Wilderness Survival Class

“Noncon and I are taking part in a three-day program put on by the DNR called Being An Outdoors Woman (the attendees are all female). We're going to teach a course (four times over the three days) on Wilderness Survival. The course is geared towards women who are newer to outdoors sports so we're focusing on what could happen on a dayhike (there's a separate class on backpacking). The basic course outline is this:

Must-Have Daypack Contents
Basic Fire Building
Basic Shelter Building
Wilderness First Aid
What to do When Illness Strikes You or a Member of Your Party
Decision-making Under Duress
What to do if You Get Lost
What to do if Someone in Your Party Gets Lost
Leaving Information with People Before You Head Out

We already have a general plan for what we'll teach for each section. However, it occured to me that TT is such a vaulable resource so... I thought I'd get some input from the TT experts. Specifically, I'd like to hear what everyone has to say about the Daypack Contents. What do you never leave the trailhead without?

In fact, feel free to chime in on any topic. Your input can only improve our course!

Thanks!”

“Yep, if there's anyone who can teach you to be an outdoors woman, it's me.”

“Decision-making Under Duress - tarabull

Wow, like somebody in the backcountry is going to hold you at gun point and make you decide on something? LOL”

“Wow, talk about ASSuming.”

“ASSuming what? That someone innocently misusing a word could be a source of mirth and good-natured ribbing?

You must be a blast a parties...”

“Isn't mirth something the wise men gave to baby Jesus?”

“I forget exactly how that fairy tale goes, but you may be right = wasn't Jesus supposed to be a jolly fat guy?



No, wait that was Buddha.”

“Leave Buddha Bear out of this. He's not fat, he's "husky."”

“Well... technically... you were ASSuming that I innocently misued a word.

However, it is actually a specific subject matter they requested to have in the course (perhaps they meant something else but that topic is a direct quote from the email). I assume there have been enough stories out there (remember Meredith?) of women in the backcountry finding themselves in scary situations. We're speaking to women who are new to the outdoors, who may feel nervous about hiking alone and may be looking to find the confidence to do this on their own.”

“True, here he is enjoying a cold one:

”

“Duress is also very subjective in how it manifests. For some, the sense of being "lost" may set up as duress, where as for others, it may require an encounter with a grizzly bear.”

“mea culpa. Unlike some people posting here, I can readily admit that I assumed too much.”

“Duress, noun: compulsory force or threat.

I guess you could read a grizzly encounter into that. But, the common vernacular incorporates the notion of a person restraining another person.”

“What a fascinating lesson on the English language!”

“My thoughts, too, rev. The "scary situations" I referred to above could be a variety of things. I was actually thinking, for that section of the course, it might be interesting to ask the women to come up with the situations that they fear most and then brainstorm, as a group, ways to handle those situations.”

“Technically "Duress" may be an improper term as it carries with it a connotation of restraint and restrictive force. XL is correct on that score. The word has been adopted to a less technical use in modern times. I am not sure what other word might be better.

Maybe something like "Thinking smart when it counts." Not sure I like that... but you get the drift.

"Fighting off fear" ?
last edited: 4/16/08 10:40:56 AM”

“Sheesh! I had to pull out my dictionary, now... Mine simply says "restraint of personal liberty." I suppose it could be argued either way, though I'm not sure the definition in my dictionary implies that the duress would have to be caused by another human.

At any rate, could we please move this symantics debate to another place and focus on the subject of the thread? Pretty please?”

“sorry tarabull... I did not mean to move away from the theme of the post. The connection I made was - Is there a better title for the section to communicate where you want to focus." Not simply a symantics discussion.”

“No apology necessary.”

“I learned something interesting at a Girl Scout First aid class I had to take. Epipens are only effective for a short time after injection. So, if you'll be somewhere out in the middle of nowhere and have a severe allergy you need to take enough epipens to get you to medical help. One pen is useless. I believe they said the effects generally last about half an hour. I had never heard that before (not having an allergy that requires one), and the first thing I thought about was how glad I was you didn't have a reaction to that yellow jacket sting on Isle Royale, Tara!”

