Urban Survival in 2025: Adapting Wilderness Skills to City Environments

What happens when the grid goes down in Denver? Here’s how wilderness survival skills, straight from the mountains, can save you in the concrete jungle.

From our base in the mountains, we have spent years mastering survival in the wild by navigating rugged trails, building shelters from pine and snow and finding food where others see only forest and weeds. But survival is not just for the backcountry. In 2025, city dwellers are waking up to the reality that urban life can turn as unpredictable as a mountain storm. Blackouts, floods or supply chain breakdowns can make Denver’s streets feel like a wilderness of their own. That is why at The Survival University we bring our mountain honed skills to workshops in Denver, helping urbanites adapt the same resourcefulness, grit and know how we use in the wild to get by in the concrete jungle.

Urban survival is not about paranoia or Hollywood style heroics. It is about taking practical wilderness techniques such as navigation, shelter building and staying calm under pressure and applying them when the city grid falters. Below, we will show you how to repurpose these skills for urban challenges with tips you can practice today, whether you are in downtown Denver or beyond.

Why Urban Survival Is a Must in 2025

Cities are marvels of convenience but also fragile. A single snowstorm can snarl traffic, a power outage can darken entire neighborhoods and economic hiccups can empty grocery shelves. In Denver, where we run workshops to bridge the gap between mountain survival and urban life, we have seen how fast things can shift. Recent years have brought everything from wildfires threatening suburbs to flash floods turning streets into rivers. Add rising costs and supply chain woes and it is no wonder urban survival is trending.

The beauty of wilderness skills is their versatility. In nature, we teach students to read the land and make do with what is around them. In a city, those same principles of observation, improvisation and resilience can keep you safe when the lights go out. Let us break down how to make these skills work in an urban crisis.

Navigation: Charting the City Without GPS

The Trap of Tech Reliance

City life runs on apps. Google Maps and Uber keep you moving until the signal drops or your battery dies. In a blackout or disaster, GPS can fail, leaving you lost in a grid of unfamiliar Denver streets. That is where wilderness navigation takes over. In the mountains, we rely on landmarks, the sun, stars and good ol’ map and compass, paired with the know-how to read them right. Those no-tech and low-tech skills, honed in the wild, can guide you through Denver’s urban sprawl when technology lets you down.

Wilderness Navigation in Urban Settings

Out in nature, we teach students to spot natural markers such as a ridge, a stream or the way shadows fall. In a city, you can use skyscrapers, street signs or even the distant Front Range as your guide. For example, Denver’s grid often aligns with cardinal directions, so learning to read it like a topographic map can keep you oriented. In the wilderness, we use topographic maps to understand terrain and plan routes. Those same maps can help in urban areas too, showing elevation changes or open spaces that might be safe havens during a crisis. But for city navigation, a dedicated city map or road atlas is pure gold. Most of us lean on our cell phones to get around, but could you find your way without one, especially if streets are blocked or you need to detour outside your usual routes? A road atlas in your car or home can be a lifesaver, giving you a big-picture view of Denver’s layout and beyond, no battery required.

Memorize key routes such as from your office to Union Station just like you would memorize a trail in the wild. Better yet, keep a city map or road atlas handy to plot new paths when a flooded road or police barricade forces you off your normal track. We bring this approach to Denver in workshops like our Spirit of Adventure Family Navigation Workshop (April 26, 2025), where families learn to use maps, compasses and urban landmarks together. It is a fun way for city folks to build confidence in getting around, whether they are hiking a trail or navigating a blackout.

Quick Trick: The Urban Compass Hack

To use an analog watch with the correct time as an approximate compass in the northern hemisphere outside the tropics, hold the watch horizontal and point the hour hand at the sun. Halfway between that point and the 12 o’clock mark points south. In the southern hemisphere, point the 12 o’clock mark at the sun, and the north-south line is halfway between the hour hand and 12 o’clock. If you have a digital watch, consider getting an analog one. Declination can nudge it off a bit, but it will point you close enough. If you do not know what declination is or want to sharpen your navigation skills, join our 3 Day Navigation Course. It is a quick trick that works anywhere to keep you moving when Denver’s streets turn maze-like.

