Five manner uben “survive” in the leitsch

Five manner uben

What makes five seasoned men live in and from nature for four weeks, renouncing all the comforts of civilization?? There are no dropouts. It's more a matter of men breaking out of their everyday lives and surviving independently of society, so to speak.

Of course, they are not alone in this endeavor. Tobias kruger, a trained experiential padagogue – a "wilderness teacher", as he says himself -, accompanied and led the group. "On the one hand it is an adventure, but on the other hand it is also a piece of self-knowledge and self-experience", kruger explains. It's not like you go to a campsite with camping equipment, food and maybe a radio, where you can find everything else you need.

Hardly any amenities

although the meadow in the leitsch is designated as a youth campground, the amenities are missing. "Our equipment consists of the most necessary: backpack, sleeping bag and camping mat. Also two changes of clothes and a knife", the wilderness teacher explains. Over time, the knife becomes the most important part of the company, serving to make plates and spoons and also to provide firewood, a dry sleeping surface and much more. A water bottle and cans for cooking are the only amenities that the participants have with them.

It is an experience of a very special kind. Especially city dwellers often lack the awareness of nature. But here you can experience nature up close. They know that if they don't build a good shelter to sleep in, they will freeze and get wet when it rains. So everyone pitches in and sets up something with the possibilities that nature offers.

Branches keep the ground dry

So spruce branches cover the ground and keep it dry. Because there is not much deciduous forest in the redach valley, the shelter cannot be built from leaves and branches; so a tarpaulin is used. This will be specially placed – with a flue, so that fire can be made, and a small entrance, so that as little heat as possible escapes. "It's very warm in there and somehow also cozy", is the unanimous opinion of the men.

When you live together in close quarters for four weeks and get your food from nature, then you know each other and the others inside and out. You sense whether you can rely on the other person, and you do so instinctively, as the people involved describe their situation. You realize that you can trace freedom independently of society and in the end "civilization" can perceive again more intensively. But you also realize that there is so much you don't really need in life.

Herbs, small animals and potatoes

ild herbs, small animals, fruit from wild apple trees and potatoes that can still be found in the harvested fields, these are the main foods in the camp. Tea, made of fruits and herbs, becomes a delicacy. With the making of plates and wooden spoons, the last objects disappear from the "civilized everyday life".

"However, we did not get along completely without other foodstuffs, there is simply too little of it here. We bought potatoes and onions and a rabbit", trainer tobias kruger has to admit. In his opinion, it would have been easier in the past. There was much more agriculture, more fields and fruit trees, it was easier to catch a rabbit or fish, and tasty herbs and berries were more abundant in the woods.

What is the conclusion that the young men draw from this experience?? What do you take with you? "They all want to test their limits, experience nature and see if they can really go four weeks without all the comforts of modern civilization.

I have also had groups where participants dropped out because they couldn't stand it", says tobias kruger. However, the situation in the leitsch is not bad; they are not disturbed and they also have the "washing machine" and the "bathroom, say a small stream, right next door.