Getting out of Dodge (GOOD) is only the first part of staying safe in a dangerous survival situation. With others out there that are less prepared than you are, confrontation is bound to occur. While you should be prepared to defend yourself, the best option is to avoid confrontation whenever possible and the best way to achieve that is to camouflage yourself.
Proper camouflage is more than putting on military pants and a jacket though; it’s a way of thinking. From how you walk to the color and even the texture of your clothes and what you have with you; camouflage is important. Check out the basics below to get yourself better acquainted with camouflage and get hiding.
Change Shape and Outline
The human eye is great at picking out patterns. It’s why we see animals in the clouds and it’s also why you can see someone trying to hide in the bushes. Our eyes are meant to pick those outlines out and to recognize the patterns.
This is why you need to first pay attention to the shape of yourself as well as your pack and any weapon you have with you. People are good at picking these basic shapes out, and anyone looking to get you will definitely be scanning for these.
Break up your outline by placing small pieces of plants and trees into your clothes and your pack. Try to stay close to thick brush and trees so your outline is harder to distinguish. Basically do whatever you can to make your outline look less like a person and more like natural shapes.
Pay Attention to Color and Texture
Along with your outline comes the color and texture of the clothes and items you have with you. This greatly depends on the area you’re surviving in, so pay attention to this based off of the area you’re in.
Color is pretty self-explanatory, meaning that you need to blend in with the local flora and fauna by matching their colors. Texture on the other hand, can be tricky.
Think of it this way, you don’t want to have dead leaves and branches covering you while you’re laying in a grassy field. While you’d hide really well with that in a heavily wooded area, you’ll stick out in the grass like you were wearing neon colors.
Pay attention to the textures around you and do your best to match them with anything natural you can find.
Don’t Stay Shiny
The material many packs are made from tends to be on the shiny side, as well as items like canteens, water bottles, and food wrappers. All of these introduce shine into an environment that shiny is rarely seen.
This shine can lead to fairly easy detection and should be avoided as much as possible. Along with items comes your own skin. As you sweat your skin becomes shiny, especially on your face and head. Use camouflage paint as well as charcoal from an expired fire to paint your face and any skin that’s showing to reduce its shine and help keep you safe.
Shadows – Good and Bad
Shadows can be your best friend or your worst enemy. Try to stick to shadows whenever possible to keep yourself hidden, but also pay attention to where your own shadow falls, as it can give you away just as clearly as not having camouflage on at all can do.
Keeping to the shadows also forces anyone looking for you to work hard at scanning shadows, which can exhaust their eyes and make the rest of your hiding that much easier.
Pay attention to where the sun is and walk so your shadow falls where you can see it. Try to avoid walking at the top of hills whenever possible and instead use the valley at the bottom as a natural camouflage. Walking across the top of a hill shows your silhouette, which is a dead giveaway no matter how much paint and camouflage clothing you have on.
Obstacles
Most natural and even man-made obstacles have a very specific shape to them that people get used to. Try to go around obstacles whenever possible to avoid silhouetting yourself above them.
If you must go over an obstacle like a downed tree, rock, or manmade barricade keep your body level with the top to keep your silhouette to a minimum. The less of your outline that can be seen, the safer you are. Remember, you never know when someone might be watching.
Movement and Noise
Finally, one of the best ways to camouflage yourself is to pay attention to your movement and noise. While it’s unlikely that you’ll have to worry about a cell phone ringing when the SHTF, you can still have an accidental beep from your watch, or a crackle from a radio you have with you.
Pay attention to the sounds that your movement makes as you walk. Try to use external sounds to cover these, like a flowing river or wind through trees. If you’re attempting to move around an unknown or enemy grouping, use the sounds of generators and other machinery if possible to hide the sound of your movement.
The same goes for movement itself, too. Fast movement is easier to see than slow movement, since it breaks the patterns we are used to seeing up much more, attracting attention. Slow, deliberate movements are best and when trying to avoid a known enemy, no movement at all is ideal.
Slow movement also has the side effect of preserving your energy and keeping you safe from twisted ankles and other injuries.
