Emergency Survival Supply

Hiking provides hundreds of thousands of people with tremendous pleasure and a sense of adventure every year and 99% of the time it is far from dangerous. But, people do get lost and have accidents from time to time and it can then become a dangerous activity very quickly if you are not prepared.

Here we look at are just 4 basic safety tips to make sure that your hiking doesn’t get you into trouble.

Safety Tip No1 - Consider taking a partner of friend along.

There’s really no need to worry about setting off by yourself if you’re taking a short hike in a nearby area on easy terrain, however, if you are hiking through heavily wooded wilderness areas with winding trails and steep canyons then the likelihood of getting lost or sustaining injury becomes very real and you should think carefully about whether or not it is sensible to head out alone.

Taking a partner along has many advantages, especially if that individual is a seasoned hiker. Obviously, ‘two heads are better than one’ and if you do become lost or run into difficulty you’re far less likely to panic if you have somebody with you to help solve the problem.

Safety Tip No 2 - Ensure that someone knows where you’re going.

If you are a novice hiker then you should stick to clearly marked and well traveled trails and ought not to stray from these trails to explore until you have some experience and have mastered the basics of map and compass work. But, it won’t take you too long before you are ready to tackle some more adventurous hiking and the possibility of getting injured or lost will arise.

For this reason, you should always tell someone where you’re going and when you expect to return so that a search party can be sent out if you don’t return as expected.

Safety Tip No 3 - Ensure that you take along some basic equipment.

It’s vital that you have a basic survival kit with you and the local hiking club will be able to give you excellent advice on the sort of items that this should include. Here we are looking at such things as matches and a lighter, a good knife, a first aid kit and a flashlight with fresh batteries.

In addition, it is a good idea to take a map and compass along and a fully charged cell phone.

Safety Tip No 4 - Take some basic provisions with you.

Water or other fluids such as sports drinks are essential as you can lose fluid very quickly even over an hour or two on a hot day. You should remember though that water is heavy, so take along sufficient but not too much. Don’t forget though that you must not drink from local streams as natural water sources may appear to be inviting but they are often filled with bacteria and could make you sick very quickly.

Also do not forget to take along enough food to last you. There’s no pleasure in being hungry out on the trail but don’t forget that you can last a good deal longer without food than you can without water.

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Tags: hiking