General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
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The Outside Online article How to Fuel for a Solo, Unassisted Antarctic Crossing starts with "Colin O’Brady thinks it’s possible—but just barely—to haul enough calories to traverse the continent. H...
This instagram post by Colin O'Brady (just hiked across Antarctica) shows his compass needle looking fairly level, but I can't see enough else to know if he's holding it level. A significant fract...
What are the practical aspects of using good quality hiking boots (e.g. ones shown below) for climbing? Arguably, an outdoor enthusiast might be involved in various sorts of activities from hik...
While there have been some accomplished climbers who have done this in the Himalayan peaks, alpine style remains relatively rare in the Himalayas. Most climbing is done in the expedition style with...
I am considering taking a few skiing lessons soon (never skied before), and the amount of specialized gear seems to be a lot. I hike a bit, and have good merino socks, which are great for warmth as...
I'm on holiday near Sechelt right now, and have been hiking the trails and powerline right of ways. On several occasions I've come to the end of one trail, and can see the start again on the other...
Does anyone have a recommendation for a mountain hike to catch the sunrise and is within driving distance of Vancouver, BC, (< 2 hours)? What are winter conditions like?
We purchased a small potted live Christmas tree. We want to plant it outside. The ground is not frozen, can we plant it the day after Christmas or do we need to wait until spring? Each year mill...
Because of illness in my family, I cannot travel far from home for awhile, and have to be able to return quickly if necessary. However, I will be in Boston at the end of February visiting MIT and ...
Could you please provide information regarding the tools (hook, swivels, hooks, main line, line for hooks, floaters, stoppers etc) and right distances & dimensions among each tool needed to cre...
Obviously by anyone's definition, you need to reach the top to successfully climb a mountain, but after hiking to the top of Guadalupe Peak, where the peak is at 8,751 ft, but with a prominence of ...
Questions like these two have made me wonder about my own answer in the first linked question. I have to admit, I haven't 'tested' the kits I put together. I have some wilderness survival trainin...
We have a woodpile, protected from wind and precipitation, under the eaves of our house. Earlier, perhaps a month earlier, I several times saw two chipmunks emerging from, and going back into the ...
While hiking in western Sweden in October this year, I came across a bunch of feathers on my trail: To me it looked like the leftovers of a small to medium bird of prey, which was seemingly eaten ...
What is your opinion: Does it make sense to train rock climbing wearying a weight vest or a small backpack carrying a small amount of weight (let's say 1-3kg or 2-6.5lb) to mimic the actual weight ...
Inspired by a space blanket being included in emergency winter kits, I wonder if there's any rigorous study about whether these things actually work and in what ways to best use them. In my own ex...
We have a couple of questions showing that in dry times a flare can start forest fires. Is there a safer way to use a flare in a wooded area? What is the risk of starting a forest or wildland fir...
I was looking at youtube videos and I want a pack basket for backpacking. I don't want to weave one myself, and ones that are made by a professional can be $200. I saw some videos where people made...
I'm currently looking for a couple of things for a Nepal trekking trip. Two things are a good hardshell and a thick fleece jacket. I once had a super cheap fleece + hardshell which I could "zip in"...
This question is prompted by a real accident, in which a young, healthy and experienced hiker I knew was found dead from hypothermia ridiculously close to civilization. The assumptions behind it:...
I would like to go for a week on skialp tour with kids (3 adults, 3 kids ~8 years old) this winter (end of December to January). I would like to go from hut to hut as some kids are too small to sta...
Are the stitches on Adidas shoes' foot (out sole) part for decor only, or do they have a purpose for more durability via sewing and gluing? (see on linked image, foot part with white stitches) I ...
Firstly a preface: all training's good and especially overhead training where the environment's so unforgiving. Plus lots of practice. Where around the world are dive locations where you must ha...
I put up a bird feeder in my backyard over the summer and have been enjoying taking care of the birds. Unfortunately, sometime in the fall a hawk decided to start hanging around my yard. I shoo him...
I am interested in summitting Breithorn this winter (late January) using crampons and an ice axe. I am in excellent physical shape but I do not have much alpine experience. I have seen mixed review...
