Wilderness Survival
Exploring the wilderness can be calming and enjoyable. It is a great way to explore nature and be respectful of what it has to offer. However, if you are not well prepared, such an exploration into the wilderness can turn into a nightmare. Can you build your own shelter if you have to? Do you know how to start a fire without matches to stay warm? Are you able to identify food to eat as well as how to clean water so it won’t make you sick? These are just a few things you will want to prepare yourself for. Of course, no one heads out into the wilderness with the desire to get lost, but it happens all the time. The stories with positive outcomes are the ones where the individuals knew how to survive out there.
The idea isn’t to scare you out of enjoying the wilderness, rather to encourage you to be prepared for what can happen so that you don’t end up a statistic. Try to explore with at least one other person. If you absolutely must venture out on your own, make sure someone knows where you went and when you expect to be back. Vital search and rescue hours are spent searching in a wide area because the itinerary of the missing is not known. Also, the search may not start until hours after the person is missing because no one knew when to expect them back.
Always stay on marked trails. While it is appealing to go into territory that is untravelled, there is a reason such trails are marketed. In addition to your safety, it is to allow you a marker for finding your way back. Even seasoned explorers have found themselves lost once they ventured off the trail.
Always take basic necessities with you, no matter how short of a nature exploration you plan to take. This includes water, foods such as granola bars and beef jerky, sun screen, bug spray, and warm clothing. It is best to where plenty of clothing in layers. You can remove the clothing throughout the day as it gets warmer, and then put it back on when it begins to cool off. It is also recommended you take a first aid kit, binoculars, and a flare. All of these things will easily fit into a small backpack and they do not weigh much at all.
While taking all of these precautions may seem like nonsense and be time consuming, you are always better off being prepared and not needing the items than to find yourself in a situation where you desperately need such items and you are without them. Keeping that in mind, enjoy your exploration into the wilderness!
