I am a Dumbass!

I'm happy to share my mistakes :) Hopefully, I can keep this brief...

Two years ago, as I parked my car at a trailhead in the Cascade Mountains, I realized I had left my tent poles at home. I was with a girlfriend. She begged me to continue the hike/camp because she knew I didn't need poles to set up a tent. She had been looking at the map in the car, and left it there as we hiked on. Her footwear was not adequate for the hike we were undertaking (in my estimation), but she would not be talked out of our plans. I should have known better than to be pressured out of my assessment of the situation. On the second day (the last planned day of our trip), we were heading down on snowpack. I was trying to keep us on dry ground at every chance because her feet were freezing. Long story made short - we got a ways off the trail and, exhausted, she refused to hike back uphill to rejoin the trail. With very steep slopes all below us, we could only traverse. Eventually, we set up camp for an unexpected night out, still on snow. We stopped early since I needed to keep her warm. Everything she had was wet, including her sleeping bag. I gave her a new set of dry clothes (extras I brought), put her in my sleeping bag, and practically forced her to eat and drink. On the morning of the third day, I assured her that she would be sleeping in her own bed that night. We descended the extremely steep slopes directly towards the valley floor, with only 4mm cord to keep her tied to me. We used a fallen tree to cross a cascading river and skirted small cliffs on the way down. Getting back to the car later, we met up with the Search And Rescue teams that were looking for us. They were shocked at the terrain we had covered and the good condition we were in.

At least I brought some of the important things – my water filter, extra food, extra clothes, and enough fuel. No doubt, I learned a lot from that trip.

Much more of the account can be found starting with my first post here:
NWHikers.net Trip Report
Previously, my user name on that forum was "Gallant", for those who want to read the pages.
 
Shooter thanks for sharing. I know there are more stories from people and if you wish to share, please do. This is a good atmosphere for learning.

-RB
 
Luckily, we are usually allotted more than a few mistakes before we die. But to be honest, I'm probably getting close to using up my allotment.

Good thread since we all get too confidant in what we do sometimes. Nature has a way correcting that if you push it.
 
Shooter, thanks for sharing your story. I also think that the fact folks are sharing their mistakes on this forum say something about the members here. Too often I have seen people pounce on somebody for a mistake. We all make mistakes and it is in our interest to learn from each other and help each other out.

Bear and Shooter, thanks again for sharing.
 
What got me into survival to begin with was getting lost in a big section of the Adirondack mountains while bear hunting. I had no survival gear, no survival knowledge, and was dressed for 60f when it was droping down to 30f at night. I found my way out, but that incident was what got me into wanting to be prepared. Spending the night out there might have been dangerous dressed like I was without any sheleter or fire.
 
troutfisher13111 said:
What got me into survival to begin with was getting lost in a big section of the Adirondack mountains while bear hunting. I had no survival gear, no survival knowledge, and was dressed for 60f when it was droping down to 30f at night. I found my way out, but that incident was what got me into wanting to be prepared. Spending the night out there might have been dangerous dressed like I was without any sheleter or fire.
Click to expand...

Great story and a good reason to get into skills. I guess I was hoping to inspire some truth from this post.

-RB
 
Man, I ALMOST did that going out airgun plinking/hiking with koyote girl.

All ready to go, in the car onto the street, and i realize that I've got the shooting bag but not the EDC bag. Sierra didn't want to go back, but I pushed.

No sooner are we over the levee out out in the bypass than I hook myself but BAD on some barbed wire dragged out by a winter storm. tore my calf nice and good. REALLY glad I had the iodine, gauze, and tape. Bled for a half hour anyhow.
 
thanks Bear. We all need a reminder from time to time. went out today, couldnt find my headphones, now Im glad i couldnt.
 
I was with a buddy one time making camp and he stuck his machete in the ground and like a idiot trying to break a large limb by propping it up onto another and jumping up & down on it until it snapped and when the limb broke ,he fell and his left bicep found the machete stuck in the ground. no real FAK on me at that time just really basic stuff,so I had to tuck his muscle/fat tissue back into his arm and wrapped the wound in a t-shirt and drove 45miles to a hospital and have it stiched up,man that wound looked bad,gapped open about 3-4" wide and about 7-9" long....I could see tendons and etc,the Dr. said another 1/8" and he could of bled to death.... I just remember him freaking out and turning white as a ghost....I had to calm him down and talked to him and tell him,your cut badly & bleeding calm down....your making this worse.... awe fun times.... I think that happend 10-12years ago .
 
