My name is Ralph, I am (at the moment) 32 years old.
I'm not a Wilderness survival instructor or some kind of ex-Navy seal, I am also not the next Bear Grills or Ray Mears. I am not trying to 'become' a caveman or a mountain man... I am just a common man with just more experience when it comes to wilderness living then the average person but still far from being an expert.
I am heading on a journey, a trip, a quest, an expedition in a few months from now. I am going to head out in the wilderness for years or more. This is not a publicity stunt or joke. My bags are packed.
Everyone's on Facebook, twitter, linkedin and google+ nowadays.. remember the time we all just had myspace? Man, it was simplified back then. Many people had those typical surveys on their myspace. Here is mine for old times sake..
Name:
Ralph Sungila
Nicknames:
Caedmon
Nicknames:
Caedmon
Nationality:
Dutch
Date of Birth:
20th May 1980
Sign:
Taurus
Place of Birth:
Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Parents:
Wim & Ike
Children:
3 Daughters
Haircolor:
Brown
Eyecolour:
Brown
Heighth:
1.80 m / 7.0 in
Weight:
60kg / 132lbs
Language:
Dutch, English, German
Hobbies:
Fishing, Drawing,Writing, Reading, Crafting
Interests:
Bushcraft, Wilderness survival, Ancient history and technology, Mythology, Astronomy and Science, Buddhism and Meditation, Primitive skills
Tattoos/Piercings:
2 tattoos on left and right arm
Fav Music:
90's rock and metal, 60's till 90's pop, Irish folk, some 90's hiphop
Fav Movies:
Star wars, Lord of the Rings, King Arthur, The Matrix, Tron Legacy, The Crow, 300, Braveheart, Gladiator
Fav color:
Purple
Fav animal:
Jaguar
Fav musicians:
Queen and the Beatles
Fav actors:
Julia Styles & Nicolas Cage
Best time of year:
Late spring
Best day of the week:
Saturday
what will your wife be doing while you are away?
ReplyDeleteNot sure, probably the same things she does now while i'm still here.. Spending time on herself, the kids, her family and her friends.. She might miss my presence at first but she won't miss me.. which might be a good thing
Deleteralph you are clearly of a very IQ - and sensitive. you are in an (almost) impossible situation. bad relationship/ nice guy / guilty about leaving kids - cannot take the pain of leaving them. so find an elaborate excuse to escape. it is sad, you should be very proud of yourself that you have such a deep compassion. but as i said - running away is not the best solution. tell your gf you do not love her, but you love your kids - take it form there. don't be afraid of her mate, she is human too in her own way.
ReplyDeleteit is late , if my comments are way off , i apologise - good luck whichever route you choose.
Hi there
DeleteIf I would run away to live in the wilderness just because I have problems with the lady would be a pretty stupid solution ;) The prablems in my relationship are just another reason why I want to do this. I'm also doing this to see how it is to live without money, what it's like to be completely alone, and i'm also doing this to clear my head and find inner peace.
I realy appreciate your comment, I realy do, But if I just had a problem with my girlfriend then I would not go away and leave society. Take care and good night
your daughter is beautiful, I am sure all 3 are. ralph, mate, you need to take a step back. you need to be constructive , not destructive. you need to BUILD your way out of your situation , creatively , not negatively. you like bushcraft? great = start running bushcraft courses - i have 80 hectares of forest in SW France - you can start there - and maybe build a fantastic summer cabin for your girls whilst you are there ... zuscom attt g mail dot comm - let me know bud.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the offer. I have been to France a couple of times before and loved it and the weather tends to be a lot better then in Russia or wherever I may end up. Still I have this urging feeling inside of "getting on my bike and I'll see where the road takes me" which to me sounds like ultimate freedom.
DeleteLike I have written before; My children are the only reason why I would stay but in the meanwhile I can think of a thousand reasons why I would leave. Make kids have all the right to try and make it in modern society it's just that that same society isn't for me. In order to pursue happiness I will have to make the biggest sacrefice of my life which is leaving them. But they will be on my mind
Live your dream Ralph. I know how you feel, I feel the same. Ultimately when civilization crumbles it will be people like you who have had a good hard look at living in the wild, or are already doing it that will guarantee human survival as a species. Those that blindly feed and live off society will sadly perish quickly. Without hunter/gatherer skills one walks a very thin rope, its only the veil of society that makes it seem safe. All the best to you from Australia.
ReplyDeletespot on! Not that long ago I also took everything for granted.. food at the supermarket, clothes, life itself. But everything has an end, from the slice of bread on my plate until civilization and eventualy humanity itself. And it is sad to see how most of us has lost their touch with the wilderness skills that once were so important. And yes they may become important again much sooner then we think. Prices go up and we want more and more.. I firmly believe in the theory that mankind will create it's own downfall.
DeleteTake care ;)
wow. I wish you well so much.. your children and wife are lucky to have you..someone who thinks and is trying something in life..People think that the concrete and and wi fi they are radiating themselves with and crap food they eat that is available in their cupboards.. is life.. it is not even the farmers that would know how to survive compared to the hunters and gatherers.. Please be safe and positive. I know nothing about this trip..but I would like it that you come back with a story to tell and you achieve this amazing dream for your soul.Be safe. you are amazing.
ReplyDeleteHi there and thank you for your comment.
