If you find yourself stranded in the wilderness with no place to go, your best chance of survival lies with you constructing a shelter in order to stave off the weather. For some ideas on how you could do that, we invite you to take a look at the information below.

A-Frame
Tarp Shelter The A-frame is a tarp design that gives great coverage against rain and wind, when built close to the ground. When suspended higher, it still provides coverage from rain, but it allows more airflow underneath. A-frames go up fast. Once you pick your shelter site, you should have your tarp hung up in 10 minutes or less, leaving plenty of time in the day to accomplish other survival tasks. To get started, suspend a line of cordage between two trees or similar supports. Lay your tarp over the line and tie down all four corners of your tarp. This shelter is a great addition to a tarp hammock or strung up over a springy bough bed. You can even use a poncho as an A-frame tarp shelter.

Bough Bed
This is not a shelter by itself, but it makes an outstanding addition to any other shelter type. To make a bough bed, you can use leaves, grass, evergreen boughs, or other plant material. Cedar and pine boughs are common enough in many places, but fir boughs make the softest bed. For the bed frame, roll up two logs, side by side and about 3 feet apart. Make sure they are longer than you are tall. Fill the void between the logs by laying down the boughs, several at a time. Dead, dry leaves or dead grasses can be a great addition if you have them. In snowy conditions, you’ll just have to stick with the boughs. Make the mattress so thick that you are at least 6 inches from the frozen ground or snow surface when lying down. Keep adding armloads of boughs or other vegetation if the mattress compresses too much or isn’t warm enough.

Leaf Hut
The leaf hut is a two-sided, wedge-shaped lean-to with much better weatherproofing and insulating qualities. To build one, select a long, sturdy pole 9 to12 feet long. Prop it up in the fork of a tree; or set it on a rock, stump, or two forked prop sticks. Then, cover the sides of the pole with tree branches to act as ribs. These are placed at an angle along both sides of the ridge pole. Place the ribs close together so that your hut covering won’t fall through. Next, heap vegetation over the framework (this can be anything that traps air, including grass, ferns, moss, pine needles, brush, or pine boughs). Two to 3 feet of vegetation covering all sides of the shelter is enough to keep you dry inside. Finally, fill the inside of the hut with a thick pile of vegetation for your bedding.

Round Lodge

The round lodge is a hybrid from many cultures. Part tipi, part wicki-up, and influenced by many architectural styles, a round lodge can block wind, rain, cold, and sun. It is structured like a tipi, with the addition of a solid doorway. These typically have a smoke hole through the roof, and can accommodate a tiny fire for heat and light. This shelter can be thatched with grass or mats; or it can be buried with a thick coat of leaf litter. Lodge styles like this abounded in the historic and prehistoric American west. This architecture worked equally well in wetter climates, and was used in pre-Roman Britain.

Snow Cave
A snow cave may be the only shelter option in areas with deep snow. This is typically the most dangerous shelter to create, as the inhabitants could suffer from low oxygen or even be buried alive in a ceiling collapse. Snow selection is a critical part to the snow caves safe performance. Select a deep, solid snow bank or drift. Dig into the side of it, forming a tunnel into a low spot. This is the “cold well”, which is a place where the colder air can fall and collect. Then dig up and over creating a shelf or platform to sleep on. This should be the highest part of the shelter. Dig a small hole about 6 inches in diameter somewhere in the roof for ventilation, especially if you plan on blocking the entrance with a doorway of backpack or big snow chunk.

Wedge Tarp
This tarp shelter is best suited for windy conditions with a constant prevailing wind direction. The wedge provides an aerodynamic shape which should resist the most biting wind and driving rain. With a minimum of 5 tie down points, the wedge is more secure than most tarps, and it even provides two corners that act as rain catches. To build the wedge tarp shelter, stake down two corners of the tarp into the wind (not opposing corners). Then tie up a line to the center of the opposite side of the tarp. Tie the remaining two corners down toward the ground. Use more cord and a less steep angle for open wings and better ventilation. Tie the last corners down sharply for the best weatherproofing. Place a few rocks or log chunks under the tarp by the first tie downs to create deeper basins to catch water. This shelter is a dwelling and a water harvester in one.

Wicki-Up
The wicki-up is a bit like a small tipi made from poles, brush and vegetation. This shelter can be found across the globe, but has been most frequently documented in the American Southwest. Thicker brush, grass, and leaf coverings along with a steeper roof can make this shelter suitable for climates with occasional rain. A broader, squattier structure covered with light brush can give you a shady, ventilated shelter for hot, dry climates. Collect several dozen poles, some with forks at the top. Lock a few of these forks together to build a freestanding tripod. Then lay the other poles around to create the tipi frame. Finish with the vegetation layer. If the wicki-up is large enough, and the vegetation covering the roof is wet or green material, it may be safe enough to risk lighting a tiny fire inside.

So whether you choose to carry a tent with you or you plan on relying on your own bushcraft skills to keep you alive in the wilderness, the article above should do well to make sure you go into the world fully prepared for whatever gets tossed your way.

If nothing else, making these shelters would be an excellent weekend project for camping or just for having fun with the kids. Plus, who wouldn't want a kickass wickiup in their backyard?

If you liked learning more about these shelters and would like to see more for various survival scenarios, check out Outdoor Life.