How To: Build a Debris Shelter

Debris shelters are some of the easiest to build and most stable shelters you can make. To build one you'll need:

Sticks and logs of varying length and widths
Leaves or other methods of cover
Bark (optional but highly recommended)

1. Assess the size of the shelter you will need based on the number of people that plan to sleep in it. It is better, however, to have a shelter that is a little smaller in colder temperatures to better insulate by utilizing body heat.
2. Based on this assessment, find a log of an appropriate size and strength to be the main support beam. It is very important that this log be sturdy and absolutely not rotten. If the log is too weak your structure could cave in on itself and possibly seriously injure you.
3. Once you have found such log, place it in the Y of tree, ideally by flat ground. If no such place exists, and you have twine, tightly tie this log to a tree by flat ground. If you sleep on steep or uneven ground, you will find yourself moving to the whims of gravity while you sleep. If you neither have twine nor a good location, seek another method of shelter building.
4. Once this log has been placed and is secure, gather sticks and lean them against the main support. Make them close together and don't use rotten sticks.
5. Weave smaller, greener, more flexible sticks between the stick you laid against the  main support.
6. Cover this frame with leaves and other debris. Pack them down while you put them on so that it is tight. To make sure that your structure is as insulated as possible, make the leaf walls approximately one foot thick. Crawl inside your structure and check for any holes, and cover them with leaves if you find them.
7. Lay bark across leaves to make "natural shingles". These are excellent at keeping out rain, and if it does rain, make an adorable "pitter patter" when it starts to fall. 

There you have it! Go forth and be wild.