Is it safe to cook and or heat using "cow chips"? Cow dung, also known as cow pats, cow pies or cow manure is and has been used to fuel fires where firewood is not available. Ruminant manure co...
I'm keen on learning more about different woods and how they burn in particular in the context of bushcraft. There is a lot of existing literature on all the different woods out there. I started to...
I keep looking for better ways of protecting my hearing when shooting, and it looks like wearing both plugs and muffs is recommended for indoor shooting (centerfire gunshots range from 160-170 deci...
In Norway, Sweden, and Finland, there are resident bears, but they rarely go near people, nobody practices the kind of bear safety that is necessary in parts of North America, and this does not lea...
This question is specific to the hot water tank in an RV. In my case it is 6 gallons, propane heated and insulated with the only exterior contact the access panel, as seen in most standard RV's in...
Has anyone recorded animal sounds while trekking the Annapurna trail (Nepal) or in Ladakh (India)? If so, where are the richest acoustic areas?
I have a pretty strong magnet for magnet fishing. The problem that I am running into when taking it places is that I need a way to isolate it from my wallet/phone/compass inside my backpack as othe...
Wikipedia lists these common pack animals Camel Yak Reindeer Goats Water buffaloes Llama Equines including horses, donkeys, and mules Dogs (packing and sledding should have different values) E...
I've just seen a documentary in which a guy trekks through some rugged terrain while he has his cargo on a donkey. It's a pretty cool and versatile animal overall. What are some pros and cons of t...
Instead of taking a bearing the "official" way, why not just see what degree mark corresponds to on the direction I want to go (in real life or on a map), and follow that degree mark? That is, why ...
I live in a city in Ontario, Canada. If city coyotes are not showing signs of aggressive behaviour the city does not normally do anything. My concern in my area is that this is a pack of at least...
Gore-tex, and other waterproof breathable fabrics are often coated with a durable water repellent (DWR) finish that helps prevent the fabric from wetting out. It is not uncommon to hear people comp...
Assuming firewood can be found, but it's likely to be damp, how can I best be prepared for getting a fire going? This is for a light hiking situation, so I'm not going to carry a sack full of kindl...
We prefer watching animals from a distance, to try and cause them the least disruption. Every so often I've seen an animal in a distant part of a large area that doesn't appear to feel right. For i...
I have old snowshoes which were fine for hiking in TGO when I was younger, but they are too large now for comfortable walking in TLO (The Little Outdoors), by which I mean walking up and down an un...
Is there a good way or method of finding unpaved roads? Any map, where I can tell which road is asphalted, and which isn't? I have looked at wikiloc, and there are some trails for my country liste...
I recently purchased a new western mountaineering sleeping bag (Puma MF) from Moosejaw. Long story short, I found that the bag was manufactured more than 4 years ago, in 2014, the price tags have f...
We live on 10 acres (very small, I know) but we have got a deer and I was wondering how to bring more deer in. I am looking for advice on land management to achieve this. Some stat: we live in Mich...
In going on an elk hunt, how much space do I need to store the quarters and meat for transportation home? Obviously this depends on the size of the animal but how much cooler space should I plan on?
After a season of skiing in rental boots of all sorts, I want to buy my own pair. My options are: a local shop in a country where there's no snow and the prices are so high, online deals that ...
Salmon is an anadromous fish, that means it is born in fresh water, it spends most of its life in the sea and it returns to fresh water to spawn. I was wondering when fishermen fish salmon. I guess...
The second one from left to right is the only one I'm currently plugging. Is it alright not to close the other three? The boat hull is MAKO 86 23 feet . The boat is not currently sinking, but e...
I'm currently preparing for 3 weeks of Trekking in March in Nepal (Lukla / Cho La Pass / Everest Base Camp...). One thing my guide told me to bring is a Fleece jacket. I'm confused by the wide ran...
I have an MSR Elixir 2 tent bought 5 years ago and used three nights since (a shame I know). In any case, it was used for 4 nights camping in Spain in dry conditions and was an amazing tent. A few...
I recently wanted to climb that mountain because I literally love pushing myself and it looks fun. Information about me I am a 15.9 year old male teen (14-12-02) I live in İzmir Karşıyaka (30 me...
