Find Water In Dry Areas

Try this on your next camping trip. Keep the kids busy. They might get a buzz out of learning about nature. You can print this out
You cant guarantee you will be in a situation that is life threatening because of lack of water,
but you cant guarantee that you wont either.

If only they knew!!

You can do without food for a few weeks, but under extreme heat condition, your life expectancy can come down to hours
ok, there are many causes of rises in your body temperature (eg. fever), but what we interested in here is
HEAT STROKE caused through a lack of water and being subjected to extreme heat.

Check this link to Healthline to understand the seriousness of Heat Stroke and why we must avoid it at all costs.
http://www.healthline.com/adamcontent/heat-emergencies

Ok, now to finding water.
Here is the worse case scenario. I am in an arid environment and I have no access to water. I have absolutely nothing with me except the clothes on my body. The temp is 40 degrees plus and I am damn hot. I now have to explain how I got here.
This will have to be a good one hey?

Alright, I have thought about it. I fell out of an Airliner and landed in soft sand. That's better, now I can get on with the story.

Question: What's the first thing I look for? Answer: A shady spot to protect me from the sun and help cool my body.
There I can sit and work out how best to survive my dilemma. So, I got to thinking about this wonderful CD I bought called 'How to'.
I racked my somewhat small brain and came up with the following places to look for water.

This is what I remembered from that absolutely wonderful 'How to' CD, which was fantastic value.

Look around dry River/Creek beds for natural water soaks. Here's what to look for:
1. Damp areas
2. Areas where unusually green grass/plant growth is present
3. look around the Creek for depressions on the outside of the bend.
4. Look for natural catchment areas in any area in the Creek where water may have soaked in
5. Be aware of increased Mosquito activity in the Creek as they need water.
5. Look for large trees obviously thriving better than the rest in the surrounding area on the Bank
as they have access to a good plentiful water supply.
6. Watch where native Bees and Birds go. They wont be far from water.

When the heat of the day is at its lowest two hours after Sunup and before Sundown or on a
moonlight light, it is time to look for..........

Billabongs - Natural deep hole in a River/Creek bed
Walk slowly, remove excessive clothing to avoid sweating, rest in shade as often as possible and do not panic as
this increases your heart rate. With it, your whole system kicks into a 'higher gear' and uses more resources - including water
If you find water, it is best to boil it or at least filter it.
Boiling water is difficult without fire. In fact it is impossible!! See here:- http://www.walkaboutoz.com/content.p...ticks-Together
Water can be boiled by heating rocks in a fire and dropping the rocks into a container of water.
Hmmm!! Bugga!!, No container. Well, look for a natural container. A depression in a rock. A knot in a fallen branch.
If you have any tightly woven clothing (not synthetics as they will shrivel). Cotton or canvas is good, then you can wet it through, form a bowl shape in the ground and fill it with water. You can then drop the hot rock in to boil the water.
Water can be filtered naturally by digging a hole about 1 meter from the waterline. Dig down until you reach the water, then dig a little deeper and let it settle. Scoop out good water. You may need to go a little further from the waterline to find good water..
The principal behind this is 1 - 2 meters of ground will filter the water naturally. Try this at your local lake.

Also, are there are there Hills nearby
Its a good idea to look in crevices that are shaded during the day. Check at the bottom of any natural water course in the depressions. Look for Rock Holes. Even in the Great Sandy Desert, where temp reach 50 Celcius, there are many
large bodies of water. I have been to many of them and drank the water. Apart from the extra limbs I have grown, I am fine.
I know you don't have a compass with you, but if you can tell directions naturally, then look for the crevices that run North/South as these do not see much of the sun inside them each day as the sun passes over East to West

One question you may be asking your self is "Where do I find a Creek?"
Go to high ground and look for the treeline in the distance. Choose the one which has the greatest looking growth
Creek/Rivers are by nature lower than the surrounding ground. Head downhill.

Ok, this is all a little drastic, but I did say this is the 'worse case scenario'

I guess someone is going to email me and ask something like this.
Question: "What if I am in the middle of a huge salt lake (200 Kms across) in the Gibson Desert. It is 45 degrees,
I have no water and no nothing!! How do I survive?
Answer: Ya don't. hahahahaha

Well that's got that one out of the way. We'll get on with it now.

What I hope is that most of this stays in your memory, and if it is needed, you can recall it to save your life or the lives of others