Here's my revised and edited version that will, hopefully, become a sticky.
Background Info on me and the location:
Me:
•31 years old
•5’5”
•145lbs
•Decent physical condition (I'm no PT stud anymore, but I run and exercise regularly)
•Non-smoker
•Good BP (This morning's test(09Sep09) 118/68)
•Healthy diet
•Heavy water drinker (1-2 gallons/day)
•A week prior to the day of the event, I was supplementing Emergen-C, a single packet, 3 times per day.
•The day before the event, I ate balanced meals, and dinner also consisted of pasta.
Wardrobe:
•Under Armor compression shorts
•Dry-Fit short-sleeve T-shirt
•Rip-stop BDU pants
•Under Armor loose fitting long-sleeve T-shirt, white
•Smart Wool PHD socks
•Vasque Switchback Goretex boots
•Damp cravat tied around neck
•Real Deal Brazil fedora hat
Gear:
•Deuter Futura 32 pack (~3.5lbs)
•3L internal bladder
•2 32oz Nalgene bottles
•4 pair of socks
•Mountain Hardware Conduit parka (it’s just a rain shell, no insulation)
•3 knives (SAK carried on person)
•Navigation/Emergency equipment (Compass, GPS, Map, Sharpie, Signal mirror carried on person):
•Compass
•Garmin Etrex
•Map
•Notepad
•Sharpie
•Signal mirror
•First-Aid kit
•Cell phone/Wallet/ID/etc
•Food:
•2 bananas
•1 apple
•4 Zone bars
•Sunflower seeds
•6 Emergen-C packets and 2 Propel packets
•Ocala National Forest, Marion County, FL. The FL Trail, starting at Juniper Springs, heading north to FR 10, east to the Sink Hole, back to FR 10, and back to Juniper Springs.
•Total round trip was 21.45 miles.
•Trail conditions; most of the forest is burned out and 1-2 year growth, several water crossings.
•Weather:
•~92-95°, with lots o' humidity.
Here is the detailed account of my first personal experience with Heat Related Injury and becoming a Heat Casualty
My planned the night before route was not the entire 21.45 miles. Instead, the original route consisted of starting at Juniper Springs, heading north to the second creek, heading east to Juniper Creek, returning to the trail, heading north to Hidden Pond, and returning to Juniper Springs. The total mileage would have been 13 miles. The intended pace was 3-3.5mph, with 60 minute interval breaks of 10-15 minutes, where I would drink some of the Emergen-C/Propel mix and eat something. I did not stick to the preplanned schedule, and pushed the envelope a bit too far.
Notes:
•I am from the old and ridiculous school of Nietzsche…you know the one:
•“What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.”
•“I assess the power of will by how much resistance, pain, and torture I can endure and know how to turn it to my advantage.”
•My pace for the going trip, with the exception of the side excursions (x2) to search for Juniper Creek, was 3-3.5mph, as intended.
•I took the 10-15 minute breaks every 60 minutes as planned, ate some food, drank some Emergen-C/Propel mix, and drank some regular water.
•I am also sipping from the water bladder every couple of minutes.
I make two attempts to find Juniper Creek. These little excursions are about an hour long each, and the terrain is tiring, climbing over logs, through dense brush, mud, etc.
I arrive at Hidden Pond, which is 6 miles into the hike. I am feeling good, and the sky is clear, so I decided to continue north for another hour, and then start the return trip. I hike for one more hour, and take a break. I look at the map, and see that FR 10 is a few miles ahead, so I decide to hike to FR 10, then turn around and start the return trip. So, I hike to FR 10 and take a small break. I see a sign for a Sinkhole, so I hike to the sinkhole. The Sinkhole excursion is a 1.75-hour trip. I also climb into the sinkhole and of course, have to climb out. I mention this because these little details lead up to my body quitting on me. At the Sink Hole, I pee for the second time today; it’s dark yellow. I know that I am dehydrated; but, I still have to get back. I return to the FR 10 sign, and begin my return trip, which is 10 miles. It’s 2:00pm, and I have to be back at Juniper Springs by 5:00pm. I quicken my pace to 5-6mph. This is fast for me; but, I can maintain it. Why? Because I will myself to. I have now run out of electrolyte mix and regular water. I also notice a blister has started to irritate my right foot. Now, typically, I would cut the blister and tape it up; but, I have to cross water several times and I don’t want to infect it, so I leave it alone. The 60-minute break interval has gone out the window. I need to get back. It is now 3:30pm and the fun begins.