“Yup, one EpiPen doesn't last too long. So, depending on the severity of the reaction, one could be in lots of trouble. It is actually not recommended to use more than one injection for one reaction even after some time has passed (unless a med professional is present) because multiple injections can cause cardiac arrest (which is strange considering I thought Epinephrine used to be used for heart attacks) . My thought? If the reaction is severe enough and my throat is closing... I think it's worth a shot (no pun intended) to get a second dose of epinephrine even if it means I risk a heart attack.


I'm a certified American Red Cross CPR and First Aid instructor and will soon be certified in Wilderness First Aid, as well. It's pretty fun and a nice bit of extra cash.”

“In my daypack I always carry:

Head lamp
Aqua Mira
Rain jacket
First aid kit (small but has an emergency blanket)
snacks/water

I have a whistle on the strap of my daypack so I don't carry that.

I do keep my cell phone just in case I need it on the chance I will have a signal.

Other contents vary depending on the length and difficulty of the hike.”

“Updated Ten Essential "Systems"

Navigation
Sun protection
Insulation (extra clothing)
Illumination
First-aid supplies
Fire
Repair kit and tools
Nutrition (extra food)
Hydration (extra water)
Emergency shelter”

“blood sugar meter
hypoglycemic emergency rations
insulin and syringe
other first aid
water filter
potty kit
snacks/water
rain gear
whistle and compass on a string
cell phone
GPS (new toy)”

“It's Mutt.”

“I never carry mutt in my daypack. my mutt would be on a leash if he comes at all. but since my mutt is a car dog and not a trail dog he doesn't always get to go.”

“I always thought duress was what nice girls wore, evidently I am way off base.

Epinephrine is a cardiac stimulant. It makes sense that od'ing on a stimulant would cause severe problems.

The doctor is out.”

“I've debated the whistle on the day pack thing with a couple of other TTers on trips. Mine is always around my neck, thinking that if I lost my day pack (in a fall, for example) I'd still have my whistle.”

“Outside fo the sexist schmaltz of cool breeze post... I personally know some men who could not find their way out of a corn maze if they left a trail of marker signs. So I think there is more to discuss there guys.”

“Thanks for some input, everyone. Much appreciated.

(And, just for the record, the only time I've ever been lost while backpacking/hiking was when a man was leading the way. We ended up going nearly five miles more than necessary that day.)”

“tarabull I was just funnin ya. You know that. On the other hand why is it that everytime the rev speaks I think of Jimmy Swaggart? Puzzling?”

“I will take that as a compliment.”

“I forgot to mention that the only reason it was five miles and not more was because he finally gave in to my suggestion that we all go back a couple miles to check a spur-trail I had originally thought we needed to take... lol”

“Typical day pack contents:

Wind/rain layer jacket
insulating upper layer (if needed)
2 liters of water
mini water filter
Food and snacks
streamlined first aid kit
butane lighter
compass/map/trail description
dog treats if the mutt goes
30+ SPF sunscreen/lip balm
Technu for poision oak (if below 5K ft.)
sunglasses
brimmed hat
car key
pocket knife
camera
cell phone (off)
fishing pole and kit (sometimes)
reading material (sometimes)

Snow necessitates a few other items, namely more layers/clothing, snowshoes/skis and a foam pad to sit on.”

“Good luck on the training course Tara. Women and MEN should be prepared on the trail. It is sad that women have to take extra precautions because of some aspects of hiking. I know some people are anti-gun and the thought of having to carry a gun to protect one's self ruins the fun of hiking. Still it is worthwhile thinking about gun use and training if you are hiking alone. Big mean looking dogs are good companions too.
last edited: 4/17/08 9:33:55 AM”

“Thank you for your witty comeback... it has been reported.”

“fire starting kit in a snack size zip lock bag including:

cotton lint (a wad about the size of a D or C size battery
steel spark striker (used with pocket knife in my pocket)
candle as thick as my little finger, one inch long
bic lighter
small rigid case with several patches of char cloth.

This whole thing weighs nothing, and is about as much volume as a cup of liquid. Its so light, there is no excuse for leaving it out.

Sorry, I can't help you with the grammar exchange, because your post looked fine to me, grammar wise. I think the duress part comes when your partners leg is broken, its starting to rain, and you have to decide to stay with him or hike for help. That is worse than a gun to your head.
last edited: 4/17/08 2:27:23 PM”