Will to Live: Dispatches from the Edge of Survival Read online

  At this point, he had two choices: give in to desperation or pull himself up by the bootstraps and soldier on. For Yossi, the decision was clear: he would survive. And in those moments when he began to feel hopeless, he would whisper his new personal mantra to himself: “Man of action, man of action.” This was a terrific survival strategy, whether Yossi knew it or not. Repeating a phrase or a comforting thought can be a strong motivational tool in a survival situation, one that helps keep the mind focused on the positive aspects of the situation, not the desperation.

  There are several other ways to bolster your will to live in these situations; most revolve around thinking about the people you love, and how wonderful it will feel to be reunited with them. Some people turn to spirituality or religion in times of great stress, and derive comfort, confidence, and strength from prayer and meditation. There is also a benefit to talking out loud—to yourself, nearby animals, trees, or rocks. This can help clear your head and put you on the road to survival.

  * * *

  Survival Kit for Rafting

  bandana

  belt knife (with sharpening stone)

  bug netting

  candle

  cup (metal, collapsible, for

  boiling water)

  dried food

  duct tape

  fire-starting devices

  fire-starting tinder

  first aid kit

  fishing lures

  flares

  flashlight

  folding saw

  garbage bags (orange)

  GPS unit

  hand lens (small)

  map and compass

  marker or “surveyor” tape

  money

  multi-tool or Swiss Army–style

  knife (with saw blade)

  needle and thread

  parachute cord (or similar rope)

  pencil and notebook

  protein bars

  safety pins

  signal mirror

  snare wire

  solar blanket

  SPOT personal tracker

  water purification tablets

  water purifying straw

  whistle

  Ziploc bags

  * * *

  The next morning, Yossi decided to go back and look for the life raft in the river. His innate survival instincts began to demonstrate themselves immediately. He was careful and meticulous in the route he chose down to the river, recognizing how dangerous it would be if he hurt himself on the way. Eventually, he made it down to the raft, where—through a huge stroke of good luck—he found the lifepack, too! Inside, he was delighted to find its contents—rice and beans, flashlight and matches, lighter, map, mosquito netting, poncho, first aid kit, insect repellent, and wallet—intact.

  Yossi’s ability to think clearly in an otherwise desperate situation was amazing. In his first day completely alone in the jungle, he used his red poncho to make a signal in case Kevin wandered nearby; he successfully killed, skinned, and gutted a poisonous lora snake (which he later used for fishing bait), harvested an unidentified yellow fruit from a tree laden with fire ants, and improvised a shelter in a stone wall. Yossi’s response in these early stages is a classic example of how a person’s individual ability can come to the forefront when the other members of the group are no longer around to overshadow it.

  He began walking back toward Kevin, but his feet were in bad shape. He had begun to develop the same trench foot that had plagued Marcus for so long, only worse. To help ease the pain, he swallowed a pill from a box labeled uppers in the first aid kit, then made his way back up the Tuichi.

  I’ve found that strong pain medications can be very helpful in a survival situation. I usually take Demerol with me, in case of a major pain-inducing injury like a broken femur. It not only erases the pain, but also helps calm you down, thereby preventing the shock (which can be as dangerous as the pain) that often accompanies such serious injuries. As long as you are trained in the proper use of strong painkillers (and it’s vital that you are), you can get yourself through some pretty debilitating injuries.

  Yet the drug, combined with Yossi’s relatively empty stomach, was too much. Like a man possessed, he ran through the jungle with reckless abandon for hours on end. At one point he came to a sheer rock face. The Tuichi flowed some two hundred feet below, but Yossi—determined to find Kevin and fueled by a feeling of invincibility from the drugs—scrambled up the cliff, putting himself at great risk. At one point, he even fell off the wall, but had his fall broken by the pack on his back.

