Customer Reviews: RHODESIAN - BUSHCRAFT & TRACKING SKILLSJanuary 21, 2004 Troy A. Lettieri(NC, USA) 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This book is an in-depth study of survival/bushcraft skills as they pertain to Southern Africa (primarily Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia, and Angola). The book is authored by the world famous founding commander of the Selous Scouts, Rhodesia's elite combat trackers and pseudo-terrorist unit. Reid-Daly (also authored "Pamwe Chete - The Legend Of The Selous Scouts") shares extensive bushcraft secrets taken from years of operational experience in the Rhodesian "Bush War". This book was the brainchild of Al Venter (Author of "The Chopper Boys: Helicopter Warfare In Africa" and "War In Angola") who saw a need for a book on survival geared to the Southern African scene. Other experts who assisted with this book was, Brian Robinson former commanding officer of the Rhodesian SAS and a founding member of the Rhodesian Tracking and Bush Survival School and John Ashburner former tracking instructor from the Selous Scouts, who made a major contribution to the tracking and bushcraft section of the book. The "Staying Alive" covers all the typical skills associated with this type of book but shines in certain sections. For example the section on water explains how to locate indigenous water bearing plants, methods that can only be applied in that location of the world. The food section information on local plants is extensive as well as the information on edible game. A high light of the section is the information on parboiling as well as cooking and consumption of rotten meat (Any one familiar with the Selous Scouts selection process is familiar with this technique. During the selection course the scouts were given a baboon to kill but were not allowed to eat or quarter it, it was hung out for all to see, as the days went on the scouts were not allowed to eat, then after a week or so, the scouts were given the rotten carcass to eat, after proper instruction on handling and cooking the rotten meat.). The medical and navigation section also have extensive information on local factors to take into account. Finally I think the high light of this book is the tracking section which covers animal tracking and human tracking the later being prevalent. This section is as close as one will get to the tracking skills employed by the Rhodesian Security Forces. The section is basically a revamped military program of instruction. I cannot say enough about this section of the book, other then outstanding. The book is heavily illustrated with quality line drawings. I provided the contents:
******************** Acknowledgment Introduction - Staying Alive ONE - Survival TWO - Water THREE - Food FOUR - Construction Of Shelters FIVE - Finding Your Way SIX - Tracking SEVEN - Improvised Weapons EIGHT - First Aid NINE - General Points TEN - Home And Personal Security ELEVEN - Medical Survival Notes (Total pages - 269. Size 9 ½" x 6")
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