your radiant heatlayers reduce thewearing clothing from your skin or some kind of syntthe negative effec(In the desert, whcotton is best, as slowly.) 2. Insulation from the effects of conneed to place a band the cold bodyour heat. A foamgood butt pad, orpack. In the wintea pad of some kinto keep your feet gear, improvise. Bboughs, extra clokeep you away fro3. Protection fromYour best bet to rconvection is to reoffending environas quickly as you you are protecteda shelter of some
Basic Wilderness First Aid 69 loss, as does a hat. Wind effect of convection, and that wicks moisture away dries quickly—wool or thetic fabric—helps reduce cts of evaporative cooling. here you want to be cool, it holds moisture and dries cold surfaces: To reduce nduction on your body, you barrier between your body y that wants to steal all m sleeping pad makes a r you can sit on your backer it is helpful to stand on nd while you are in camp warmer. If you don’t have Branches, dry grass, pine thing, anything that will om the ground will help. moving air and water: reduce your exposure to emove yourself from the nment. Get out of the water can; find a place where d from the wind. Improvise e sort, dig a trench in the
70 Outdoor Survival snow, climb into a thang, get behind a tects you from the In hot climatesing, but it can also Use your judgmentshelter from the wdesert. I don’t thinkof moving hot air oof its drying effect. 4. Avoid excessive swconcerned with colto try to minimize ydrench your clotheto dry them again swill be your body’s energy (read heat)T-shirt. In cold temate your exercise soMake sure you are wamount of clothingfortable without sw5. Build a fire for wartrained to be a lowbeen told to minimthem small, and onthe ground. In an emgo out the window
tree well, find an over rock—anything that pro wind will help. s the wind can be cool accelerate water loss. t. I usually prefer to seek ind and the sun in the k the cooling properties outweigh the discomfort weating: If you are more ld than heat, you want your sweating. Once you s with sweat, you have somehow. Usually, that job, and it takes a lot of to dry a soaking-wet peratures try to modero you don’t overheat. wearing the minimum g necessary to stay comweating too much. rmth: If you’ve been -impact camper, you’ve mize the use of fires, keep nly use wood that is on mergency these rules . But don’t abuse the
privilege. If you aris no need to buildNonethelessdon’t have any shall means, build aboth a signal for shelp you stay comdrop below freezistart a wildfire. Treatment In the initial phases of hyto do is get your musclesDo fifty jumping jacks, goaround, get your heart ratyour clothes are wet, chanleast wring out the excess
Basic Wilderness First Aid 71 re not really in danger, there d a bonfire. , if you are freezing and helter or extra clothing, by a big fire. It can serve as searchers and a way to mfortable if temperatures ing. Just take care not to ypothermia, the best thing s moving to generate heat. o for a run up a hill, dance e up, and you’ll warm up. If nge into something dry or at water if you have no spares,
72 Outdoor Survival and put on a hat and dry sand have a warm drink. Eat you catch your chill quicklywill be enough to take care If, you begin to see mhypothermia in your patientake dramatic action. The othe hypothermic person iwith another naked personhot person would warm thbut this technique can causget chilled. Besides, most pbe comfortable getting nacamping mates. These daywarm-water bottles againstmic patient. Place the patieIn the early stages of hypothermiacold and into dry clothes. A hot dr
socks. Start up the stove, a sugary snack. Usually, if y enough, these measures of the problem. more severe symptoms of nt or yourself, you need to old treatment was to put n a sleeping bag naked n. The idea was that the e cold one, which is true, se the warm individual to people probably wouldn’t aked with most of their ys people advocate using t the skin of the hypotherent in a sleeping bag with a, you need to get out of the ink and food can also help.
Basic Wilderness First Aid 73
74 Outdoor Survival warm-water bottles underarea, against the palms of bottles are not so hot that tYou may want to wratarp or tent fly—some kind layer that will trap heat—anaround your patient. Covervidual’s face. If you are successful remember that he will be erience and may need a fewnormal. If your patient is cabecause of hypothermia, dhim in the field. He needs to in a sleeping bag, blanket, oprevent further heat loss, anFrostbite Frostbite, or frozen fingers aronmental injury frequentlyoutdoor emergencies. Most ities, frostbite occurs whenfreeze. Frostbite can causeand may lead to amputatioThe first step in preveexposure. Frostbite occursfreezing. Areas with obstrucfined to tight boots or hands
r his armpits, in his groin his hands. Make sure the they could cause a burn. ap the sleeping bag in a of waterproof, windproof nd make a kind of cocoon r everything but the indiin warming your patient, exhausted from the expew days rest to get back to atatonic and unresponsive o not attempt to rewarm be in a hospital. Wrap him or something else that will nd seek immediate help. and toes, is another enviy suffered by survivors of common on your extremn the liquids in your body e serious tissue damage n in extreme situations. enting frostbite is limiting s in temperatures below cted blood flow—feet cons clinging to an ice ax—are
particularly susceptible, acold, such as your cheeks Like a burn, frostbite affecting various skin layefrost nip, is the classic whcold ski day. Usually, all youcover your face with your air from your breath is enback to the tissue. The womally red and painful skin, As the freezing goeworsen. Your extremities and gray or waxy looking sue is painless, so if you caa good sign. It means youthat is. You need to take cfreeze to minimize the dachange your socks, put yowarm belly—get those toethe signs. Frostbite leaves the affected arthawed.
