As it turns out, the Mercury Astronauts did their survival training outside Reno Nevada. Stead Air Force Base was established by the United States Air Force (USAF) at the airfield in 1951, when it was determined that the Sierra Nevada and forests would be suitable for survival training.
Here is a link to a shorter version of the other YouTube video that I posted earlier. In this short clip, an Air Force Master Sergeant picks up and unsheaths the Astro prior to a demonstration with Schirra and Slaytons looking on. The image is clearer in the video.
https://dissolve.com/video/1959-1963...01-D378-91-336