DeleteMy wife and children may be lucky to have me now but there is a big chance they will curse my name later (which is understandable) for leaving them. In reality it is not about leaving 'them' but about leaving society. You are right, that's how I feel about urban living, it has a lot of things to offer me that I don't realy need. I have no idea if I will ever come back, if I do then I indeed have a heck of a story to tell and I would tell to anyone who wishes to hear.
Take care!
Ralph, regarding the question you had re surviving on meat alone - yes you can 100% but it needs to be prepared properly from the correct animals (no problem in the wild). Follow this link and download the Pemmican Manual from there. Take some fly door netting (the plastic stuff) with you to cover your meat when drying.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.pioneerhandbooks.com/how-explorers-made-pemmican/
Hi there
DeleteAs a non US citizen the concept of pemmican is totaly new to me. I have heard about it and always thought it was some kind of bread that could be made in the wilderness. I have downloaded the manual and I will take a good look at it soon.
Take care ;)
Hi Ralph,I like your blog,because I want to do the same thing.I'm 19 yo male,I live in Serbia.I was never able to fit in society.I don't have any friends,and I'm not looking for any.I feel trapped.I just don't want to be a slave of society.I know how humans and society function,and every time I think about it,I feel sick in my stomach.I am non-stop tired and unmotivated.The only place I can feel alive,free and full of energy is somewhere far from civilization.I feel that staying here would lead to my own destruction even faster than if I would left into wilderness right now.Last summer I went to the seaside in Montenegro.I climbed mountains there and I felt incredible,I could climb for hours without even drinking water,eating or stopping for a rest,even though it was extremely hot.I'm not sure yet,but as time passes by,my desire to leave increases.I only need to carefully learn how to get food and water,as those things are most important.I already learned what common plants I can eat.It's all about calories and plants don't have that much,so I need to figure out what foods would be more worth looking for.My approach however is more...well savage than yours,I was thinking about making something like a nest in the trees where I would only sleep,and during the day I would search for food and water.I would make my clothes from skin of animals I hunted,and "nests" from flexible wood.And I can say that I am a very good tree climber :)
ReplyDeleteThe main key for me is warm climate.I don't want temperatures to fall below 15 C at any time of the year.Also,I would have to be very close to the sea.The sea just offers so many things that would make life easier-food and salt for example.Also,during my time in Montenegro I was able to find clean,fresh water quite easily,so I imagine similar areas would work out the best for me.
So Ralph,I must give you some of my opinions on your plans.I think that you will never make it,or it will be very hard to survive in any area that has cold winter months,where temperatures fall below freezing point.If I would leave,or should I say when I leave it will definitely be some place where temperatures are warm throughout the whole year,and near the sea.But that's just my opinion.I just can't imagine surviving in a cold,snow covered forest.I think I will spend thins spring and summer "training" to survive in wild.I will start by spending 12 hours alone in the wild,to see how it goes.Then I will stay overnight.Then for two days and so on.When I reach the point where I can survive for more that 10 days without being starved or dehydrated(and of course returning home) I will leave for sure.
I'm sorry for a rather long post and for my English...I just never taught that there were more people considering(and doing) this.
Thank you for your reply
ReplyDeleteI can understand why people might think I will not make it in a cold enviroment. But there is a difference between us.. You were raised in the warm climate of the Medditeranian, and I was raised in the colder climate of North-West europe. I do not love cold temperatures but I am used to them.
But here is the thing.. I do not have a final destination.. At this moment my goal is to reach the Russian border and I have no idea where I will go from there.. I might end up in Siberia or I might end up in India. And eventualy I will be heading more to the south. One of my favorite country's is Greece and if there weren't so many people living there I would be heading that way.
So yes.. I will be heading towards a warmer climate eventually.
I don't know if your approach is more savage then mine. I will be bringing clothes with me but when they get old and ripped I will be turning to animal skins. My backpack will break down at some point. My knives will get too dull in order to repair it. So after a while I will have to improvise and use natural materials.
Rather the two of us survive or not depends on how good we are at improvising, skills and adapting to our enviroment. What climate we are in matter a bit less. Your story does seem a lot like mine.. I wish you the best of luck on your journey, I'm sure it will be a journey to remember ;) Take Care
Stumbled upon your blog after looking into survivalkits and read your story and all the different comments people made. I allways lived in a grey area about things where this society seems to demand more black and white, people want things to be clear and with reason.
ReplyDeleteSo I can understand people saying you can't just abandon your kids but I can also understand your need to pursue your own path in this life.
A few years ago I lost my soulmate and since then life just has me feeling trapped in a world that seems to grow more selfcentred and simplistic by the day. A world where even being outside people seem still feel that the most important thing is updateing statusses on Internet with facebook and twitter on cellphones. A world that seems to carry the word 'social' in almost anything but most the time you feel that it's exactly lacking social more than anything. I also feel a need to escape just not going as far as living in the wild as I probably wouldn't last a month. For me probably more somewhere where life is just easier.
People may think it inconsiderate and selfish to just abandon family and friends but to keep going on living a life that is not your path you want to follow will eventually lead to the same: you will 'adjust' to society and what is expected of you by other people but you will keep on losing yourself slowly. With whatever consequences that will bring.
What be worse to lose someone who goes their own chosen path to find themselves and their place in life somewhere else or to lose someone slowly by them faking to live a life they not really want? Is it worse to have someone be suddenly gone or to see them slowly spiral down each day for perhaps years and then lose them still in the end?
I know your situation might not be exactly like that, but I understand your drive and wish you all the best on your path and wherever it will take you.