BEING HEALTHY ON THE TRAIL: THE 10 ESSENTIALS AND MORE

by Patti Beardsley

We’ve all heard of the 10 essentials list to take on our wilderness outings, and, hopefully, we all carry a version of those supplies that makes sense for our outing. Curiously, there is no one list of the 10 essentials. A quick review of the Boy Scouts, National Park Service, USFS, and others shows slight variations of them.

Even if we have a workable set of 10 essentials on an outing, we can minimize the need to take them out of safe-keeping in our packs if we follow the “10 Essentials of Preparation.”

10 Essentials of Preparation

Perhaps we can think of preparation from a few perspectives—gear, knowledge, emergency plans, and strength and fitness. Gear, of course, includes shoes, poles, weather protection, technology, “in case of emergency” (ICE) supplies, and more. Knowledge includes our route, abilities, nutritional needs, and the strengths and weaknesses of ourselves and our trail partners. Emergency plans include an assortment of “just in case” puzzle pieces depending on the outing, including emergency contacts, identified turn-back times, communication, awareness of conditions, and gear. Strength and fitness are, of course, key and there are endless recommendations about how and when to build ourselves to a point of readiness for whatever level of outing we are embarking upon.

Gear Preparation

• Shoes: Which shoe/sock combination provides the best support for your intended hike, and are they broken in adequately? An Outside Magazine article about thru-hiking suggests testing out second- and third-choice shoes as well in case your primary pair wears out and your next available place to get new shoes doesn’t carry your favorites. Additionally, if you have scheduled resupply stops, it makes sense to include a broken-in replacement pair along the way. Tip: Take a set of extra laces that can serve any number of needs.

• Poles: Do your poles have the best tips for your intended outing, are they sized for you, and are they in good shape? Tip: Wrap several rounds of duct tape on the poles in case it’s needed to fix other equipment.

• Weather protection: What weather is forecast for your intended outing, and do you have appropriate equipment for the sun (lotion, hat, clothing), rain (jacket, pants, hat or hood, pack cover), and cold (extra layers, face wind protection, hand or foot warmers)?

• Technology: We have become dependent on technology that may or may not work as expected when we are in the wilderness, so backup plans (printed and laminated maps, defined return times, good, old-fashioned mirrors) contribute peace of mind to us and ours. And remember that, although music and podcasts are popular, other hikers may not want their nature time drowned out by our speakers. Plus, without earbuds, we can be more aware of other hikers, bikers, critters, and the soul-energizing sounds of nature.

• ICE supplies: Carry extra food, have a space blanket, and ensure that emergency contacts are readily available and that co-hikers are informed about our potential need for emergency medicines.

Knowledge Preparation

• Nutrition and energy: How much food should we take for any given outing? Remember that the balance between weight and calories is essential. Here’s a calculator to help figure out your calorie requirements to maintain energy on an outing: www. omnicalculator.com/sports/hiking.

• Learn the lay of the land: Is there water along the way, what is the glacier, avalanche, or rockfall danger, do you know what the different types of clouds indicate about incoming weather, and what exit routes exist in case of emergency?

Pre-outing Preparation: Fitness and Health

• Build strength and endurance: Fullbody readiness for hiking includes not only strength but flexibility in stretching and contracting in all directions. There are endless resources available online for this multi-month preparation process.

• Uphill and downhill travel: It’s helpful to understand the physics of hiking uphill and downhill and how to be efficient and safe in both directions. Although hiking uphill may feel harder, downhill can be harder on your joints and thighs, and you may be more prone to falling. “Stepping Techniques” in Hiking for Life has some of the easiest-to-understand explanations and descriptions for both uphill and downhill hiking. This useful book compares the biomechanics of uphill travel with small steps or large steps, as well as the benefits of small steps. Downhill travel with forefoot landing is also explained to be easier on ligaments and joints, and safer for sure footing. And…don’t forget the rest step, which can be a lifesaver, especially in high altitudes.

• Breathing techniques: Breathing does us no good if we don’t give our lungs time to move the oxygen to our blood. The why and the how of deep breathing through the nose is well documented, with two of those sources being, again, Hiking for Life as well as the summitstrength.com articles listed below.

• Health checks: Be aware of the feeling of your personal target and maximum pulse rate. Although standard calculations are 220 minus your age for your maximum and 50 percent of that for your target heart rate, where and how you feel those pulse rates is critical to know. Whether you depend on technology or your fingertips to measure your pulse, it’s important to track and build a sense of where else you feel your pulse—e.g. do you “hear” your pulse in your ears or head once it reaches a certain rate? What other health conditions or potential conditions might we need to prepare for and let our hiking partners be aware of?

Well, I guess that’s 11 essentials, but perhaps more is better in this situation! What if we’re not quite prepared? Three epic stories from our past.

Gear: New Boots

Some time ago, we set out on a wonderful trip to the Olympics intending to hike the Bailey Ridge Traverse, then summit Mt. Olympus and exit via the Blue Glacier. Unbeknownst to all, one hiker started with a “small blister” and remained very stoic about the pain as the blister grew, until her foot became so swollen she couldn’t walk. By then, we were on the far side of Mt. Olympus, so the decision was made to abandon the summit and have most of the team (leaving two to care for the patient) hike out in one long day to the emergency phone where we would call for help. The next day, the Coast Guard flew in to rescue the patient, but could not take the two caretakers as we’d assumed they would (and, to save weight on the helicopter, we’d hiked out with a lot of the gear they would have needed for their three day hike out). That “small blister” decision became very expensive for the hiker due to the fact that a private helicopter needed to be hired to rescue the caretakers ... at the hiker’s expense.

Lay of the Land: White Snow

We were an experienced group hiking down a moderate glacier when one of us “fell” into a hidden crevasse. Thankfully, their backpack straddled the width of the crevasse so the “faller” was fine, but the leader shouted loudly to the team to “stay off the white snow.” The “faller” was embarrassed by not having recognized it and another member of the crew froze in fear because the whole glacier looked “white” to him. The moral of the story: Know the visual difference between solid glacier ice and the “snow” covering a crevasse.

Health Checks: PTSD and Health

This story about health and teammates was truly frightening in the moment and remarkable in retrospect. On a rafting trip, one raft wrapped around a train trestle pier, tossing all four of the rafters into the river. Two of the rafters needed a rescue effort. After everyone was safely on shore, we discovered that one rafter still carried fear from a near-childhood drowning and the other was six weeks post-op from heart surgery. We can only imagine how we might have altered the trip if their health challenges had been revealed in advance.

Bottom Line

There are endless resources to help us build our readiness for adventure and we all have numerous epic stories resulting from not quite being ready. Our job going forward is to not provide additional stories to the repertoire, but if we do, your Mazama membership of rescue insurance may soften the financial blow.

Referenced Resources

■ Injury Prevention: 10 Tips for Thru-Hikers: www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/ hiking-and-backpacking/thru-hiking-injuryprevention

■ 13 Rookie Hiking Mistakes to Avoid: www. kathmanduoutdoor.com/blog/hikingmistakes-to-avoid

■ Practicing abdominal breathing: www. summitstrength.com.au/blog/trekking-ataltitude-abdominal-breathing and Hiking For Life by Dru White (nacra.square.site)