwater but the tarp which is contaminated. So its safer to either properly wash your tarp (with soap) before going out, or just boiling it anyway. My two cents Great video as always! Best bushcrafting content to be had on RU-vid! Keep it up 👍🏾
I’ve tried this technique before and it worked pretty well. My poncho hood kept filling up with water which made it a little more cumbersome but I like the idea overall
If a trap is rigged to drain to a corner, so that the water exits off onto the guy line tied to that corner, and at that corner a short rope is tied around the guy line tarp joint, and this rope hangs down into a container, then runoff water will (1) gather on the tarp, (2) run down to the bottom corner, (3) run off of the corner, and (4) down the rope into the container. Tie the short rope onto the junction of the tap-guy line with just a simple overhand knot. Pour some water on to test the system. Adjust as necessary. Courtesy of Half Vast Flying.
Good info as always! I live in the Southwest and it has only rained a handful of times in the past year, so I'll need to use a different water gathering technique.
I was hoping to do some serious hiking this year in SoCal and or AZ, but lack of water is holding me back. Heat I can handle - one thing my genetics are good for, but I use lots of water and I don't like super long miles between water. I also prefer flowing water even if I have to dig my own hole on the edge of a seep. Troughs and guzzlers are great life-savers but they don't make for fond memories.
I usually carry a large 55 gal. drum liner for emergency water collection, it rolls into a roll no thicker than my thumb, so it takes up very little space.
Filled my water bottles heaps of time in the morning like this. If you leave a corner ties a little loose when you go to sleep, it collects a bowl full of water during the night.
Rain water can still have pollutants such as sulphur and some metals. It's a good idea to run it through a good filtering system if possible. Emergency filters can be made with clean cooked sand and wood charcoal.
I use a new and dedicated fine nylon mesh game bag and put a small stone in the middle to drain into a steel bottle. All four corners are tied to small trees. Works well and easy to dry out and pack away.
I was told of a trick. Dig a small hole, put a collector pan in the center of the hole. Put a tarp over it with a small rock on top in the center. Ensure the tarp and rock doesn't touch the pan. This even works in the dessert I am told. Can you confirm this? This is supposed to work at night because of condensation factor.
@@robinsanchez25 It takes a very large surface area to get more than just little water like that. I also don't think that many people carry highly suitable materials for that. We live in a time when people act like a phone app will provide everything they need, even in remote outdoor places. Still, maybe it would be worthwhile to take a cheap plastic drop cloth with me on my next desert adventure.
So I've heard people say that regular tarps are covered in chemicals. So people have suggested to use shower curtain liners. I also saw someone say drop cloth. Are there any other suggestions of what to use? Does anyone know of any good cheap tarps without chemicals?
Two-tarp shelters, tarp hammock and top cover, shelter and fire reflector/protector... Loads of reasons to have multiple tarps that make it worth the space/weight imo.
@@farstrider79 depends on the material, and there are light weight tarps where the material and weave itself is dense enough to be water but not vapour proof.
Agreed that’s something that has always bugged me about some “survival” videos (not CCB) in that they try and push a minimalist set up and their one tarp absurdities wouldn’t help you survive a light morning dew
Really depends on how thirsty you are, but the wind can for sure make it tough. You finally get a little puddle in your tarp for almost a cupful. You make your move to scoop it and a wind gust kicks up so half of it ends up on your face and tge other half goes streaming down your body inside your clothing. Next moment you're wondering what's the preferred death: dehydration or hypothermia.
You can setup a normal tarp as well without that much sag, and then put a small rock anywhere on the tarp. That will create a depression and collect water there. If you have put the rock in the fire in the night and let it cool (to sterilise it), even better.
Good idea, if you get rain. What if you dont get rain or enough rain for a few weeks or even a month? Here in Manitoba Canada where I'm at, we have not seen enough rain this year. There is a fire ban on most of the summer, we can have a fire in a proper fire pit, not in all areas.
One guess at the top item you should probably stockpile. At least you are unlikely to have hoardes of hungry Americans walking in and expecting a promised land flowing with fruits and nuts.
Anyone have recommendations on tarps that are not treated with chemicals? I know there are shower curtains, but there’s not an easy way to hang it up to collect.
There's easy ways to set up a shower curtain. Find smooth round rocks about the size of a large marble. At the corners push the rock up into the material so the shower curtain conforms around it, then tie your line around the shower curtain material under the rock.
I’m not a bush-crafter, but, it seems like if all I needed was a drink and I had a container, I would just set my cup outside and stay nice and dry and out of the elements via the tarp. And collect that rain water in the cup. 🤷♂️ Any responses: ?
Sometimes. Every situation has a dozen variations of obstacles and opportunities. How dehydrated are you? How close to hypothermia are you? How windy is it? Do you even have a cup (lots of hikers these days do not) or will a cookpot work? Will the ground become a total mudpit followed by a frozen mudpit if the rain keeps up then turns to snow? Is it possible to squat on a pack while catching the stream if water? How much daylight is left? Will batteries last if it is done in the dark? Will an opportunity to collect unsoaked firewood be missed? How long will the rain last? Will fatigue and irresistable need for sleep set in real soon or or is there time? Will this water collection method just save my life or will I get enough to rehydrate for more than 24h of hard work? Do I ignore that hole in my tarp which is slowly soaking me, or can I spare a finger to plug it up? How long can I hold my arm and hand up like this?