Shelter: Finding Refuge in the Urban Wild

Why Shelter Is Critical

In the wilderness, a shelter protects you from wind, rain, cold, predators and more. In a city, you face different threats such as debris from a storm, looters or bone-chilling exposure during a winter blackout. The goal remains the same: a safe space to rest and regroup. But just going inside is not always an option. Your house might be destroyed by a fire, flood or earthquake, and entire neighborhoods could be reduced to rubble, leaving no familiar refuge. Entering someone else’s home is risky; you could face hostile occupants or trigger misunderstandings in a tense crisis. Department stores or abandoned shops might seem inviting but can be dangerous, with broken glass, unstable structures or bad people lurking inside, waiting to exploit the chaos. FEMA camps and similar setups have often proven unsafe, with reports of theft, violence or poor conditions. Staying with large groups of people can make you a target or expose you to conflict, while going solo has its own risks like isolation or vulnerability. You have to assess the risk carefully. Random structures might also hide hazards such as gas leaks, mold from flooding or no access to food and water, trapping you in a worse spot. Wilderness skills teach you to work with what is at hand, and cities are full of possibilities if you know where to look.

Building Urban Shelters

In nature, we craft lean-tos from branches or snow. In Denver, you might eye abandoned storefronts, parking garages or a stranded bus for shelter, but pause to check they are safe. Confirm the structure is stable and free of hazards like exposed wires. Good spots draw others too, including bad people, so ensure no one risky is already inside. For quick cover, grab urban debris like plastic sheeting, cardboard or a tarp from a construction site. Insulation keeps you warm. In the wild, we stuff grass into clothing; in the city, pack dry, non-gross trash like newspaper, cardboard strips or clean fabric into your jacket or pants. You can also fill a trash bag with newspaper or bubble wrap for a sleeping pad, mimicking pine needles in the mountains. Trash is plentiful, so use what works.

The right gear simplifies this, which is why our Survival Kit Workshop (May 31, 2025, in Denver) teaches you to pack essentials like a tarp or cordage to boost your chances in a crisis.

Choosing a Safe Spot

Not every urban shelter is a good one, and picking the wrong spot can turn a refuge into a trap. In the backcountry, we scan for hazards like falling rocks, bear tracks or unstable slopes before settling in. In a city like Denver, you need the same sharp eye. Avoid flood-prone areas such as low-lying streets or underpasses that can fill with water fast during a storm. Steer clear of spots with heavy foot traffic during unrest, where crowds might draw looters or bad people looking for trouble. Watch for urban hazards like broken glass, live wires, crumbling walls or signs of recent vandalism that scream trouble. A good shelter should protect you without trapping you. A recessed doorway can work if it has an open exit to the street or an alley, staying hidden while letting you slip out fast. An elevated platform like a fire escape landing or a sturdy shed tucked behind a building also keeps you out of sight yet accessible with a clear escape route. Avoid spots with only one way in or out, like basements, which can pin you down if bad people arrive or the structure collapses. Check for nearby resources too, like a dumpster for insulation materials, but ensure it does not attract others who might stir up problems. Taking a moment to assess your surroundings can mean the difference between safety and disaster.

Resourcefulness: Making Do in the Concrete Jungle

Scavenging Like a Pro

Survival in nature means using what is around you. Sticks fuel fires, berries fill your belly, and even rodents can be food, though in a city, I am not eating a rat. They carry too many diseases compared to their wilderness cousins. If it is all you have got, cook it really, really well to kill off anything nasty. Cities are packed with other resources if you train your eye. Empty cans can become stoves, plastic bottles hold water, and discarded clothing insulates you. The mindset is what counts: see potential where others see junk. My wilderness survival training is a blessing and a curse; I cannot walk the city without constantly assessing the environment on everything around me, spotting value or danger most folks miss, like an item that will help with a fire, edible plants in someone’s yard, or an improved weapon just lying there. I weigh every single thing for its use or its risk.

