A tongue-in-cheek guide to the many dangers of the Star Wars galaxy, and the best ways to avoid them

The Star Wars galaxy is a dangerous place. Would you survive in the spice mines of Kessel? Could you escape from a giant space slug?

From tackling extreme weather and finding shelter, to avoiding social pitfalls, learn what to do to stay alive in a galaxy far, far away.

We love the outdoors. We want to take care of it and we want to enjoy it. But with an excess of packaged food, single-use disposables and convenient consumables, are we loving the land to death? Outdoor enthusiasts are more galvanized that ever to be good stewards of the land on which they recreate. Here, for the first time, is the central, reliable guide to hiking and backpacking with minimal impact that outdoor enthusiasts need. Going above and beyond Leave No Trace, Outdoor Minimalist is a guide to actionable ways to waste less while hiking and camping and implement low-impact practices in outdoor pursuits. Look inside to find: Waste reduction tips and tricks for beginners and experts alike The seven R's of outdoor minimalism: reduce, refuse, rethink, repair, rehome/repurpose, remove, restore Packing lists to waste less with every trip you plan

Filled with valuable information for hobbyists, survival enthusiasts, family campers - and everyone who enjoys outdoor life, Traditional Skills of the Mountain Men is the essential illustrated guide to wilderness living and survival. How to make your own clothing, shelter, and equipment are all covered in step-by-step detail-through illustrations by the author himself. Learn how to make and use hunting tools and utensils, wild game traps, mountainman clothing, powder flasks and horns, tents, deer-horn jewelry, and much more. Wilderness survival skills are also covered, with instruction geared at both novice and expert. Learn how to trap wild game, tan hides, shoot with black powder, make a fire, and cook a hearty meal with only the barest of essentials.

'An intriguing and mesmerising book' Ben Fogle My life is free, random and spontaneous. This in itself creates enormous energy and clarity in body and mind - Miriam Lancewood Miriam Lancewood is a young Dutch woman living a primitive, nomadic life in the heart of the mountains with her New Zealand husband. She lives simply in a tent or hut and survives by hunting wild animals, foraging edible plants and using minimal supplies. For the last six years she has lived this way, through all seasons, often cold, hungry and isolated in the bush. She loves her life and feels free, connected to the land and happy. This book tells her story, including the very practical aspects of such a life: her difficulties learning to hunt with a bow and arrow, struggles to create a warm environment in which to live, attempts to cross raging rivers safely and find ways through the rugged mountains and dense bush. This is interwoven with her adjustment to a very slow pace of life, her relationship with her much older husband, her interactions with the few other people they encounter, and her growing awareness of a strong spiritual connection to the natural world.

From hand-forged axes of the Viking conquests to the American homesteader's felling axe, this is a tool that has shaped human history like few others. American Axe pays tribute to this iconic instrument of settlement and industry, with rich history, stunning photography, and profiles of the most collectible vintage axes such as The Woodslasher, Keen Cutter, and True Temper Perfect. Combining his experiences as a forester, axe collector, and former competitive lumberjack, author Brett McLeod conveys the allure of this deceptively simple woodcutting implement and celebrates the resurging interest in its story and use.

This stylish guide to all things to do in the outdoors will bring day hikers and campers of all ages closer to nature in delightful and unexpected ways. Readers learn traditional bushcraft skills, like making a bow and arrow, weaving a fishing net, and building a Swedish fire log, along with fun and accessible projects including making natural candles, creating a mudslide, and taking a night walk in the woods. Maria Nilsson's playful and informative illustrations bring each skill to life, making this the perfect gift for outdoors enthusiasts of all skill levels, from first-time hikers to experienced trekkers. The perfect size to toss in your day pack, 50 Things to Do in the Wild will become an essential companion on all your outdoor adventures.

Wilderness 101 is the companion guide for new adventurers. Aimed at preventing newcomers to the outdoors from ending up in "survival" situations due to a lack of preparedness, this guide will impart introductory knowledge and skills to readers applicable across a range of potential activities, and useful for anyone heading into the backcountry. Based largely on course material that Maurice has taught for 32 years, readers will learn how to prepare and be equipped for all varieties of terrain, learn the fundamentals of weather conditions and how to meet them, learn to avoid wildlife and avoid attracting it, learn essential skills and emergency procedures relating to several outdoor activities, and much more.