The real crazy thing is that the occasion when you really need the water is NOT when everything else is going well. When all else is going pretty well you usually have some spare water already and you focus on staying dry. But later after a day without rain you think back on how useful it would have been if you had collected a couple extra liters of water.
You dig a hole in the ground, scoop dirty water in your hands. Make sure you choke down a few earthworms since you also neglected to pack extra food. You sleep only a few hours in the warmest part of the day and otherwise you hustle your naked ass out to a road. If they throw you in the looney bin at least you will have food shelter and a gown. Remind yourself daily that it was a lesson you had coming.
Do you have a video on stoves? Like maybe a survival rocket stove? Say your out in a survival situation and you have to cook on something. Just an idea. I know there are several different kinds you can use with wood. But which would be the most efficient?
Short range hiker I take it. Bjorn Andreas Bull-Hanson uses those very frequently, except when fire hazard is very high risk like now. I'm a long hiker who prefers to build fire pits for several reasons, however, convenience is a luxury I usually live without, and thats the benefit of those sheet metal stoves I think. Quite a few long distance hikers do use fuel stoves which are about the most convenient of all.
In a survival situation I would probably just look for a BBQ grill. If I have to move out lightweight then I might stash a few things, but I would try to avoid carrying extra burdens, especially replaceable stuff. If I have a safe spot for a fire, I'm not going to be too concerned with efficiency. Whatever works, whatever is available from coat hangars to car doors. I will add that the perfect size and type cook pot is a useful thing to find - preferences vary, but it seems like few people are into wilderness cooking (glamping don't count) mostly I just see people heating up water for dehydrated meals which I find disgusting to the max.
@@jamiepittman4855 Now that sounds like a major project unless maybe you find a burnout with just the right diameter and your camping saw is up to the task. I checked that out. Interesting backyard DIY powertool project. Cute novelty luxury. The dual pit or pit+air slot method I use a lot is based on a similar principle. Stealth + safety are often chief considerations when I build my fires away from civilization.
@@treebeardtheent2200 true, I guess I should have made a more accurate statement, and said if it's raining you could use a smaller piece of gear for water collection while you where using your tarp for shelter
1 - Basically not needed if rain comes directly from the sky. Really helps to have a clean tarp. 2 - Making fire in the rain is tough enough if that's the only challenge. Add water collection on top of it makes it extra tough. Presumption is that you are already somewhat dehydrated or at risk of becoming dehydrated. Lots of outdoor adventures really deplete water storage in the human body.
@@treebeardtheent2200 What if the area you collect the rain water from is near an industrial town. All those harmful particles are still in the rain water.
One is none, two is a hammock, cover and fire protector... I carry spaceblankets as voidfillera in packs because they have many uses besides the advertised. A lot of the best 'survival' or bush kit is better seen as what it can be, rather than 'what it is...'
True. When it's raining hard and your half soaked, the day is almost done, and you can expect a twenty degree drop in temperature overnight, how can you get the most from your last dry pair of socks? You change into them real fast and pull off two doggie poo bags from your handy roll. A bag over each sock covered foot. Slide on your wet grubby shoes or boots. Feet are still cozy and at bed time the bags can be used either to keep water out of your shoes outside or to protect your dry space from muddy shoes. Lots of other uses.
I build lots of campfires when I hike, but fussing with a fire when it's raining substantially is one of the last things I expect to do. If I had no shelter except what I might build from sticks and leaves, then it would be a different story. I'm also on the stickler side of insisting that my water (from the ground) be filtered before I drink it, but runoff from the sky I'm ok with. Last time I checked, Rudolph only goes pee on snowy December nights when I'm not out.
Dear friend, my name is Glenn, I'm 63 and I live in North Carolina. I have a 62 year old girlfriend in Cebu City, in the Philippines! I was there with her for three weeks, last year. Super-typhoon Odette (Rai) just devastated Cebu City as well as many other areas! There's no electricity, water, food, or gasoline readily available! Could you "please" recommend something that they can do, with limited resources, to at least collect water so they can survive until the government restores the water infrastructure! I don't want her or her family to die, in the meantime! What can people do there, in the next two weeks--or longer--to obtain water? The temperature during the day is around 86 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit! Any help you could offer is tremendously appreciated!!!! Thank you and God bless you!!
@@dougspizman6751 There's a technology that can take the moister for the air and make water probably cost a lot of money but makes it drinkable, but there's Also chemical that pulls in tge same and I don't know if it makes it drinkable but some companies use it so you can damp areas so your clothes don't get that musty smell on the clothes
LOL! thank you captain obvious. It is still good information. I did that on our 50 mile hike troop142 when i was10 or 12, and even the scout master was impressed that i came up with it.
geez,Chris, that intro is so bad and so loud ... I have to be careful with volume at night so I can't put your videos on autoplay. The very plain and great little intro you had was so nice...but now...a barrage of noise.
I've done that a few times on rainy backpack trips. Some trips I never broke out the water filter, just used rainwater for drinking, cooking and clean up.