Fire-starting is a core wilderness skill, and in a city, getting flames going is the first step. Dryer lint, shredded cardboard or greasy snack wrappers burn hot to catch a spark. Once you have got a flame, wood is everywhere: pallets, broken fences, dead trees or even old furniture. Use what is there to keep the fire strong. Our Backyard Bushcraft: How to Carve a Spoon workshop (May 24, 2025, in Denver) teaches safe knife handling and how to process wood, skills that help you think outside the box. Yeah, we are just carving a spoon, but look beyond that and see the real skills you are gaining by working the wood and handling the knife.

Water: The Urban Lifeline

Water is trickier in a city crisis. Taps might be dry or contaminated, and stores could be empty. Wilderness skills can save you, but you have to think sharp to find water others miss. Check the back of toilet tanks for clean water most folks overlook, or drain hot water heaters for gallons of untouched supply. Empty office water coolers, vending machine bottles or even decorative fountains can hold water too, but treat everything like it is suspect. Filtration and purification are not the same. Filtering through a clean bandana or shirt knocks out visible debris like dirt or grit. Purification kills bacteria and viruses you cannot see. The CDC says boil water for 3 minutes to make it safe, and that is the easiest method outside a manmade purifier, but it will not remove heavy metals, and neither boiling nor purifiers are 100%. Do your best with what you have got. Build a fire and boil any water sourced from the environment, but carry a metal container in your bag, like a stainless-steel bottle, because common Nalgene bottles most folks use cannot take the heat. Resourcefulness turns the city’s chaos into your toolbox.

Situational Awareness: Your Urban Survival Instinct

Reading the City Like a Trail

In the mountains, survival is a gut thing. You feel the wind shift, spot a fresh track or a branch snapped wrong, and it hits your chest like a warning drum. Cities demand that same raw instinct, but urban life can dull it. People get overstimulated by constant noise, crowds and screens, so they tune out their surroundings, missing critical signs like a sudden rush of people, distant sirens or a vibe that feels off. That habit of shutting down can leave them vulnerable, not just in Denver’s streets but also when they visit the wilderness, where overlooking details can lead to trouble. Training your awareness breaks that cycle, keeping you sharp in the city, ready to catch threats before they hit.

Country folks like us notice this gap in the city. We are tuned to every detail, the way a twig snaps or a shadow shifts, so in Denver, we pick up every car alarm, every odd glance, every choked alley. It is overwhelming, not because we are better, but because we are not numbed out. That clarity is heavy, and it makes us crave the mountains where signals feel simpler. You can build that same edge with a drill we use in the backcountry: every few minutes, stop and let the world sink in. Note five things such as sounds, smells or movement. In Denver, a car alarm might jolt your pulse like a warning bell. The sting of smoke in your nose could tighten your throat with unease. A blocked alley might send a chill up your spine, hinting at danger. These are your instincts begging you to stay awake, to feel the city’s rhythm and know when it is off. This habit keeps you one step ahead, heart steady, ready to sidestep trouble or find your way home.

Medical Know-How: Be Your Own First Responder

Injuries do not wait for a citywide crisis. Someone can bleed out in under a minute or asphyxiate in four, whether from a car wreck, a bad fall or a street scuffle. Even on a quiet day, EMS might not make it before those seconds run out. You can act now: to stop heavy bleeding, press hard on the wound with a clean cloth and do not let up until help arrives. If someone cannot breathe, check their mouth for blockages and tilt their head back to open the airway. These moves can buy time, but they are just a start. Skills like these, from stabilizing a fracture to spotting shock, are non-negotiable when every moment counts. Our Wilderness First Responder (WFR) course teaches these and more for urban and outdoor settings alike. It matches standard first responder training but adds how to improvise without proper gear, like using a belt for a splint or a plastic bag for wound irrigation. Get this training, because a minute can be the end.