  In those first few days, Yossi was often stricken with fear at the thought of the many potential dangers lurking around him, but he took active measures to stave it off. He looked for a stick that he could use as a club or spear, an excellent choice in a survival situation as it can be used for many tasks, including protection from jaguars—the main large jungle predator. Unable to find anything suitable, he practiced using his insect repellent as a flamethrower, another brilliant bit of innovation.

  Yossi settled down on a plateau not far from the river and waited for five days before concluding that he was not going to find Kevin. In the meantime, his feet began to heal and his fever settled, so waiting proved to be the perfect strategy. Too often, people ignore their bodies and try to push through the pain, when they should instead stop, rest, and take care of themselves before moving on. Five days later, Yossi was in much better condition, and he decided to walk downriver to a small seasonal camp called Curiplaya, where he hoped to find people.

  As Yossi started his journey to Curiplaya, he could not stop obsessing about food, a classic reaction in these situations. I have done the same thing during every one of my survival episodes. Usually, around the fourth day without food, I start craving big, hot pieces of pizza dripping with gobs of melted cheese because my body is craving fat, and melted cheese is the perfect solution. My mind makes the connection, and dreams of pizza invariably plague me on long nights alone in the wilderness.

  Yossi soon decided that traveling along the riverbank would be too slow and arduous, so he made for higher ground and meticulously picked his way up the steep mountainside that fell sharply down to the river below. After his close call on the cliff nearly a week earlier, Yossi realized that getting injured would have been the kiss of death. He was right. Even something seemingly as minor as getting poked in the eye with a branch—not to mention tearing an ankle ligament—is enough to turn someone from survivor to victim. All movements must be measured and calculated and made calmly.

  Back near the top of the mountain, Yossi realized he had no idea which direction to travel, as he could no longer see the river, which had been his only reference point. Dejected, he decided to return down the treacherous slope; he seemed to have no other choice than to pick his way along the steep banks of the Tuichi. That trip had to wait until morning, though, as darkness was setting in. He was near panic when he realized there was no suitable place to find shelter and he was unable to make a fire. He fashioned a makeshift tent from the mosquito netting, armed himself with what few items he had in his pack that he could use in self-defense, and sat nervously as total darkness fell.

  A few hours later, Yossi heard sounds coming from the brush around him. He tried to ignore them, but when the rustle of leaves was accompanied by what sounded like footsteps, he turned on his flashlight to reveal a jaguar standing a few yards away, staring at him and waving its tail slowly from side to side. Yossi screamed, but the jaguar was not deterred. Near panic, he reverted to his insect-repellent flamethrower: he pressed down on the nozzle and lit the spray with his lighter, spitting out a jet of flame. When the can was empty, Yossi was scorched and temporarily blinded, but the jaguar was gone.

  The next morning, Yossi was overjoyed at seeing the sun, a feeling I’ve experienced every time I’ve been on a survival expedition, when waiting all night for the dawn can be an agonizing experience. All you want is for the sun to rise, but the darkness plays tricks with time and
dawn never comes fast enough. Your otherwise-helpful wristwatch can become your nemesis, too. There’s nothing worse than looking at your watch and expecting to see 5 a.m., only to find out it’s just past midnight. These are the lost and lonely hours of survival situations, when you feel a chill rip up your spine and realize that daylight is still hours away. It’s then, more than any other time in a survival ordeal, that all you want is to be home.

  With the sun up, Yossi began the trip back down to the Tuichi. The brush was too thick to show the way, so he again relied on his wits and began following streams, knowing they would eventually lead him down to the big body of water at the base of the mountain. This was another smart decision. As a general rule, following a river downstream is advisable, if you are fairly certain of what lies along the way. Following a watercourse downstream also works well in the continental United States, where just about any river will eventually lead to a town or city.