Scary story, Tony.

One of the biggest fears we have in remote jungle days from primary care (outside of a hot snake bite) is a mis-whack with a machete causing a large wound.
 
yea, I was scared but did not want to show it ,I did not want to set in more panic/fear in my friend,mishaps in the bush/jungle or local hike can turn deadly real quick.
 
great posts its better to be embaressed then dead. these story emphisize the importance of thing/rules folks do. remember your stuff and tell someone where you are going and when you'll be back.



Pat
 
This is a great thread, Bear! If you haven 't made mistakes, you've never really been out there trying.

My "greatest" life and death outdoors "adventures" were caused by my own mistakes.

When we tell our lies over drinks, we usually start with "No sh*t, there I was..." when the truth (for me at least) was usually, "Dumb sh*t, there I was..." :D

One time, dumb sh*t there I was, crossing a glacier sans crampons, and I ended up sliding down thousands of yards of glacier at about 40 mph, crashing and tumbling over the rocks at the bottom (which cracked a bone in my hip, but stopped me from falling off a 2000 ft cliff). I babbled like an idiot in that post-incident adrenaline dump and some poor sap got the whole story in 10 seconds. I'll post the the longer version if you want to hear about it.
 
Yikes!! Bear, you're lucky that was a rattlesnake. In south Louisianna, where I grew up (Rayne), I never saw a rattlesnake. What we had to watch for was cottonmouths. They're so aggressive that snake would have chased you down. I rarely ever saw one turn and run.

When I was close to Eagle Scout, I was out on a hike with one of the guys that was going to make Eagle with me. We were at an impasse because of a big bayou. (small river) In Louisianna, the banks of streams are sticky slimy mud. There isn't any rock, or any other kind of soil than silt deposited by the Mississippi for eons. You can't climb out of a bayou easily, or maybe at all once you're in, so we had been searching for a way to cross. The best we found was this tinuous looking 6" round tree across the stream. We thought about just turning back, but decided to dare the crossing.

I went first. About halfway out a tiny little snake, maybe 6 or 8" long popped out by the log, and I hit it with the stick I was using to balance with. Then a few things happened. There was a snapping sound, and the tree gave way plunging me into the muddy water. Then almost immediately, a big momma watermoccasin popped up on the other side of the bayou and started swimming at me. I clambered backwards in the chest deep water, but getting out in time was hopeless.

My friend was not known for being a good shot. In the scouts he did other parts of the competitions and left the shooting to the rest of us. But that day was his day I guess. When that snake was a few feet away from me, and I knew I was a goner, he placed a pelet right through its head! After he pulled me out we collected the snake. It was almost 6' long and bigger around than a coke can.

Yikes!

Don't hike with your music anymore. Save that for camp. The woods are full of warning sounds if you're listning.
 
And I just started a thread a few days ago wondering why people take electronic junk into the woods. Thanks for the reinforcement of the point...and glad you made it out ok. Rattlesnake bites hurt pretty bad.
 
texastonydobbs said:
I was with a buddy one time making camp and he stuck his machete in the ground and like a idiot trying to break a large limb by propping it up onto another and jumping up & down on it until it snapped and when the limb broke ,he fell and his left bicep found the machete stuck in the ground. no real FAK on me at that time just really basic stuff,so I had to tuck his muscle/fat tissue back into his arm and wrapped the wound in a t-shirt and drove 45miles to a hospital and have it stiched up,man that wound looked bad,gapped open about 3-4" wide and about 7-9" long....I could see tendons and etc,the Dr. said another 1/8" and he could of bled to death.... I just remember him freaking out and turning white as a ghost....I had to calm him down and talked to him and tell him,your cut badly & bleeding calm down....your making this worse.... awe fun times.... I think that happend 10-12years ago .
Click to expand...

texastonydobbs said:
yea, I was scared but did not want to show it ,I did not want to set in more panic/fear in my friend,mishaps in the bush/jungle or local hike can turn deadly real quick.
Click to expand...

R.A.T. said:
Scary story, Tony.

One of the biggest fears we have in remote jungle days from primary care (outside of a hot snake bite) is a mis-whack with a machete causing a large wound.
Click to expand...

Dang Tony. Nice story. It is part of it to remain calm. I remember how exciteable I was when I first started ambulance. Now you would have to pinch me to see if I was awake.

Man I bet the jungle is a place that would be hard to deal with a major soft tissue injury. Ever happened??
 
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