- Joined
- May 17, 2006
- Messages
- 4,290
This is going to sound utterly stupid to most here and even to me. Fresh back from the Grand Canyon I decided to take a short hike to get some much needed field photos for a project I am working on. Some of you know that I hike more than the average bear and never, never, never go out without a kit of some sort. I always have a mini-kit with me in a pocket and necklace with a whistle, compass, light, and firesteel. I have used this set up for years and I always feel good knowing that I can signal/communicate by whistle to anyone around me, get general direction from my compass (Jeff called it a toy compass in Peru during the Nov. 07’ class) and make a fire if I needed it. I recently added a small dog tag signaling mirror to the neck wear. The pocket kit is small and light with first aid stuff and fire starting material. When testing new knives miles out, I usually take my RC-3 with me because there is no guess work with it, no testing here. I know it will perform and not let me down. As much as I have used it I can’t really make it look that used but it’s not pretty.
Well on this day I didn't have any of it with me. Why? Too much stuff in my pockets and I just wanted to go for a few important shots before I lost the good light. Besides, all my hiking pants were still dirty from my last trip and I had less pockets. I did take one thing with me that I have never taken before on a hike or camping trip….music. I don't like to mix the two since one is for happiness and the other for work. I decided to make the four mile hike go a little faster with the help of music and it really did. This is where it goes into dumbass mentality. Music can distract you from what is going on around you on the trail. I know that it's one of the reasons I don't take music with me. I think since I got back from this seemingly epic trip, a few states away, that the danger aspect of the outdoors was over. So was my awareness.
As I was searching around a wooded area that had just been abandoned by trailers and horse stables, I was looking for a good stick that I could use to rig up my tarp. This means I needed to harvest a good sized stick from a pile of dead wood. I don’t like to cut trees and branches that are living if I don’t have to. As I went in for the right looking branch I turned away for some reason walked two steps back and saw a nice pattern on the ground that I didn’t notice before. It was a fat rattle snake ready to strike and I was only three feet away from it. I quickly took off my headphones to hear the rattling that had been going on for some time now. Wow, I could have been bitten that fast. I didn’t have my whistle to signal for help if I needed to either. That was a close one. Needless to say, the headphones went back into the pocket. I backed away giving the snake the respect I should have given him in the first place, besides this is his house and I was trespassing.
I moved on and found my dry stick and quickly cut it to size with a series of kung-fu kicks and Brazilian jujitsu soccer stomps. I also had to use the RC-3 for this to get the size cut just right. Nothing like cross grain batoning into some rocky ground with an RC. I took out the test knife, which was a neck knife and the reason why I left the harder work for the RC-3. As I was setting up the tarp stick I nicked my middle finger on my left hand and realized the blade was pretty damn sharp. I haven’t cut myself with a knife in so long I can’t remember. The last time I was cut to the point of bleeding was in Peru by blades of grass. I remembered now the mini-kit that was in my pack ready for the next trip, at home. I didn’t really have my duct tape or cheap Band-Aids with me. I just stood there and dripped blood for about 20 seconds. It was a small cut in the right spot I guess. That is what T-shirts are for. A good minute of pressure and I was back in action. I got my shots and hiked back safely!
I didn’t listen to music on the hike back. I only thought of how this day could have been so much worse. I have been to some pretty cool places traveling in and out of the country hiking and playing music with no real situations. Fully aware of the things that could go wrong, I still didn’t take a few small simple things with me. Who knows what could have happened? What if I got bit or accidentally cut an artery? This was a good experience and reminder to stay aware and once you find that thing that works for you, don’t change it. If I can prevent anyone who took the time to read this from a crocodile attack or severing a finger with an axe then, great. Awareness, keep your eyes and ears open on the trail and when working with sharp pointy things. I guess I just needed a reminder!
-RB
Well on this day I didn't have any of it with me. Why? Too much stuff in my pockets and I just wanted to go for a few important shots before I lost the good light. Besides, all my hiking pants were still dirty from my last trip and I had less pockets. I did take one thing with me that I have never taken before on a hike or camping trip….music. I don't like to mix the two since one is for happiness and the other for work. I decided to make the four mile hike go a little faster with the help of music and it really did. This is where it goes into dumbass mentality. Music can distract you from what is going on around you on the trail. I know that it's one of the reasons I don't take music with me. I think since I got back from this seemingly epic trip, a few states away, that the danger aspect of the outdoors was over. So was my awareness.
As I was searching around a wooded area that had just been abandoned by trailers and horse stables, I was looking for a good stick that I could use to rig up my tarp. This means I needed to harvest a good sized stick from a pile of dead wood. I don’t like to cut trees and branches that are living if I don’t have to. As I went in for the right looking branch I turned away for some reason walked two steps back and saw a nice pattern on the ground that I didn’t notice before. It was a fat rattle snake ready to strike and I was only three feet away from it. I quickly took off my headphones to hear the rattling that had been going on for some time now. Wow, I could have been bitten that fast. I didn’t have my whistle to signal for help if I needed to either. That was a close one. Needless to say, the headphones went back into the pocket. I backed away giving the snake the respect I should have given him in the first place, besides this is his house and I was trespassing.
I moved on and found my dry stick and quickly cut it to size with a series of kung-fu kicks and Brazilian jujitsu soccer stomps. I also had to use the RC-3 for this to get the size cut just right. Nothing like cross grain batoning into some rocky ground with an RC. I took out the test knife, which was a neck knife and the reason why I left the harder work for the RC-3. As I was setting up the tarp stick I nicked my middle finger on my left hand and realized the blade was pretty damn sharp. I haven’t cut myself with a knife in so long I can’t remember. The last time I was cut to the point of bleeding was in Peru by blades of grass. I remembered now the mini-kit that was in my pack ready for the next trip, at home. I didn’t really have my duct tape or cheap Band-Aids with me. I just stood there and dripped blood for about 20 seconds. It was a small cut in the right spot I guess. That is what T-shirts are for. A good minute of pressure and I was back in action. I got my shots and hiked back safely!
I didn’t listen to music on the hike back. I only thought of how this day could have been so much worse. I have been to some pretty cool places traveling in and out of the country hiking and playing music with no real situations. Fully aware of the things that could go wrong, I still didn’t take a few small simple things with me. Who knows what could have happened? What if I got bit or accidentally cut an artery? This was a good experience and reminder to stay aware and once you find that thing that works for you, don’t change it. If I can prevent anyone who took the time to read this from a crocodile attack or severing a finger with an axe then, great. Awareness, keep your eyes and ears open on the trail and when working with sharp pointy things. I guess I just needed a reminder!
-RB
I don't want to hijack the thread with my own anecdote, but I will post my little story if someone asks.