health & safety – Page 82

August 26, 2008

how to poo in the woods

From Crow:

Dig a hole. I have found the little plastic orange shovel is useless for digging a hole. When the digging is good, my foot, a stick, or a rock will work just as well and when the digging is hard, the shovel is worthless. When the digging is hard, I look for natural holes like uprooted trees, or turn over rocks that have sunk into the earth.

For toilet paper, I use a stick or rock big enough to keep my hands away from any chance of fecal contamination. There is speculation that it isnâ€™t the water that makes hikers sick but their own feces.

For when I feel a need for toilet paper, I carry a few paper towels in a ziplock sandwich bag. When Iâ€™m in a situation were a stick wonâ€™t do, paper towels work much better than toilet paper, travel better, and can be wetted for a more thorough cleaning. It is thought of as a good practice to pack out any paper that you use. You can however, bury it if you wish, confident that you wonâ€™t be causing any more harm to the environment then encasing it in plastic and carrying it with you. Some people have burnt it and caused huge forest fires. (there is a sign on the PCT that says, â€œthis forest fire started by a PCT thru-hiker burning his toilet paperâ€ ) If there is any chance of fecal contamination to my hands, I bring out my wash kit and wash them.

If I have used the hole from an uprooted tree, there is lots of loose soil to bury my poo in. If I have used the hole from a rock, I rake what surface duff and dead leaves I can find over the poo and put the rock back on top of all of it.

As The Crow FliesÂ» Blog Archive Â» How to poo in the woods.

I’ve never had to resort to a stick as TP, myself. I burn the toilet paper. Carefully. And cover with the biggest, flattest rock I can find to try to prevent the evidence being dug up by critters. I always keep the TP, lighter and hand sanitizer together in one emergency ziplock. And use the sanitizer before and after.

Recently we had mandatory human waste pack-out bags for climbing Mt. Adams, Washington. Those were a great source of amusement for our group, three of whom had never used them before.

I had. And donated an odor proof, leak proof kayak bag for carrying our “droppings”. For some reason people packed it down in plastic bags, one of which broke.

Oops.

related: How to Shit in the Woods – Amazon

August 23, 2008

meeting a bear on the Juan de Fuca Trail

In preparation for the longer West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island, Matt made a 2-day dash on the adjacent Juan de Fuca Marine Trail. That’s 47km (29mi) of tough hiking.

One part of his trip report struck home:

…on the trail around 9:00. Sombrio River was quite low, so I opted to wade through it rather than trek up to the suspension bridge. The sun was shining, so I wasn’t too worried about wet feet. After a bit more beach walking, my spidey-sense was tingling. In a field of grey boulders, I saw one furry black boulder that looked out of place. Sure enough, a small bear was eating something, probably a dead seal. Luckily, the tide was out, so I was able to give him a wide berth. I had a chat with him on the way past, and we came to an understanding. I wouldn’t eat his dead seal, and he wouldn’t eat me. …

larger photo

read the entire trip report with more photos

On my only hike on the JdF I had an encounter, as well. A small black bear decided to climb a tall tree in the middle of the campground. I was the only camper.

A quick exit was prudent.

There are a lot of bears in that part of the world.

I just subscribed to Matt’s blog: Take a Load Off – Lightweight Backpacking

August 4, 2008

bear visits U.S. Senior Open Golf

The Broadmoor’s East Course was quite a bear Friday.

Difficult pin placements and faster, drier greens flustered the field and only five golfers managed to shoot below par, including Fred Funk, whose 1-under 69 gave him the lead at the halfway point of the U.S. Senior Open in Colorado Springs, Colo. …

Stealing the show, however, was a black bear that ambled out of the mountains in the morning and crossed the 13th fairway before checking out spectators outside the ropes.

Nobody was harmed, and neither was the bear.

“(Jack) Nicklaus isn’t here, so I guess that’s a substitute,” cracked Funk. …

Associated Press

July 24, 2008

Chill Factor hats for hikers

Keep cool on the Trail.

Kevin Pringles of Chill Factor Clothing emailed:

We have developed a cooling hat that keeps people cooler and safer in the heat, so it is perfect for hikers. The hats have a crystal material inside that absorb water and turn into a cooling gel. When soaked in ice water, the hats get very cold and they can protect people from heat related injuries. For more information, check out the following link:

Chill Factor Clothing – hydro crystal

more hat styles – photo Gallery

July 24, 2008

section hike the Hayduke Trail, Utah

Backpacker magazine recommends a 55mi stretch of the infamous 800+mi Hayduke Trail in the American S.W.

