Guide · Shelter

Choosing a shelter site

Where you put your shelter matters as much as how you build it. A good spot keeps you drier, warmer and safer, and saves you energy.

Look up first

Before anything else, check above you.

• Avoid standing dead trees and large dead branches. They can fall without warning, especially in wind.
• Stay clear of the base of cliffs and steep slopes, where rocks or snow can come down.
• In snowy hills, keep away from slopes where avalanches could run.

Then look down

• Choose ground that is flat, or nearly flat, so you don't slide in the night.
• Pick a spot that is slightly raised. Rain runs off rather than pooling under you.
• Avoid dry stream beds, gullies and the edges of rivers. Water can rise fast after rain, even from storms far away.
• Check for ant nests, wasp nests and animal trails.

Think about the weather

• Valley bottoms collect cold air at night and can be several degrees colder than the slope above.
• Hilltops and ridges are exposed to wind and lightning.
• A spot partway up a slope, sheltered by trees, rocks or a bank, is often the best balance.
• Face the entrance away from the wind. If you know where the morning sun rises, facing it helps you warm up early.

Stay close to what you need

1. Water: near enough to fetch easily, but at least 60 metres away. Ground near water is often damp, cold and full of insects.
2. Materials: dead wood, leaves, branches or whatever you will build with.
3. Firewood, if you plan a fire.

Be easy to find

If you want to be rescued, choose a place near an open area, a track or a clearing where you can lay out signals. Don't hide yourself so well that searchers walk past.

A quick checklist

• Nothing above you that can fall.
• Nothing below you that can flood.
• Out of the worst of the wind.
• Water and materials nearby.
• Visible to rescuers if needed.

If a site fails on any of the first two points, keep looking. A few extra minutes searching can save a miserable or dangerous night.

This article is in the Grid Survivor app, searchable with no signal. Get the app · £4.99