Long before power grids, supermarkets and 911, ordinary families stored food for winter, found clean water, built their own shelter and treated everyday injuries with what grew around them. The Lost Ways brings those proven skills back to your home, in plain language you can use today.
The Lost Ways by Claude Davis is a large-format survival and self-reliance book, written with a team of experienced contributors. It gathers the practical skills that pioneers, frontiersmen, homesteaders and Native Americans relied on every day to feed, shelter and protect their families.
These were not weekend hobbies. For the generation that settled the American West, knowing how to preserve meat, store water, keep a fire going all night or treat a wound with plants was simply how life worked. Within a few generations, most of that knowledge quietly disappeared.
Many of these methods were never written down. They were passed from parent to child at the kitchen table, in the barn and on the trail. When that chain broke, the knowledge went with it.
The Lost Ways puts it back in your hands. Each chapter explains a single skill, why it worked, and how you can use it at home today. The tone is practical and friendly, and the book is designed to be read in short sittings and kept on the shelf for years.
Most of us depend on long supply chains for everything we eat and drink. A storm, a long power outage or a sudden jump in prices can empty store shelves in a single afternoon. Very few households today could go even a couple of weeks on their own.
Our great-grandparents faced harder times with far less, and they came through. They had no freezers, yet they kept meat for months. They had no water utility, yet they always had something safe to drink. Their secret was not money or gadgets. It was knowledge.
Learning even a handful of these skills brings real peace of mind. You worry less about the next emergency because you know you can handle it. You also save money, waste less food and enjoy the deep satisfaction of doing things with your own hands.
Many readers say the best part is sharing what they learn. Making pemmican with the grandkids or building a simple smoker together turns preparedness into a family tradition worth passing on.
The book is organized around the essentials every household needs. Here is a taste of the skills covered in its chapters.
These favorites show why so many readers call it the most practical book on their shelf.
Native Americans, fur traders and scouts lived on this compact mix of dried meat, fat and berries. A small amount provides lasting energy, and the book walks you through making it at home.
Before refrigerators, families dried and smoked meat to keep it safe for months. Learn how a simple smokehouse worked and how to bring the method into your own backyard.
Two slanted racks of logs roll fresh wood into the flames as the fire burns down. It is an old woodsman's trick for steady heat through a long, cold night with far less tending.
Wild lettuce often grows along driveways and fence lines. Learn how to recognize it and how earlier generations traditionally used its milky sap, along with the precautions to take.
With only one wagon for months on the trail, every item had to earn its place. Their packing lists are a brilliant guide to building a practical emergency kit today.
Root cellars, rain barrels, smokehouses and woodsheds made old homesteads remarkably self-sufficient. The book shows how each worked and how to adapt them to a modern yard.
The Lost Ways is edited and coordinated by Claude Davis, whose writing focuses on Old West history, homesteading and practical self-reliance. The book comes from the team behind the long-running preparedness website Ask a Prepper.
Rather than relying on one voice, Claude Davis brought together a group of contributors, each with a specialty. Some write about frontier history and how Old West towns protected themselves. Others focus on traditional shelters, food preservation, hunting or plant knowledge.
The result is a book that respects the past without being stuck in it. Old methods are explained alongside the modern materials you can find at any hardware store, so you can try them this weekend.
That mix is what gives the book its range. You move from pemmican to water filters to herbal poultices, and each chapter reads like advice from someone who has spent years on the subject.
If you have ever wondered how your family would manage without the grocery store or the power company, this book was written for you.
Add time-tested food, water and shelter skills to your emergency plan, with methods that never need batteries.
Preserve your harvest, store root crops through winter and make more of what your land already gives you.
Enjoy true stories from the frontier while learning exactly how pioneers solved everyday problems.
Share hands-on skills with the next generation and keep family traditions alive.
Build better fires, preserve game and find your way outdoors with confidence.
Cut waste and grocery bills with old-fashioned methods that cost little or nothing.
Ordering takes only a few minutes. Here is exactly what to expect.
You will go to the official order page for The Lost Ways in a new tab.
The official page opens with a video about pemmican and the skills in the book. Turn your sound on. The order buttons appear just below the video.
Pick the digital book, the printed book, or the printed book with the digital copy included.
Checkout is handled by ClickBank, a well-known online retailer, and accepts major credit cards.
Digital orders get access right after payment. Printed books ship within the US, and a tracking number arrives by email.
The best time to learn how to store food and water is before you need it. Get the complete book, three free bonus gifts and 60 days to decide, all from a single payment of $37.
Secure ClickBank checkout · One-time payment · 60-day money-back guarantee
Every order currently includes three free bonus gifts in digital format. Recent offers have included these practical guides.
The plants worth giving space to in a self-reliant garden, so your backyard becomes a living pantry.
Free with your order
How the pioneer approach to daily life could help a family carry on if the power grid went down for a long time.
Free with your order
A simple way to organize your canned goods so the oldest cans get used first and nothing goes to waste.