Almost simultaneously, both calves lock in the foot pointed down position and continued to tighten beyond the point that my feet can no longer tilt downward. I fall over, and it hurts severely. I have a pretty high pain tolerance, and this hurts pretty bad. My pulse gets faster and faster, and I start to fade out; I feel fuzzy. I'm out of the 1.5 gallons of water and electrolyte mix and food I brought and still have 6 miles to get back to my vehicle. I roll over on my back, bend my legs slightly and try to massage my claves. I also try to control my breathing to relax my pulse for about 30 minutes; it doesn't work. My arms start tingling badly and start to curl up; my hands and fingers, also. By now, I’ve rolled slightly onto my side, and notice that my body is in the fetal position. That’s strange, I think to myself. I can move my hands about 6". I jerk and kick my body as hard as I can and knock my pack over. I shimmy up to it and miracle my cell out, turn it on, and I have signal! Nowhere on the trail is there cell signal. Why of all the times and places on the trail do I have signal? I'm almost totally incoherent, and can barely speak at this point. I’m thinking about the park personnel having to stay late and wondering why I’m not there. I call my Mom and ask her to call Juniper Springs and tell them that I'm not going to make the 5:00 closing deadline. At least, that's what I was trying to say. She calls 911. I call her back to tell here my coordinates, and they come out messed up because I can’t speak. I mean, really, I can’t put three words together that make any sense. I am now lying on my back again and throw up everything I've eaten all day all over myself, in my Real Deal Brazil hat (I'm not washing it either, which just adds to its character
)...everywhere. I continue to dry heave for about three more hours. It's the only thing that keeps me conscious, even though I can't form sentences or move.
911 calls me and has me call them back so they can get a fix on my cell, and I stay on the phone with 911 for 4 more hours or so. During this time, after about 2 hours, my legs and arms start to work again. I know that where I’m at on the trail can't be seen from the air or reached by vehicle. In coordination with the 911 dispatcher, I move on down the trail, cross the final creek, walk some more and collapse. Still, the Sheriff’s helicopter cannot find me. I move down the trail about a mile to a burned out clearing where I figure they could see me from the air, and this is where I remain until the Sheriff's helicopter finds me, which takes a long time. It took even longer for the Medics to walk to me, once they realized they couldn't land the helicopter or drive anything to me. By the time the Medics find me, I’ve been basically resting for 4-5 hours. My pulse has calmed down, my legs hurt badly, but I can move them. My arms and hands are working again. I’m still a little incoherent, and can't speak 100%, or think very well. The Medics check my blood pressure, while I take sips of water from a water bottle they provided. After about 30 minutes my blood pressure, although high, has moved into a safe zone, and we all walk out, at night, blazing our own trail through the woods like bulls in a china shop. The blazing the trail part I thought was stupid; I told the deputy I would stick to the trail because I know it, if it were me.
I've tried to recollect and write down an accurate description of my experience becoming a heat casualty. I've included some of my thinking throughout this adventure so that you can better understand why I did certain things. I've also described myself and my gear because those questions were asked earlier.
Hopefully, this will help others in the future.
on your chart this summer when I had heat exhaustion... not good, make sure you are peeing, if you're not going you need to drink more.
Advil and Robaxicet (muscle relaxant) has gotten me out of a jam more than once.