Basic Wilderness First Aid 75 s are places exposed to the and nose. comes in different depths, ers. Superficial frostbite, or ite spot on your cheek on a u need to do for frost nip is to hands and blow. The warm ough to get the blood flow orst effect of frost nip is nor similar to that of a sunburn. es deeper, your signs will may appear wooden, hard, and feel numb. Frozen tisan still feel your toes, that’s u don’t have frostbite—yet, are of cold toes before they amage. Take your boots off, our cold feet on someone’s es warm rather than ignore rea white, hard, and painless until
76 Outdoor Survival If you do get frostbitemake. The treatment is to rwarm water (not so hot thaIf you have to walk out to get to hrewarm a frozen toe or finger. Oncinjury is very painful and suscepti
e, you have a decision to ewarm the area rapidly in t it burns). But if you are in elp, you may choose not to ce frostbite is thawed, the ble to refreezing.
the wilderness and cannothey have been thawed, ying the tissue frozen. You mrewarm a frozen part, youof the pain. Heat Exhaustion and Heat injuries are common wyou are exercising in the sunarios include people pasor while cutting their granoon. Heat exhaustion is uheatstroke, which can eitexhaustion or come on suvery serious and causes laThe best treatment fthem. If you know the temhigh, alter your schedule during the heat of the daSleep during the day andtake a siesta when tempsure that you stay hydratebalance is maintained by the day. Water without focalled hyponatremia, whwater and too few electrodeadly, so be sure that wDiluted energy drinks are
Basic Wilderness First Aid 77 ot keep your feet warm after you may be better off keepmay also find that once you u lose all function because Heatstroke when temperatures rise and un. The most common scessing out during marathons ass on a hot August afterusually relatively benign, but ther follow untreated heat uddenly with no warning, is asting problems or death. for heat injuries is to avoid mperatures are going to be to avoid extreme exertion ay. Go on a night schedule: d move at night, or at least peratures are highest. Make ed and that your electrolyte eating regularly throughout ood can lead to a condition ich is caused by too much lytes. Hyponatremia can be hen you drink you also eat. also helpful in maintaining
78 Outdoor Survival your electrolyte balance onworking hard. Signs, Symptoms, TreatmenHot, flushed skin; profusefatigue usually indicate heavictims may be pale and not always. The most criticchange in your patient’s levmay be irritable, irrational, opass out. Heat exhaustion is trepatient from the offendinaffected party into the shaplacing a wet, cold bandanher drink. Usually, your patquickly, but it may take a da
n hot days when you are nt e sweating; and extreme at exhaustion. Heatstroke no longer sweating but cal sign of heatstroke is a vel of consciousness. She or confused. She may also eated by removing your ng environment. Get the de and cool her down by na on her forehead. Have tient will begin to recover ay or two before she feels Avoid heat injuries by wearing cotton clothes that are easy to ventilate, staying hydrated, and resting during the heat of the day.
restored. Heatstroke victimtion from a doctor. You neeevacuation for these indiviIn the meantime, get the begin cooling her with a daEnvironmental DangeThe wilderness gets its naAnimals are not confinedrage, and mosquitoes buparanoid about these thinknowledgeable about howWild Animals Before you head off into ayou need to be concernedBears tend to avoid people unle
Basic Wilderness First Aid 79 ms need immediate attened to arrange for a helicopter duals as quickly as possible. patient into the shade and amp cloth. ers ame from its very wildness. d to cages, rocks fall, rivers uzz. You don’t need to be ngs, just aware of them and w to minimize your risk. a new place, check to see if d about bears or mountain ess they associate them with food.