  Yossi eventually made it back to the shores of the river, where he swore never again to venture into the heart of the jungle. At the rushing water’s edge, he felt safer, more secure. As light faded into dusk, he came upon a cave at the edge of the jungle, another of his many lucky breaks during his time alone. Here, Yossi holed up for the evening, knowing that the cave would provide protection from the wind, which had chilled him after an entire day of rainforest downpours. Wind is one of the most dangerous weather elements you can face in the wilderness, particularly if you’re wet and already chilled, even in the jungle.

  All too often, people may remember a warm summer rain and figure they can’t get chilled in the tropical heat. But rain and wind can lower your body temperature to the point of hypothermia just about anywhere on the planet. At the very least, this deadly combination can lower your core temperature enough to draw precious energy reserves from your body when you need them most. Continuing to think and act like a true survivor, Yossi warmed himself by pulling his rain poncho over his head and breathing heavily into it to create a bit of warmth. He correctly recognized that you sometimes have to put up with a little hardship (in this case, claustrophobia) to protect yourself from further jeopardy.

  Having now spent nine days alone in the jungle under extreme and sometimes horrific circumstances, Yossi decided to spend a day at his new campsite to rest, heal his deteriorating feet, and dry his clothes. While exploring the area, he came upon a tree, some fruit of which was lying on the ground. Getting the fruit off the tree was nearly impossible, however, until Yossi again relied on his ingenuity to solve the problem. He tied some of his fishing line around a rock and hurled it at the tree, where it wrapped around a branch and caught. By tugging on the branch, Yossi was able to dislodge quite a few of the fruits. It was a bounty for an otherwise starving man, and a whole new twist on fishing.

  I am continually impressed by Yossi’s survival mentality. He had an extraordinary will to live, the creative genius to solve the many challenges that were thrown at him every day, and a fair bit of luck. Of course, he was also helped immensely by the fact that he had a survival kit with him, and that he knew enough to keep himself in good physical shape.

  * * *

  What Would Les Do?

  It may be tempting, but deciding to eat fruit or other wild edibles you have no knowledge of is potentially dangerous, too. One way to determine whether you should indulge in a possibly life-saving food source is through the Edibility Test, which ensures that only small parts of the plant contact your body at one time, in slowly increasing increments. The Edibility Test requires a lot of time and effort, so make sure there is enough of the plant in question to make your efforts worthwhile. A final note: the Edibility Test is also a last-ditch effort, and does not work on all poisonous plants.

  1. Test only a single plant type at a time, and don’t eat anything else during the test period.

  2. Rub the plant on a sensitive part of your body, such as your wrist. Wait forty-five minutes for signs of any adverse effects like nausea, hives, dizziness, or shortness of breath.

  3. If no effect is detected, take a small part of the plant and prepare it the way you plan on eating it.

  4. Before eating, touch a small part of the prepared plant to your outer lip, to test for burning, tingling, or itching.

  5. If there is no reaction after five minutes, place the plant on your tongue. Hold it there for fifteen minutes.

  6. If there is no reaction after fifteen minutes, chew a very small amount for fifteen minutes; be alert to any adverse effect. Do not swallow.

  7. If you still feel fine after chewing for fifteen minutes, swallow it.

  8. Wait eight hours. If you begin to notice any adverse effects, induce vomiting and drink as much water as possible. If there are still none, eat a small handful of the plant.

  9. Wait another eight hours. If there are still no negative effects, you are likely safe.

  * * *

  After resting at his shoreline campsite, Yossi set off down the Tuichi toward Curiplaya. According to the map, he thought he would make it there the following day. He was right. He soon stumbled into Curiplaya. It was abandoned, but he was overjoyed to find four well-built huts waiting for him. And beds! Yes, he would sleep well in Curiplaya.

  Yossi used his time in Curiplaya to plan the next part of his journey. He would walk to a town called San Jose, which he estimated he would reach in a few days. His rationale was sound: Curiplaya was used as a

  seasonal camp by people who lived in San Jose, so the trail between the two places must be well marked and easy to follow. He again afforded himself a little time to rest, exploring the camp and looking for the trail that would lead him to safety. I agree with his decision to move on. It showed proactivity in a tough situation. Staying put was not a viable option.