Staying Cool: The Mental Game

Panic Kills, Calm Saves

Gear and skills are useless if your mind is a mess. In the mountains, we learn to stay steady through a storm or a wrong turn. Urban crises like gridlock, looting or plain uncertainty can rattle you just as hard. Picture yourself in a dark Denver alley, shouts closing in, your heart slamming like a fist. The good news is you can train your head to stay clear, just like we do in the outdoors.

One technique is box breathing: inhale for four, hold for four, exhale for four, hold again. It is dead simple and can slow that racing pulse in a short time. I also teach S.T.O.P.A: Stop, Think, Observe, Plan, Act. The biggest piece is to just stop. Do not keep moving and make things worse. Sit down, check what tools, gear or resources you have got and figure out your next step. Pair these with preparation like knowing your routes or shelter options, and you will stay grounded even when Denver’s chaos roars.

Nature’s Reset, Even in the City

People flock to parks to soak in nature, chasing that spark of joy it brings, whether it is the rustle of leaves or the warmth of sunlight filtering through trees. They should do it more, not just for a quick hit of calm but to truly connect. Kick off your shoes and feel the grass under your feet. Lean against a tree, run your hand over a plant without yanking it up, and let it sink in. Feel it, really feel it, and let that connection steady you. It is not some fluffy nonsense, it is grounding, and it makes you stronger. Even in a city, nature like a lone park tree, a distant mountain ridge or wind slipping through an open window pulls you back to center. Getting kids involved in this is huge, because they drink it in and build instincts young. When families join our Denver workshops, you see it: young ones light up as they tie into the world around them. Something like our Spirit of Adventure Family Navigation Workshop gets them outside, playing with compasses and maps, learning to stay found. It is not just about skills, it is about waking up to your surroundings, noticing more, feeling sharper. That training hardens you against panic, so when bad things hit, you are tougher to rattle. With the right mindset, a crisis becomes a chance to practice what you know. Navigation gets you out there, connecting with nature, and that awareness carries over, making you steadier in the city or anywhere else.

Start Today: Bring Mountain Skills to the City

You do not need a crisis to practice urban survival. Walk Denver’s streets without your phone to test your navigation. Keep a Get Home Bag in your trunk or at least the Five Cs of Survival: cutting tool, combustion device, cover, container, cordage, ready for any emergency. Look at your surroundings with fresh eyes, could that soda can be a stove or a cooking pot? These habits build confidence that carries over to any challenge.

For hands-on learning, we bring our mountain expertise to Denver with workshops designed for city folks. Our Spirit of Adventure Family Navigation Workshop (April 26, 2025) gets everyone comfortable with maps and landmarks. The Survival Kit Workshop (May 31, 2025) shows you how to build a go-bag for urban scenarios. Backyard Bushcraft: How to Carve a Spoon (May 24, 2025) sharpens your resourcefulness with simple tools. These classes give you a taste of The Survival University’s vibe and practical skills to start strong. Want to go deeper? Drive a bit further to our mountain campus for courses like our Wilderness First Responder or dozens of others, from foraging to advanced navigation. It is worth the trip to dig into skills that stick.

Urban survival in 2025 is about empowerment, not fear. By bringing mountain skills to the city, you are ready for anything, from a short blackout to a major curveball. Next time you are in Denver, look around. That concrete jungle is full of ways to get by, if you have got the know-how from the mountains and the grit to use it.

About the Author

Jason Marsteiner is the founder and lead instructor at The Survival University, where he’s turned his obsession with staying alive into a mission to teach real-world survival skills. Forget fancy gear—Jason’s all about the know-how that gets you through the wild or a city crisis. A published author of Wilderness Survival Guide: Practical Skills for the Outdoor Adventurer, he’s distilled years of hard-earned wisdom into lessons anyone can use.