Outdoor Safety Handbook

131 Pages·2005·1.58 MB·English

by  Author

OUTDOOR
SAFETY
HANDBOOK
OUTDOOR
SAFETY
HANDBOOK
Buck Tilton
illustrations by Roberto Sabas
STACKPOLE
BOOKS
Copyright © 2006 by Buck Tilton Published by
STACKPOLE BOOKS
5067 Ritter Road
Mechanicsburg, PA 17055
www.stackpolebooks.com
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All inquiries should be addressed to:
Stackpole Books, 5067 Ritter Road, Mechanicsburg PA 17055.
Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First edition
Cover design by Wendy A. Reynolds Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Tilton, Buck.
Outdoor safety handbook / Buck Tilton ; illustrations by
Roberto Sabas.—1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8117-3256-7
ISBN-10: 0-8117-3256-8
1. Wilderness survival—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. Survival skills—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 3. Outdoor
recreation—Safety measures—Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Sabas, Roberto. II. Title.
GV200.5.T54 2006
613.6'9—dc22
2005022314
eISBN: 9780811752404
Contents
Introduction xi
GETTING LOST AND SURVIVAL
What To Do If You . . .
3
Plan to Go Into the Wilderness
4
Get Lost in the Woods
5
Get Lost in the Mountains
6
Get Lost in the Desert
7
Must Sleep on the Ground
8
Need Emergency Shelter in the Woods
10
Need Emergency Shelter in Snow
12
Run Out of Water
14
Need to Disinfect Water
15
Find Water But Can’t Disinfect It
16
Need to Build a Fire
18
Run Out of Food
19
Need to Signal for Help
20
Need to Use a Signal Mirror
22
Get Stuck in Your Vehicle in Cold Weather
WEATHER AND EXPOSURE
What To Do If You . . .
25
Get Chilled in Cold Weather
26
Need to Dry Wet Clothes
28
Need to Thaw and Dry Frozen Clothes
29
Get Numb Fingers or Toes in the Cold
31
Get Caught in a Blizzard
32
Must Cross Avalanche-Prone Terrain
33
Get Caught in an Avalanche
34
Must Cross a Deep Snowfield
36
Get Caught in a Lightning Storm
38
Camp in the Rain
39
Must Cross Moving Water
40
Must Cross a Frozen Lake
41
Must Cross a Frozen River
43
Fall Through Thin Ice
44
Must Cross Swampy Land
45
Fall Out of a Moving Boat
46
Fall Out of a Moving Raft
48
Capsize Your Boat
50
Ground Your Boat
WILD CREATURES
What To Do If You . . .
53
Hike in Bear Country
55
Encounter a Bear
56
Encounter a Mountain Lion
58
Encounter a Moose
59
Are Bitten by a Small Mammal
60
Encounter a Porcupine
62
Encounter a Skunk
63
Are Bothered by Mice
64
Find a Dead Animal
65
Hike in Rattlesnake Country
66
Fish in Cottonmouth Country
68
Get Bitten by a Poisonous Snake
69
Get Bitten by a Spider
70
Get Bitten by a Tick
72
Get Stung by a Scorpion
73
Encounter Bees or Wasps
74
Are Bothered by Biting Insects
75
Get Bitten by a Mosquito
76
Get Stung by a Jellyfish
INJURIES AND ILLNESS
What To Do If You . . .
79
Get Frostbite
80
Get Heat Exhaustion
81
Get Heatstroke
82
Get Diarrhea
83
Are Poisoned by Wild Food
84
Come in Contact with Poison Ivy
86
Get Stuck by Cactus Spines
87
Get a Splinter
88
Get Snagged by a Fishhook
90
Get Snagged by a Fishhook in the Eye
91
Get Something Loose in Your Eye
92
Get a Cut
94
Get a Puncture Wound
95
Are Accidentally Shot
96
Catch Yourself on Fire
98
Get an Infected Wound
99
Get Sunburn
100
Get Windburn
101
Get Snow Blindness
102
Get a Blister
104
Get a Toothache
105
Twist Your Ankle
107
Break an Arm or Leg
108
Get a Nosebleed
ANNOYANCES AND TROUBLE
What To Do If You . . .
111
Have to Go to the Bathroom
112
Break a Shoestring
114
Lose Your Toothbrush
115
Lose Your Compass
116
Break or Lose Your Sunglasses
118
Drop Your Camera in Water
119
Drop Your Binoculars in Water
120
Need to Hitchhike
121
Encounter Suspicious People
122
Are Threatened or Mugged
Resources 123
Index 125
About the Author 131
Introduction
Haste makes waste. Sometimes, in fact, you need to go slow in order to go fast.
What I mean is this: rushing into action often results in less-than-the-best action.
And on the flip side, taking a few minutes to choose the best action can save you
hours or days in the long run. In a critical situation, or in a situation that might
become critical, choosing less-than-the-best action can result not only in wasted
time but also in loss of comfort, loss of limb, even loss of life. That’s what this
little book is all about—choosing the best course of action in an outdoor
emergency.
In some cases—not all, of course, but some—you’ll have enough time to
refer to this book if you’ve packed it along. I strongly recommend, however, that
you read the whole book before you go into the wilderness. There will be many
circumstances in which proper preparation before leaving home will greatly
improve your performance in the field. And you’ll have things other than
reading on your mind if a black bear is staring hungrily into your face.
In all situations, may you walk in peace and safety and enjoy the journey.
GETTING LOST
AND SURVIVAL