80 Outdoor Survival lions. You should also find oyour food from rodents, birdverbial camp robbers may nbut they can be a nuisance Areas with large bear specific camping guidelinesters. Usually, you must storebearproof container or hangis to keep the bears from food. Unfortunately, once thdangerous and often end uwildlife managers. So propfor both your safety and theMountain lions are notbers, but they do occasionaYour best strategy for dealiMountain lions rarely attack largetogether in cougar country.
out if you need to protect ds, or raccoons. These pronot pose a risk to your life, and may steal your food. populations often have s to help prevent encoune your food in some kind of g it high in a tree. The goal associating humans with his happens bears become up having to be killed by per food storage is critical e safety of the bears. t known to be camp roblly attack and kill humans. ng with mountain lions is e groups of people, so stay
to know if they are in the lems. If alone, you may csomeplace if a mountain or you may decide to go bpeople at all times. Most been on individuals. Bugs Mosquitoes, ticks, scons, bees, and spiders caannoying, give you the cror a nasty sting, and, in scases, carry disease. Msure you know if anyone ingroup is allergic to bees byou head out. Otheryour best bet is to do a research about what insyou may encounter and wany measures you can tamanage them. West Nile fLyme disease, Rocky Mtain spotted fever, and oinsect-borne diseases caquite serious, so know whout there before you go, ayour exposure. Cover up, avoid traveling during sereally bad.
Basic Wilderness First Aid 81 area and are causing probchoose not to go camping lion has been on the prowl, but stay in a large group of mountain lion attacks have corpian be reeps some Make n your efore rwise, little sects what if ake to fever, Mounother an be hat is nd be prepared to minimize wear insect repellent, and easons when the bugs are Most bugs are just annoying, but some carry disease. Do tick checks, wear repellent, and cover up so your skin is not exposed to bites or stings.
82 Chapter Six Special Consideratifor the Solo TraveleRisk equals hazard multipthe backcountry you are ofof hazards—rockfall, weathforth. The consequences oquite dire, but proper trainyou avoid these hazards or The risk of wildernesswhen you are alone, largquences are increased wheyou if you get into trouble. Snience becomes a major pankle deep in the mountainan injury is challenging; youor someone may need to rusafety. Alone, the injury can Several years ago a sRiver Mountains of Wyomina boulder rolled and pinnedunable to move. Search-anfor him, but by the time he wthirst, unable to reach a st100 feet away. The tragedyif the hiker had been with fwell-trodden path. That was
ions er lied by consequences. In ften exposed to a variety her, moving water, and so of this exposure can be ning and experience help mitigate the risk. s travel becomes greater gely because the consen there is no one to assist uddenly, a minor inconveroblem, such as a broken ns. With your friends such u may have to be carried, un for help to move you to be life threatening. solo traveler in the Wind ng became trapped when d his ankle. The man was d-rescue teams searched was found, he’d died from tream that was less than y could have been averted riends or had stayed on a s not his goal, however. He
Special Conwas seeking the solitude desire this experience, andwrong with going out intotravelers must recognizetheir margin of error by thelp if things go wrong. If you choose to go inself, you must have a heigards and their consequenif” game as you make deconsider the fact that youIn addition, make surare going and when to excarry some communicatiworks in the area you placonsider investing in soming beacon (PLB). There brands of PLBs on the masonalized tracker. All sendsearchers to locate your palternative option is to reenables you to make phocell phones do not work. Solo travel brings wrewards that are difficultAlone, you make all your mine where to camp, whwhat to eat, and where towant to move on any give
nsiderations for the Solo Traveler 83 of a solo trip. Many people d there is nothing inherently o the woods alone. But solo that they have narrowed traveling without others to nto the mountains by yourghtened awareness of haznces. Always play the “what ecisions, and remember to u are alone in the equation. re people know where you xpect you back. You should ion device. If a cell phone an to visit, carry one. If not, me kind of personal locat are a number of different arket, such as the SPOT perd out a signal that enables osition in an emergency. An ent a satellite phone, which ne calls from places where with it some very tangible t to experience in a group. own decisions. You deterhen to sleep, when to rise, o go. You decide if you even en day. You are surrounded
84 Outdoor Survival by the sounds and beauty otract you. You are under nmeet another’s expectationsolitude is rich and for manyfreedom has a price: you alsof trouble should it arise. This book is not meanexperiencing the wildernesyour desire. Rather we simpthink about the implicationsgo. Without friends to help,for error.