Finding your campsite, a spectacular view, or your way home can be difficult, especially when your phone or GPS malfunctions. But knowing how to use a magnetized compass, paper map, and the positions of the sun, moon, stars, and other practical aids in pathfinding will help outdoorsman find their way in almost any kind of terrain. Navigating With or Without a Compass will teach you the basics of using that essential tool, such as the difference between true north and magnetic north based on where you are and using compass bearings from a map and in the field to determine location. However if you find yourself without a compass, this handy guide will also give you natural signs and guideposts for pathfinding, such as the way the wind blows, trees grow, or flowers bloom. Also covered will be determining direction through reading the Sun and the shadows it forms, the position and stages of the Moon, and familiarizing oneself with the principal constellations to guide you and determine the time at night. Perfect for the skilled woodsman or just a walk in the woods, Navigating With or Without a Compass is filled with tips and essential knowledge indispensable for hikers, campers, scouts and nature lovers.

Seven common bear encounters and how to survive them Best ways to identify grizzlies and black bears Learn essential info on bear behavior at different times of year and in different habitats

Traveling in bear country comes with responsibilities to camp and hike in ways that respect the natural activities of bears. To give you the information you need to coexist with bears, " NOLS Bear Essentials" draws on NOLS' expertise and their 40 years of experience leading trips in bear country, as well as the input of noted scientists who have studied bears and their relationships with people. Learn ways to set up camp so as to not attract bears, the safest options for storing food when car camping and backpacking, and how to protect yourself while fishing and hunting.

Skills to Save A Life

Whether you are miles from help or immersed in an urban disaster situation, every second counts during a medical emergency. This book will help you take quick, effective action to stabilize the situation.

The easy-to-follow, step-by-step instruction in this book will help you prevent or respond to:

• Dehydration
• Hypothermia, frostbite and heatstroke
• Skin wounds including burns, cuts, bites and gunshots
• Anaphylaxis, allergic reactions and rashes
• Broken bones and injured joints

Find Joy in the Beauty and Wonder of Birds Birding is among the most popular outdoor activities-especially in California, where hundreds of different bird species can be seen and observed. Now is the perfect time to join the fun and let our feathered friends astonish and inspire you. Award-winning author, naturalist, and wildlife photographer Stan Tekiela has written the best-selling bird identification guides for almost every state. In Stan Tekiela's Birding for Beginners: California, he provides the information you need to become a skilled birder in the Golden State. The first section of the book presents "how to" information. Learn the basics of bird feeders. Get to know your birdseed. Create a bird-friendly yard-and even make your own bird food with do-it-yourself recipes. The book's second section is an identification guide, featuring 63 California birds that are most likely to be seen at your backyard feeder or near your home. The species are organized by color, making it simple to identify what you see. If you spot a yellow bird, go to the yellow section to discover what it is. Each bird gets a full-page photograph with notations about key field marks, or identification characteristics. The full-color photos are paired with information ranging from the bird's nest and eggs to favorite foods, as well as Stan's fascinating naturalist notes. Give birding a try, and get started with the guidance of an expert. You'll be amazed by how much joy birds can bring, and you'll have a lifetime to enjoy them.

95 Essential Survival Skills
Survive almost anything nature throws at you with this collection of tested wilderness skills.
-Prevail against ice, cold, and hypothermia
-Scramble out of raging whitewater
-Stare down the angriest predators
With practical advice for survival situations from the relatively likely (such as needing to build a fire in the rain) to the extreme (skin and cook a snake) to the just plain awesome (make a blowgun), this book could save your life, as well as providing a fascinating armchair read. Geared to the hunter or fisherman, but with something for almost everyone who loves the great outdoors, this is the book you want to be sure you throw in your backpack before heading out into any potentially sketchy situation.

"There's no getting away from it; I've eaten some pretty extreme things in my time - live tarantulas, raw goat testicles, elephant dung, you name it. In a situation when your life depends on it, you need to put your prejudices aside to keep your stomach filled and your strength up. Whether it's mastering the art of foraging and cooking up a tasty feast around the campfire or learning about the more extreme end of wild food (ever tried a scorpion kebab?), there's a lot to learn when it comes to dinner time in the wild. This book will teach you all the necessary skills and techniques to get your teeth into meals you might never have thought of as food in the first place - and, crucially, how to recognise plants and animals that might end up doing you more harm than good. In today's world, we rarely need to venture beyond the local supermarket and we turn our noses up at the thought of snacking on bugs and grubs. But out in the wild, Mother Nature has provided us with a plentiful supply of nutritious - if not always delicious - food for the taking. And when needs must, we just have to know where to look. Some of it might take you out of your comfort zone. Some of it might turn your stomach. But it's saved my life more than once. And one day, it might save yours . . ." What readers are saying about Extreme Food: 'Enjoyable and informative . . . bon appetit!' 'Great gift for outdoor adventurers' 'This book could save your life'