The otherworldly terrain in southern Utah’s labyrinthine canyon countryâ€“slots, hoodoos, mesas, bizarre sandstone formationsâ€“is as confusing as it is captivating. Get off-track or miss one of the infrequent water sources, and you have real problems. This 55-mile, roughly eight-day stretch of the Hayduke Trail serves up both extremes. You’ll travel mostly off-trail, with steep, loose scrambles, deep sand slogs, and a paucity of distinctive terrain features. Long stretches are waterlessâ€“including the first 25 miles. In return, you get bragging rights for a spectacularly remote and rarely traveled journey.

Tech assist Use ExpertGPS (expertgps.com) to plot routes using topo and aerial photographs, then send data to your GPS. Plan best-case routes and alternates, since the complex terrain may present obstacles you can’t identify on screen. Example: See ~~backpacker.com/hayduke~~ for our custom file with multiple off-trail routes.

Start in Canyonlands’s Needles District, where multicolored sandstone towers stand like 200-foot candles above the desert. You’ll pass under Seldom Seen Bridge and trek by the cliff dwellings and rock art of Fable Valley. Mark water caches (drop one pretrip to avoid carrying three days’ supply at the start) and critical water sources (at miles 24.7, 34.1, and 42).

Tip: Waypoint your vehicle at trip’s end as well. …

read more – Backpacker

I’m currently reading The Monkey Wrench Gang (P.S.), the book that inspired this adventure.

I’m no Brian Frankle. This 55mi section for wimps sounds plenty tough enough for me.

(via The Adventure Blog)

July 22, 2008

bear attacks trail runner

An incident in the Canadian Rockies opens once again the debate on whether to “play dead” when being attacked by a bear.

A trail runner attacked and bitten up to eight times by a black bear near Lake Louise serves as a chilling reminder of the dangers the public face at this time of year when sharing space with wildlife in the mountain parks. …

D’hamers, a Belgian who has been living and working in the Lake Louise area for more than a year, was no stranger to the 10-kilometre Great Divide Trail, regularly running on the decommissioned stretch of road.

She was running alone on the closed stretch of Highway 1A between Lake Louise Drive and the Trans-Canada Highway when she came face-to-face with the animal around 6 p.m.

The 23-year-old initially began backing up, but when the bear followed her for about 100 metres, she decided instead to lay face down on the ground, according to Morrison.

The attack is unusual, he said, with the last bear mauling in the Lake Louise area taking place in 1995.

The plan to play dead backfired as the bear continued to approach her, sniffing and licking the back of her legs and eventually biting her multiple times on her upper legs and back.

“The young lady showed considerable wherewithal in that she realized her strategy wasn’t working early in the game,” Morrison said. “Playing dead is not recommended in most situations.”

D’hamers jumped back to her feet, yelling aggressively at the bear and continuing to back away. After nearly 30 minutes of D’hamers reversing, yelling and waving her arms, the bear finally retreated. D’hamers continued the final few kilometres back to the main road, where she flagged down a Parks Canada warden. …

Calgary Herald

(via A Trail Runner’s Blog)

larger original – flickr – jvh33

July 18, 2008

Hiker Hell blog

Great entertainment at the campsite is sharing “hiking disaster” stories.

A new blog â€” inspired by Touching the Void â€” documents them.

This blog is about learning from other people’s mistakes, so you don’t make the same ones.

Some sample posts:

Man Spends Night with Bears in American Fork Canyon

Camp Fire Burns Man

3 Hikers Struck By Lightning in Rocky Mountain NP

Man Bit Twice By Gila Monster in Arizona

original – flickr – justinbaeder

(via Two-Heel Drive)

I’ll send in my own worst hiking experience: lost and hypothermic in the Andes

June 5, 2008

wading and trekking Paria Canyon, Utah

My favourite hike in the S.W. USA is Paria Canyon. It straddles the border between Utah and Arizona.

In my trip report, I called it the best canyon walk in the world.

Andrew and Sheila posted some wonderful photos of their March 2008 trip.

… we backpacked the 62km length of the Paria canyon. Although wet and somewhat cold so early in the season (we waded in the river proper for at least half the hike, and encountered 1 freak snowstorm on the second day), the scenery was spectacular and well worth the effort. What’s more, the snow seemed to have scared a good many hikers away, and we saw only 3 others on the trail in the 5 days of hiking!

Brilliant!

Sheila