Free with your order
The vendor chooses the gifts and may change them at any time. The official order page shows the current selection.
Every option is a one-time payment with no subscription, and every order includes the free bonus gifts and the 60-day money-back guarantee.
$37
Instant access, available worldwide
$37
+ $11.19 shipping and handling (US only)
$37
+ $11.19 shipping and handling (US only)
Prices and shipping were checked on October 20, 2026. They are set by the vendor and may change. Sales tax may apply at checkout.
A general comparison with the other places people usually turn to for survival know-how.
| Feature | The Lost Ways | Typical modern survival manual | Free videos and blogs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Focus | Proven skills from pioneers and homesteaders | Often gear and gadgets | Scattered tips |
| Food preservation | Pemmican, smoking, root cellars, hardtack | Often freeze-dried foods | Varies by creator |
| Water | Collecting, filtering and long-term storage | Often bottled water and filters | Varies |
| Shelter and heat | Roundhouses, self-feeding fire, candles | Tents and stoves | Varies |
| Traditional remedies | Herbal poultices and wild plants | Usually first aid only | Mixed reliability |
| Works offline | Yes, printed or downloaded | Yes | Needs internet |
| Price | $37 one time, plus 3 bonus gifts | Varies | Free, with ads |
| Guarantee | 60-day money-back guarantee | Store return policy | None |
Based on the typical features of each type of resource. Individual books and channels vary.
You can try The Lost Ways for a full 60 days. If you decide it is not for you, the vendor promises a full refund. You can read it, test the skills and share it with your family with no risk at all.
Here is what happens after you place your order.
Access is available as soon as your payment is approved. The digital edition downloads as a PDF you can read on your phone, tablet or computer. If your confirmation email is missing, check your spam folder.
Shipping requests go to the fulfillment center automatically. Orders are processed within 2 to 3 business days, and delivery can take up to 10 business days. Orders do not ship on weekends or holidays.
The printed book currently ships to addresses in the United States only. Shipping and handling is $11.19 at checkout. Readers outside the US can order the digital edition.
When your book leaves the warehouse, you receive a shipment confirmation email with your tracking number.
Your payment is processed by ClickBank. The charge appears on your bank statement as CLKBANK*The Lost Ways.
For questions about your order, download or refund, email the vendor at support@thelostways.com. ClickBank customer support is also available at 1-800-390-6035.
TheLostWayss.com is an independent review site. We do not take orders, ship books or process refunds.
Traditional skills are rewarding, but some were developed long before modern safety standards. Keep these sensible rules in mind as you put the book to work.
Possible poisoning? In the US, call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 right away. The call is free, confidential and answered 24 hours a day. Learn more about the HRSA Poison Help line. For a medical emergency, call 911.
The Lost Ways is a large-format survival and self-reliance book edited by Claude Davis. It teaches the practical skills pioneers, frontiersmen and Native Americans used to find water, preserve food, build shelter, make remedies and protect their families without modern conveniences.
The book is edited by Claude Davis and written with a team of contributors named on the cover, including Fergus Mason, Erik Bainbridge, Susan Morrow, M. Searson and Lex Rooker. It comes from the team behind the preparedness site Ask a Prepper.
You choose. You can order the digital edition for instant access, the printed book, or the printed book together with the digital edition. The printed book is a large 8.5 x 11 inch format.
At the time of writing, the digital book is $37. The printed book, and the printed plus digital bundle, are each $37 plus $11.19 shipping and handling within the United States. Prices are set by the vendor and may change.
The vendor currently ships the printed book within the United States only. Readers in other countries can order the digital edition and start reading right away.
Orders are processed within 2 to 3 business days, and USPS delivery can take up to 10 business days. You receive a tracking number by email when your book ships.
Topics include making pemmican, smokehouses and root cellars, long-term food and water storage, collecting and filtering water, building shelters and a self-feeding fire, traditional herbal poultices and remedies, wild edible plants, navigation without GPS, and how frontier towns defended themselves.
Yes. The chapters are written in plain language with step-by-step instructions and pictures, so you can start with simple projects such as food storage or a self-feeding fire and build up from there.
Every order is covered by a 60-day money-back guarantee. For the digital book, email support@thelostways.com to request a full refund. For the printed book, contact support for return options; the book is returned in new condition, and return shipping is paid by the customer.
For a one-time price of $37 you get a large reference book packed with traditional skills for food, water, shelter, medicine and safety, plus three digital bonus gifts and a 60-day money-back guarantee. For anyone who wants to become more self-reliant, it is excellent value.
Our great-grandparents did not wait for help to arrive. They knew what to do.
The Lost Ways gives you that same confidence: how to store food for months, keep clean water on hand, stay warm, care for minor injuries and protect what matters most. Choose your edition, claim your three free bonus gifts and enjoy a full 60 days to decide.
From $37 · Secure ClickBank checkout · 60-day money-back guarantee
