I have worked and lived in, or near, most of the locations I
mention in my next older posting-Subarctic Berries and Images Thereof. I have
flown in most of the bush planes, passenger planes, and helicopters, commonly used in the Arctic at
the time-1970s and 80s- even a Lear jet.I have flown over mountains, through narrow mountain passes; landed on steep mountain slopes, on the very top of mountains; on ice, snow, and water. Never during that whole time; no, not even once, was the pilot or I ever equipped
with a parachute; so the odds that you; unless you have purchased, and packed, one in your own Personal, Survival or Arctic Kit, having one available if, and when, you find
yourself in an actual, survival, situation are very, very, remote indeed-it just
is not going to happen-so forget about all your “cool” methods of building shelters and/or tents in which you employ the
use of one.
Parachute Cord
Parachute cord (also known as Para-cord or 550 cord) is a
light weight nylon rope originally used in the suspension of parachutes during
World War 2 (it did not originate in the United States of the Americas). As
documented in the original Survival Manuel used by British Empire Air
Forces-Down but Not Out-aircrew found this cord to be very useful for many
other tasks; consequently it is now used as a general purpose utility cord. Because it is fashioned from nylon which is elastic by nature, par-a-cord is also fairly elastic; but, just as nylon in is is basically impervious to water, soaking parachute cord for 10-15-20 minutes, for several hours, or for several days, will not cause it to stretch more.
Illustrations below: Wikipedia-http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/deed.en
Illustrations above: Wikipedia-http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/deed.en
What makes it most useful and practical for use- even over
and above the spools of prepared fishing line that I recommend including-
in your survival is that the braided sheath has a high number of interwoven
strands for its size. But, the all-nylon construction makes the cord elastic;
depending on the application, this can be either an asset or a serious
liability. parachute cord may be used in almost any situation where light cordage is needed
and typical uses include attaching equipment to harnesses, building shelters,
snares and traps.
Remember, however, that fashioning a gill net-long proven to be, by far, the most effective method of catching fish, under any conditions;bushcraft survival or otherwise-takes a lot of cordage; which is one of the main reasons why I still recommend including several spools of fishing line in your larger survival kits. Effective as a gill net is, it is not always the best choice in a survival situation where your cordage supplies are going to be limited, to say the least; the set-up I show below may be a much better one.
The cords core (commonly referred to as “guts” by North Americans) can also be removed when finer string is needed; as is usually the case when used to fashion fish lines or nets, sewing or repairing gear. The nylon sheath may also be used alone the core threads removed, when less elastic ties are needed, such as when used as a boot or moccasin lace Ends of the cord must be melted together to prevent fraying. Hikers and other outdoor sports enthusiasts may want to fashion a Survival bracelet, arm band or even anklet; made of several feet of Para-cord; which is woven (usually using one of the slight variations of the original, simple, one strand, Conquistador braid which is similar to knitting), into a compact and wearable form of jewellery that not only has many practical uses; but is undoubtedly, potentially far less dangerous to ones physical well-being than most of the other, senseless, absolutely useless, body art, and jewellery that people wear.
Such bracelets are meant to be unravelled (just like the knitting of a sweater), whenever one needs rope, or cord, for whatever purpose.
The cords core (commonly referred to as “guts” by North Americans) can also be removed when finer string is needed; as is usually the case when used to fashion fish lines or nets, sewing or repairing gear. The nylon sheath may also be used alone the core threads removed, when less elastic ties are needed, such as when used as a boot or moccasin lace Ends of the cord must be melted together to prevent fraying. Hikers and other outdoor sports enthusiasts may want to fashion a Survival bracelet, arm band or even anklet; made of several feet of Para-cord; which is woven (usually using one of the slight variations of the original, simple, one strand, Conquistador braid which is similar to knitting), into a compact and wearable form of jewellery that not only has many practical uses; but is undoubtedly, potentially far less dangerous to ones physical well-being than most of the other, senseless, absolutely useless, body art, and jewellery that people wear.
Such bracelets are meant to be unravelled (just like the knitting of a sweater), whenever one needs rope, or cord, for whatever purpose.
Unfortunately, while
some commercially available Para-cord is made to specifications, much of it, even
when labelled as such; will be of inferior quality, and strength. Particularly
poor quality examples may have significantly fewer, or no separate strands in
the inner core (core constructed of bulk fibre rather than individual yarns or
include materials other than nylon.
© Al (Alex, Alexander) D. Girvan-2012
