Backpacking

This is just a few things that you may come across that it is imprtant to know what to do just in case you happen to have this happen to you. Most of these are just general guidelines on what to do and there are different things to do in different situations but these are genrally what you should do.

• See a bear: If you happen to see a bear when you are out hiking do not approach it or try to make contact with it. They are wild animals and can be very dangerous. If you see it off in the distance try to make a path around it and stay as far away as possible if it is close to you and sees you stand your groud, dont run. If you run it triggers its hunting instict and it will chase you so stand tall and back away slowly.


• Crossing a stream: If you come accross as stream that you need to cross try to find the widest area so that you can cross there. The reason you cross at the widest area is that in the widest are streams move the slowest so it is safer to cross. Once you find the widest area unstrap you pack in case you slip and fall in your pack wont drag you down. Cross slowly one person at a time and take every step carefully.


• Lightning: If you are in the middle of a lightning storm be sure to stay away from large open meadows, the tops of mountains, wet cracks or crevices in a rock, or a ridge. These are the places that are most likely to get struck by lightning. If you are stuck in camp or out of camp, get out of your tent, get rid of your pack and get to a spot between two high points like two bolders or a depresion. Squat with you feet close together and on the balls of your feet to minimize your contact with the ground and either have boots on or use you pad to insulate you from the ground. Also spread people out at least 15 feet apart from another so that everyone wont be shocked at once. So the main thing to remeber is stay low.


• If you are in bear country: If you are in bear country you have to take extra precautions so that a bear doesnt eat all of your food at night when you are sleeping or so you arent attacked by a bear while you are hiking. To avoid being attacked travel in groups and don't seperate, use the buddy system so that if a bear does seee you he will be more easily scared away. Also it is important to remeber that before you go to bed you have to put all of your smellables in bear bags and hang them up in a tree so that a bear doesnt come lingering into your camp at night and find you food and eat it. Smellables are anything that smells at all, not just stuff that smells good. Anything like trash, bug spray, food expecially, and waterbottles or anything that has any kind of smell at all is a smellable and you do not want it in your tent or camp at night at all.


• Water: In order for water to be safe it either has to be from a potable water source like a spigot that you can find in many campsites. But if there is none of those near you have to bring a water filter and filter the water before you drink it. You also need to use purification tablets to make sure it is safe becuase the filter only gets rid of all the mud and such, not the living bacteria and organisms that also need to be killed.