Manage hiking, camping, backpacking, and outdoor emergencies There’s never a good place for a medical emergency, but some locations are much worse than others. If you are out in nature, far from help, when the unthinkable happens, you must be prepared. Outdoor Medicine is your handy, portable, easy-to-understand guide that helps you to follow the correct course of action. Whether it’s illness, injury, or life-or-death conditions, author Patrick Brighton, M.D., FACS, is there to lend his experience in assessing and managing backcountry emergencies. The author’s expertise—as a board-certified trauma surgeon and a mountaineer, climber, kayaker, and member of a mountain rescue team—has allowed him to develop concise descriptions of the diagnosis, treatment options, and evacuation strategies for several common medical emergencies. This tabbed booklet is organized by type of injury, so you can quickly reference the information you need to evaluate and treat the condition. There’s no need to wade through time-consuming data that you won’t use. The easily digestible instructions help you to assess the situation and decide how to proceed, with tips on what to do and what not to do. The guide also takes into consideration the variable challenges you might face: limited resources, weather, victim/rescuer capabilities, and evacuation options. With strategies based on the latest research from the American College of Surgeons, the American Heart Association, and Dr. Brighton’s decades of experience, you can be certain that you’re getting the best advice available. So get this pocket-sized guide to outdoor medicine, and hope that you never have to use it—but take comfort in knowing that it’s there if you do.

Tackling the unclimbed west face of the remote Siula Grande in the Andes, Joe Simpson and his partner Simon Yates achieved the summit before disaster struck. A few days later, an exhausted Simon staggered into base camp to tell their non-climbing companion that Joe was dead. For three days he wrestled with guilt as they prepared to return home. Then a cry in the night took them out, where they found Joe, badly injured, crawling through the snowstorm. Far from causing Joe's death, Simon had saved his friend's life when he was forced into the appalling decision to cut the rope.

In response to the ever-present threats facing our school systems, Public School Emergency Preparedness helps schools and institutions develop a comprehensive emergency response plan. This book outlines programs and procedures that can be applied to any school system which addresses hazard mitigation and prevention, emergency preparedness and response, and recovery and restoration to an effective learning environment. It describes specific actions and assigns responsibilities and response roles to district and individual school staff emergency teams, cooperating agencies, and community response partners as described in this plan. In the event of an emergency involving response by fire and/or law enforcement, this book also outlines the district/school site personnel who should establish an Incident Command System-based response organization in accordance with procedures outlined in the National Incident Management System. In addition, the author predetermines, to the extent possible, operational procedures across any U.S. school system and cooperating governmental, private, and volunteer agencies for responding to and recovering from any and all types of natural, human, or technology-based emergencies that may occur within school system operations or outside the jurisdiction of the school system but nonetheless cause/could cause collateral impact to school system operations.

Concealed Carry Class: The ABCs of Self-Defense Tools & Tactics is a comprehensive guide to recognizing, avoiding and surviving violent confrontations. It covers everything from situational-awareness skills that can be honed to help keep you and your loved ones out of potentially dangerous scenarios; to the mental discipline it takes to carry a concealed weapon every day; to evaluating and selecting concealed-carry hardware, including handguns and calibers, holsters and clothing; to training drills you can use to become proficient with a handgun, and remain proficient through regular practice. Tom Givens calls on decades of firearms and law-enforcement experience to put together this practical collection of tips and tactics anyone can use for the safe, responsible and legal carrying of a concealed weapon.He has been involved in armed confrontations both as a police officer and as a private citizen, and has seen firsthand how decent people, with proper training, can fight back and overcome criminal attacks. -- Tom Givens

Best Easy Day Hikes Moab includes concise descriptions and detailed maps for twenty easy-to-follow hikes in the desert parks as well as in the canyons near town. From renowned Arches National Park to secluded Dead Horse Canyon, these hikes, most less than 5 miles long, will fuel your desert hiking fever.

