LATEST OUTDOOR GUIDES
Keep up to date with the latest guides, activities and resources from Survival Guides UK. Explore new articles covering outdoor skills, survival, Scout activities, camping, navigation, knots, fire safety and practical skills.
Our latest posts are designed to help Scouts, youth groups, leaders and anyone interested in outdoor learning develop practical knowledge and confidence. From new activity ideas and survival skills to useful how-to guides, check back regularly for the latest resources.
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Camp Stove Safety
Activity Overview Difficulty: BeginnerTime: 30–45 minutesLocation: Suitable outdoor cooking areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Stove safety, fuel handling, camp cooking, fire safety, risk awareness Camp stoves provide a controlled way to cook outdoors, but they still involve flames, hot surfaces and potentially hazardous fuels. Safe stove use starts before the stove is lit and includes…
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Campfire Reflector Cooking
Activity Overview Difficulty: IntermediateTime: 1–2 hoursLocation: Suitable campfire or outdoor cooking areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Camp cooking, fire management, heat control, food preparation, pioneering Campfire reflector cooking uses a reflective surface positioned beside a campfire to direct radiant heat towards food. It can be used for baking bread, bannock, potatoes and other foods without…
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Campfire Roasting
Activity Overview Difficulty: BeginnerTime: 30–60 minutesLocation: Suitable campfire or outdoor cooking areaBest for: Cubs, Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Camp cooking, fire safety, food hygiene, heat control, teamwork Campfire roasting is a simple outdoor cooking method where food is held over the heat of a campfire using a suitable skewer, roasting fork or other approved equipment. It…
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Campfire Baking
Activity Overview Difficulty: IntermediateTime: 1–2 hoursLocation: Suitable campfire or outdoor cooking areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Camp cooking, fire management, food preparation, heat control, teamwork Campfire baking is the process of baking food using the heat from a campfire rather than a conventional oven. It can be used to make bread, bannock, damper, scones, cakes…
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Ember Cooking
Activity Overview Difficulty: IntermediateTime: 1–2 hoursLocation: Suitable campfire or outdoor cooking areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Fire lighting, camp cooking, food preparation, fire safety, teamwork Ember cooking is the process of cooking food over the steady heat produced by hot, glowing embers rather than directly over flames. A well-established bed of embers provides more even…
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Splitting Firewood Safely | Scout Woodcraft Skills
Activity Overview Difficulty: AdvancedTime: 30–60 minutesLocation: Suitable outdoor woodcraft or campfire areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Axe safety, woodcraft, fire preparation, tool control, concentration Quick Answer Splitting firewood means using a suitable hand axe to divide small pieces of prepared wood into smaller sections for a campfire. For Scouts, this is an advanced practical skill…
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Making Feather Sticks | Scout Fire Lighting Skills
Activity Overview Difficulty: IntermediateTime: 30–45 minutesLocation: Suitable outdoor woodcraft or fire-lighting areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Knife skills, woodcraft, fire lighting, preparation, concentration A feather stick is a piece of dry wood with thin curls of wood shaved from the surface while remaining attached to the stick. These fine curls provide extra surface area and…
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Making Tinder Bundles
Activity Overview Difficulty: BeginnerTime: 30–45 minutesLocation: Outdoors or indoors for preparation; fire-lighting area for testingBest for: Cubs, Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Fire lighting, woodcraft, material selection, preparation, observation A tinder bundle is a loose collection of dry, easily ignited material used to turn a spark or ember into a small flame. Good tinder should be dry,…
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Fire Piston
Activity Overview Difficulty: AdvancedTime: 45–60 minutesLocation: Indoors for demonstration or a suitable outdoor activity areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Fire-lighting principles, air compression, observation, experimentation, fire safety A fire piston produces heat by rapidly compressing air inside a small cylinder. The compression causes the air temperature to rise enough to ignite a small piece of…
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Bow Drill Fire Lighting
Activity Overview Difficulty: AdvancedTime: 60–90 minutesLocation: Suitable outdoor fire-lighting areaBest for: Scouts and ExplorersSkills: Friction fire lighting, woodcraft, fire safety, patience, observation, problem-solving A bow drill creates an ember through friction between a rotating wooden spindle and a fireboard. A bow provides the movement, while a bearing block holds the top of the spindle in…
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