  Yossi set out the next day. The trail began wide and well marked, but soon narrowed considerably, forcing Yossi to search for machete marks on trees to find the route. He sang while he walked, another great mind trick to make you feel better and keep you motivated in an otherwise desperate situation. In a handful of my survival situations, I have either sung aloud or played harmonica while walking. It accomplishes a few things: it kills time, it gives you a focus other than your pain or dire circumstances, it can lift your and your travel mates’ spirits, and it can scare off predators ahead on the trail. I use this method in thick bear territory all the time.

  Yossi’s confidence had grown to the point that he actually hoped he wouldn’t be rescued. He wanted to walk into San Jose on his own. He soon came upon a sandy beach littered with driftwood. Still thinking like a survivor, he piled the logs into the shape of the letter Y and the number 12, representing his first initial and the date. Yossi correctly recognized that every opportunity to be proactive in effecting survival—or rescue—is golden. He rarely seemed to miss a chance to better his circumstances. Later, he stumbled upon a nest with four spotted eggs. When he cracked one of the eggs open, he was shocked to see a tiny baby bird curled up inside. He couldn’t bring himself to eat it, but finding the eggs was yet another sign of Yossi’s good fortune. He happened to be in the Amazon at nesting time, which provided another opportunity for food. The same thing happened to me when I spent a week on one of the Cook Islands. It just happened to be the one week when the brown boobies were learning to fly, a ritual that begins with them falling to the ground, where they waddle around helplessly. Like Yossi, I first held back on making an easy kill of the young birds. But a day or two into surviving without food, they no longer looked like cute little birds to me. They looked like dinner.

  Later in the day, Yossi was extremely discouraged to find that he had been walking in circles for hours. It was a heartbreaking moment for him, but one that again illustrated his mettle. With desperation gnawing at his soul, he did not give in to the situation, but decided to make the best of it. He would learn from his mistake and continue on. Famished and exhausted, he trudged back to the bird nest and ate the embryonic contents of each egg. He slept that night in a makes
hift shelter that protected him from the incessant rain.

  The next day, he was lucky enough to come across the nest of a wild chicken, brimming with six freshly laid eggs. He feasted on four of them and carefully stowed the others in his pack. Then disaster struck. Walking down a steep, grassy hill, Yossi slipped on some wet grass and impaled his anus on a dry stick. Drenched with blood, he pulled out the spear and tried to stop the bleeding, which seemed impossible. Half an hour later he began to move on again, cursing himself for having become careless. Yet Yossi’s bad day continued when he stumbled through a thicket of bushes and disturbed a hornets’ nest. The hornets swarmed Yossi and stung him mercilessly, until he threw himself, nearly blind and hysterical, into the river for relief. For whatever reason, this was the day when Yossi’s luck turned bad, and this particular additive force in the struggle for survival no longer benefited him.

  The jungle had begun to take its toll on Yossi. The rash on his feet returned with a vengeance thanks to the near-constant rain, and his clothes were in tatters. Yet he continued on, occasionally finding eggs and the odd bit of sunlight to sustain him. The thought that he would soon be in San Jose—which he calculated to be some thirty miles downstream of Curiplaya—kept him going. During these, his lowest moments, Yossi began to hallucinate and daydream, his mind’s own form of self-defense from the harsh reality of his situation. These kinds of fantasies, which are extremely common among people who survive long ordeals, can go one of two ways: they either keep you going or torment you into craziness. Luckily for Yossi, the dreams kept him going.

  Like Yossi, I often dream during my survival expeditions, sometimes very vividly. Usually, it’s around my fourth night alone that the dreams become very real. I find myself in some wonderful place, often with my kids, only to wake up and remember that I am still sleeping in the mud. Words cannot describe how demoralizing that can be.