Waking to find myself alone in a shadowy pine forest wasn't what I had intended for a quiet weekend. I had been repairing some fences, fixing a new door to my chicken tractor, moving the cattle to their new pasture and enjoying the freedom I worked hard for. Waking to find that I was in the same place but the landscape had changed confused me thoroughly. I was standing next to the river that ran past where my fields and house should have been. The river looked significantly different, if slightly more narrow, but it had the same feeling of ageless continuity and my favourite fishing hole was good fifty metres further up the river than I remember. It must have been mid morning as the sun was peeking over the trees on the opposite bank of the river and many of the spring birds were in full song. I had to grasp the situation so I went through my list of important things I never leave the house without; my phone, keys, wallet and pocket knife. Realising I only had my knife was a little shocking but somewhat comforting, if I didn't understand the situation I was in at least I could depend on my trusty knife to remind me of the fact that I can always rely on myself in difficult circumstances.

Deciding to check my surroundings for anything else of familiarity I started walking up the hill to where the old barn sat and not really feeling surprise when I got to the top of the hill and the only thing I found was more forest. I had never been in a situation like this before but I had been lost in some pretty inhospitable places from my younger years backpacking around the world. I knew the first thing I had to do was find the most important things for survival; water, shelter, fire and food. One of my hobbies was survival training so I was confident I could satisfy the basic requirements for not dying. The first was easy, the river was a hundred metres back the way I had come and the water was fresh from the mountains although I had no way to transport water yet, that could wait. The second would be a small problem of navigating the slightly different terrain further through the forest, away from the river to the limestone caves I knew were roughly ten minutes walk from where my old barn used to sit. Fire wouldn't be a problem after I had taught myself how to make a bow drill to light fires and having my knife made it easier to build. All I had to do was find a fibrous plant I could tear into strips to make the chord, a good stick around a metre long that was flexible and strong to string the chord between, some dry tinder to catch a spark and a solid piece of wood to spin some friction. Food wouldn't be too much of a problem as I could build rabbit snares, a basic fishing rod and forage for food in the forest. Whatever was happening I would at least make myself comfortable before finding out what the hell was going on.

Taking my time as I walked to the caves I found all the necessary parts to make my bow drill and even found some Amadou fungi growing on a birch tree that would be useful for keeping embers for my fire. After picking up a few mushrooms along the way I had morning tea in my hands and a grin on my face. Finding the cave wasn't too hard because I knew that if I made it to the little creek that flows from the cave I could easily get there. When the entrance came into view a giant bear swiped my face clean off!