The men and women of Yosemite Search and Rescue work around the clock, ready to respond at any hour in any weather. It’s not all helicopter heroics and plucking unlucky rock jocks off The Nose of El Capitan. It also means helping the teen with the busted ankle on the Mist Trail, finding the missing child in Tuolumne Meadows, and rescuing the newlywed clinging to a slick rock after her raft implodes. Most of Yosemite’s nearly 4 million annual visitors leave the park without a scratch. For a few, however, a vacation in this world-famous land of cliffs and waterfalls takes a turn for the terrifying. That’s where the YOSAR team comes in. Author and legendary YOSAR team member Butch Farabee relates epic tales of endurance and survival, misadventure and fatal consequences. Also included are: the origins of Search and Rescue in the national parks, including the U.S. Army’s key role; advice for staying safe in the park; profiles of SAR pros who do this dangerous work every day; stories about YODOGS and animal rescues; innovative techniques developed in Yosemite and now used around the world; photos and descriptions of top-tier gear used by this world-class team of medics, climbers, and swift-water experts; stats that any adventure geek will love; and, of course, plenty of helicopters! A must-read for thrill-seekers, armchair travelers, national park novices, and expert explorers alike. Get the inside story on the elite YOSAR team, and get inspired (and informed) for adventure anywhere!

For a generation, the Basic Illustrated series has been as much a part of the outdoors experience as backpacks and hiking boots. Information-packed tools for the novice or handy references for the veteran, these volumes distill years of knowledge into affordable and portable books. Whether you're planning a trip or thumbing for facts in the field, Basic Illustrated books tell you what you need to know. Use Basic Illustrated Animal Tracks to discover how to identify animal tracks, read other animal signs, make plaster casts and tracings, practice observation techniques, participate in conservation projects and more.

" A beautifully written account of a great American tragedy--the unsolved murders of an undetermined number of young women, all by the same serial killer, who got away. The truth is still buried. I couldn't put it down." --John Grisham, #1 New York Times bestselling author A riveting deep dive into the unsolved murder of two free-spirited young women in the wilderness, a journalist's obsession--and a new theory of who might have done it. They must have been followed. That's the thought I return to after all these years . . . In May 1996, two skilled backcountry leaders, Lollie Winans and Julie Williams, entered Virginia's Shenandoah National Park for a week-long backcountry camping trip. The free-spirited and remarkable young couple had met and fallen in love the previous summer while working at a world-renowned outdoor program for women. During their final days in the park, they descended the narrow remnants of a trail and pitched their tent in a hidden spot. After the pair didn't return home as planned, park rangers found a scene of horror at their campsite, their tent slashed open, their beloved dog missing, and both women dead in their sleeping bags. The unsolved murders of Winans and Williams continue to haunt all who had encountered them or knew their story. When award-winning journalist and outdoors expert Kathryn Miles begins looking into the case, she discovers conflicting evidence, mismatched timelines, and details that just don't add up. With unprecedented access to crucial crime-scene forensics and key witnesses--and with a growing sense of both mission and obsession--she begins to uncover the truth. An innocent man, Miles is convinced, has been under suspicion for decades, while the true culprit is a known serial killer, if only authorities would take a closer look. Intimate, page-turning, and brilliantly reported, Trailed is a love story and a call to justice--and a searching and urgent plea to make wilderness a safe space for women--destined to become a true crime classic.

If you want to get a total body work out, climbing is the way to do it, and building your own climbing wall allows you to train and have fun any time you want, rather than having to drive to a climbing gym during open hours. Building Your Own Climbing Wall provides the essential information you need to plan and construct your own indoor or outdoor climbing wall, including step by step instructions, equipment lists, information on how to make your own holds, and specific building plans and design ideas for making your climbing wall make maximum use of the space you have.

Step out of your car and into adventure! Minnesota's North Shore is a paradise of trails, waterways, and scenic beauty. It's meant to be explored. No one knows this better than local author and outdoors enthusiast Katie Berg. She has hiked, biked, and paddled her way through the entire region. Now, she's sharing the best trips with you. If your idea of fun involves hiking boots, bicycles, or kayaks, grab this guidebook and gear up! You'll be introduced to more than 40 options for outdoor adventure. From pedaling one of the Midwest's top-rated bike parks at Spirit Mountain to paddling along the shoreline of the Lake Superior Water Trail, experience the adventures that this unparalleled region has to offer. Each featured outing includes maps, full-color photographs, driving directions, and a detailed description, so you know what to expect on every trip. Plus, if you seek extreme adventure, this guidebook includes bonus destinations for climbing and scuba diving. With North Shore Adventures at your fingertips, you'll always know what to do and where to do it!