of nature with little to diso pressure to perform or ns. The experience of such y very compelling. But that so have to get yourself out nt to dissuade you from ss on your own if that is ply want to remind you to s of solo travel before you , you have very little room
Resources Education There are many organizaoutdoor skills. You can taan hour or a semester-lorange of skill developmenout the outfitting stores, ties to see what programsA few of the big outdo>> The National Outdowhich has been offedevelopment and leUnited States and ahttp://www.nols.edu >> Outward Bound, whskills training aroundhttp://www.outward>> In the northeastern UAppalachian Mountin New England, spoemployment opportall ages. http://www.outdoor
85 ations offering courses on ake a refresher class lasting ong course offering a wide t. In your community, check guide services, or universis are available. oor names are: or Leadership School, ering wilderness skills eadership training in the broad since 1965. uhich also offers a variety of d the world. dbound.org United States, the ain Club, headquartered onsors trips, courses, and tunities in the outdoors for rs.org
86 Resources >> In the northwest, the bMountaineers, a Seattprovides training in bamountaineering. http://www.mountainFirst Aid For wilderness travelers, tcomes from programs that faid. These programs conceand improvised systems in taccess to life support and hocine, NOLS Wilderness MedSolo all offer wilderness firscountry. You can also checCross for first-aid training, bCross courses will be more >> Wilderness Medicine http://www.wildernes>> NOLS Wilderness Medhttp://www.nols.edu/.shtml >> Solo Schools http://www.soloschoo
big name is the tle-based club that ackpacking, climbing, and neers.org he best first-aid training focus on backcountry first entrate on long-term care the absence of immediate ospitals. Wilderness Medidicine Institute (WMI), and st-aid courses around the ck with the American Red but remember, often Red frontcountry oriented. ssmedicine.com dicine Institute (WMI) /wmi/courses/wildfirstaid ols.com
>> American Red Crosshttp://www.redcrossGeneral Information >> http://gorp.away.com>> http://www.nps.gov>> http://www.fs.fed.us
Resources 87 s s.org m/index.html v/index.htm s
88 A ability, self-assessment of, 6 American Red Cross, 87 Appalachian Mountain Club, 85 B bears, 79–81 bees, 81 bugs, 81 C clothing, 67–69 conditioning, physical, 7–8 conduction, 67 convection, 67 D disorientation, 31–33 drowning, 46–48 E equipment basic list, 13 emergencies and, 10 preparation and, 11–13 ethics, fire, 55 evaporation, 67 experience, 8–9 F falls, 45–46 fire building, 53–54 ethics and, 55 flame sources, 51–53 hypothermia and, 70–71 Index
technology and, 54–55 tinder, 52–53 wood, 53 first aid frostbite, 74–77 heat exhaustion and heat stroke, 77–79 hypothermia, 65–74 initial assessment, 61–62 minimizing heat loss, 67–71 prevention of hypothermia, 66–67 rescuer safety, 61 resources, 86–87 secondary survey, 63–65 stabilizing patient, 62–63 treatment of hypothermia, 71–74 frostbite, 74–77 G gear basic list, 13 emergency, 14–15 familiarity with, 15–16 preparation and, 11–13 H handrails, 24–26 heart attacks, 50 heat exhaustion, 77–79 heatstroke, 77–79 hunger, 50 hyperthermia, 48–49
hypothermia danger of, 65–66 getting lost and, 48–49 minimizing heat loss, 67–71 prevention of, 66–67 treatment of, 71–74 I insects, 81 insulation, 69 L landings, 24–26 lean-tos, 58 lost disorientation, 31–33 guidelines for staying put, 37–39 guidelines for walking out, 35–37 looking for someone else, 40–44 signaling techniques, 38–39 staying put vs. moving, 33–35 ways to stay found, 22–31 M mosquitoes, 81 mountain lions, 79–81 Mountaineers, 86 N National Outdoor Leadership School, The, 85
89 navigation tools familiarity with, 15–16 staying found and, 30–31 NOLS Wilderness Medicine Institute, 86 O Outward Bound, 85 P preparation bugs, 81 choosing appropriate trip, 10 emergency gear, 14–15 environmental dangers, 79–81 equipment, 10 equipment list, 11–13 experience, 8–9 familiarity with gear, 15–16 physical conditioning, 7–8 planning for worst, 17–20 self-assessment, 6 skill level and, 5 solo traveler, 82–84 team composition, 9–10 wildlife, 79–81 R radiation, heat, 66 resources education, 85–86 first aid, 86–87 general information, 87 Index
90 Index river crossing, 47–48 S scorpions, 81 search and rescue, 40–44 search teams, 40–44 shelters importance of, 55 natural, 57 snow, 58, 60 tarps, 58 tree-branch lean-to, 58 signaling techniques, 38–39 skill level, 5 skills, survival building fire, 53–54 ethics and, 55 fire technology, 54–55 fires, 51–55 flame sources, 51–53 natural shelters, 57 shelters, 55–60 snow shelters, 58, 60 tarps as shelter, 58
tree-branch lean-to, 58 wood, 53 Solo Schools, 86 solo travelers, 82–84 spiders, 81 sweating, 67, 70 T tarp shelters, 58 team composition, 9–10 threats drowning, 46–48 heart attacks, 50 hunger, 50 hypo- or hyperthermia, 48–49 trauma, 45–46 types of, 45–50 ticks, 81 tinder, 52–53 trauma, 45–46 W Wilderness Medicine, 86 wildlife, 79–81
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