Here are the top ten things to do in a survival situation, in order:

1. Don’t panic. Breathe. Relax.

2. Give yourself first aid if needed.

3. Inventory your survival items.

4. Assess any imminent weather dangers.

5. Find an open area where you can be seen from the air.

6. Create appropriate shelter.

7. Drink lots of water.

8. Make fire, but safely! Learn how to build fire in a variety of ways and how not to start a wilderness blaze in your quest for survival.

9. Signal for help.

10. Eat the wildlife, including insects, but nothing with more than 6 legs and no plants you aren’t totally sure of.

Ten Essential Survival Skills & Qualities:

Survival isn’t just about skills, but also attitude and mindset. Desire to survive, determination, persistence, willingness to plan, and learning survival skills ahead of time all increase your chances of survival. The best time to learn survival skills is before you need them.

- Will to survive

- Calm, poise, focus

- Make shelter

- Make fire

- Find and purify water

- Find food, hunt, trip

- Signal for help

- Navigate without map or compass

- Basic first-aid

- Weather prediction

The Most Valuable Survival Items:

We could probably debate this list endlessly, but I guarantee you’d much rather have these items with you than need them and not have them.

- Knife

- Poncho

- String/rope

- First aid kit

- Flint, tinder

- Water purifying tablets

- Whistle, mirror

- Wire saw

- Fishing kit

- Emergency blanket

Once you get into a survival situation, it’s too late to prepare and to learn the skills. Now is the best time to prepare to survive. Get your gear and get into a survival training class! See recommended classes and guides here.

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Brian Carter is an outdoor enthusiast, and a major fan of survivorman. He recommends you find your survival needs at adventure16.com.

Surfing- Some of the best south of L.A. are San Onofre, Tourmaline and Cardiff by the Sea.

Parks- Legoland is ok for kids but watch them trick you into buying stuff at every turn. Six Flags and Seaworld are incredible fun.

Disneyland! New attractions at California Adventure and Downtown Disney. Be sure to check out the newly-remodeled Space Mountain, as well as classics such as the Matterhorn and Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.

Orange County: Go to lunch at Ruby's on the Newport Beach pier, have a nice day out at the beach.

San Clemente: great breakfast/lunch place, Waffle Lady. Pico exit, near Staples. They have a dozen different waffle choices and toppings and other stuff.

San Diego: Seaport Village and Old Town are terribly touristy and don't offer too much. Seaport is a little better than Old Town. Try hiking Cowles Mountain. It's pretty easy and offers a nice view. Cedros Design District in Solana Beach is fun for shopping. There's a nice strip in Del Mar too. The San Diego Zoo, of course, does not disappoint- it's world class.

L.A.: Griffith Park Observatory. Tesla Coil demonstration.

Want to relax or golf? Check out the La Costa Resort and Spa. Expensive but 5 star quality.

More outdoors stuff: Joshua Tree rock climbing is so good it draws travelers from around the world, Death Valley is a huge playground for jeeping but not in the summer, San Jacincto is full of great hiking trails and just north of the great romantic getaway town of Idyllwild, San Gorgonio hiking is beautiful and intense enough to use as training for Mt Whitney, Mt Woodson is a nice morning hike full of cool bouldering problems. Check out the pioneering outdoor retailer Adventure 16 anywhere in Southern California- 7 locations.

The Del Mar Fair is, well, a big fair in June. You oughta see it at least once.

Casinos are all over... seen one you've seen 'em all.

International Surfing Museum - The International Surfing Museum located in Huntington Beach, California is home to a collection of some of the most significant artifacts in the history of surfing. With surf music and videos playing in the background, you'll be in the mood to view the many fine exhibits.

There are just too many things to do in Southern California! You'd better move here and get a job that doesn't make you work in the evenings and on weekends!

Brian Carter is an avid backpacker and rock

climber who also enjoys the lifestyle wear

created by the outdoor apparel industry. For more

information, he recommends you see Adventure16.

com and BackpackGearTest.org

The North Face also has a long history of sponsoring mountaineering expeditions- their gear has been tested in the most extreme places in the world, including Everest, Antarctica, Siberia, Tibet & Nepal.

The North Face is not the only company that makes quality technical outerwear- notable competitors include Mountain Hardwear, Arc'teryx, and Patagonia. If you want to go cheap, go for Columbia, but if you want quality that stands up to extreme cold and wind, stick with the upper echelon.

Polar fleece is is a soft fuzzy insulating synthetic wool fabric made entirely from recycled plastic bottles. It was created in 1979 by Malden Mills, a new, light and strong pile fabric meant to mimic and surpass wool. Polar Fleece has some of wool's finest qualities but weighs a fraction of it. It's a vegan alternative to wool that is very light, soft and easy to wash.

Polartec® x wt. Fleece is a technical title for polar fleece of a specific weight. Polartec® 100, 200 and 300 series fabrics are the reference standard for lightweight warmth and breathability.

The North Face has several proprietary technical advances in their use of Fleece:

- TKA Fleece: Thermal Kinetic Advancement Fleece are proprietary fabrics created by The North Face with superior insulation and wear-resistance.

- Apex™: A technology breakthrough - their signature stretch material has an abrasion- and water- resistant face and a comfortable soft-brushed interior.

- DWR Finish: Gives long life to waterproof technologies.

- Windwall™: The North Face's proprietary wind-resistant fleece. Fabric bonding limits air permeability and increases your comfort.

Not every fleece has all these features. The North Face has a bunch of options for you to choose from, and the jacket you choose is going to depend on what activities you're planning, what the weather in the target environment will be, and how much you're willing to spend.

Another way to choose between NorthFace fleeces is to check out customer reviews on various websites such as:

- Adventure16.com


- BackpackGearTest.org

- eBay.com

- epinions.com

- Shopping.Yahoo.com

Brian Carter is an avid backpacker and rock

climber who also enjoys the lifestyle wear

created by the outdoor apparel industry. For more

information, he recommends you see Adventure16.

com and BackpackGearTest.org