General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
Filters (None)
I have just tried using an automatic belay machine in an indoor climbing gym. I didn't receive any specific safety training, but it seems to be straightforward. So what safety concerns should I pay...
In Grand Teton National Park they have Rocky Mountain Goats and Bighorn Sheep and because they are worried that the goats will spread diseases to the sheep, they want to mountain goats gone from th...
In one of the gravel parking lots I pass on my way to work there are a number of cotton tail rabbits that hang out there. At one end of parking lot there is piled up gravel from all of the plowing...
Help me settle an argument. How big a patch of temperate wilderness terrain would you need to produce enough food to feed a family of four (two adults, two teens) indefinitely in an off the grid o...
All of the butane gas cartridges I have seen have a screwable top for attaching your stove, however, there are apparently also pierceable cartridges without a screwable top. Source What would t...
I have been trying to find the "canonical" post on this topic without success - each post has its own take on the issue. And I understand that opinions and preferences abound - but I'm looking for ...
Which tree native to Florida produces these seeds? The pods are really long and the seeds inside are in the shape of little hearts.
Definitely not a duplicated question to this one... Rather a much more specific question... The situation arises when there are bolted anchors at foot level on the edge of the cliff: The issue ...
I'm planning on hiking the PCT next summer (April 2020-August 2020). I have nearly eleven months to prepare, physically and mentally, and nearly eleven months to read up on the PCT. I have a lot ...
In the United States, there are a couple of excise taxes on outdoor gear that goes towards conservation, Pittman–Robertson Act which taxes firearms, ammunition and archery equipment and the Dingell...
I am considering a solo three-day trip in the Uinta Mountains in Utah in August. I have lots of experience backpacking but I've never soloed before and so am thinking of ways to shed some weight. M...
I was reading: “The larger the foot-holds, the more beginners tend to put as much of their shoes onto them. Instead, also when the foot-hold offers more space, we must still use only the forefo...
Once a year I go on a backpacking trip with a friend of mine who lives near Sacramento, California. He likes to bring his dog. The trip lengths typically range from 2-5 days (including car travel),...
For some reason, once in a while I get confused if you add magnetic declination to magnetic bearings to get true bearings, or if you add magnetic declination to true bearings to get magnetic bearin...
I’m wondering does anyone know what this part of a Click Up is for: I’m taking about the rounded cutouts on each side of the device on the climber side. In the normal position I can’t see what t...
Has anyone experience with attaching a hammock to roof rails of a regular car? I just bought a hammock for my next camping trip. I will be traveling mostly by car and sleep in a tent but wanted so...
I just found this toad on a sidewalk near a lake the elevation was probably somewhere around 4800 ft (1500m). Does anybody know what kind it is?
I've been looking into making an oilcloth tarp. All the sources I have read so far seem to consider linseed oil the only oil to use, and I'm wondering why that is. So, what, if anything, is it abo...
This question is related to my earlier question about when it is safe, from the young chipmunks' point of view, to relocate a burrow of chipmunks. To recap the background of the earlier question: ...
I started reading about an interesting plant that is common around here called Mimosa Pudica, known as "touch-me-not" because of its leaves that close upon touching. It seems to be a plant with va...
While hiking near Lake Chelan (Washington, USA), I noticed this item affixed to the tree located at 48.150978, -120.493732: The tree in question is a short hike from a boat landing and right off...
I want to buy some sunglasses with a white frame and blue lenses because I like the look of the colors together, something like this (I also like the side protection of this particular model): Wh...
Consider an ascension of a single rope with an ATC guide in locking mode and a foot loop with a friction hitch, as described in this answer: Quickest / most efficient way to ascend a hanging rope ...
For my Trangia stove, I usually use denatured alcohol / ethanol / methyl alcohol. Bringing methyl alcohol into Russia is apparently prohibited, and bringing ethanol is subject to a 22€/litre duty....
A few years ago I was on a cycling holiday - on my own - in remote mountainous countryside in the north of Greece. One day, I came across a dog lying by the side of the road. I had passed quite a f...
With sunblock it's relatively easy to know what to look for in terms of SPF, UV types etc, however with eco-friendly ones that aim to not put chemicals back in the ocean (used by surfers, swimmers,...
I am going hiking for 2-3 weeks with no possibility of charging the battery again. Assuming I only turn the InReach on only once a day to send a "I'm ok"-message and then turn it off again, would t...
I'm new to rope-climbing, I have made some slings to use as false-crotches/cambium-savers/friction-savers that act as my "canopy anchor" when climbing. These were all made with lengths of my 11.7 m...
What is the thread size on the waste tank drain? I can’t find a female connector to dump at a RV dump (step on 3” cap). Looking to build my own. The research I have done indicates a Buttress thread...
My Daughter and I are considering hiking through Maryland on the AT in early October. Most of the trail I have done up to this point was in New England a Pennsylvania. Trail guides are indicating...
Has anybody ever tried to use a cross-load protecting Black Diamond Gridlock carabiner with a Smart Alpine belay device? I do think the Smart Alpine does not go very well with the CRAG Smart HMS ...
I know that hundreds of black bears roam around Yosemite, however they are considered harmless and an attack towards humans has not been reported so far. However, are there any other possible dange...
This detailed paper https://www.aoa.org/Documents/CRG/Blue%20Light%20and%20Eye%20Damage.pdf from the American Optometric Association details the various types of short term (i.e. snow blindness) an...
When sleeping in cold temperatures in a sleeping bag with the opening closed to the minimum — just your face — how to keep your nose from getting cold? I feel like the cold air coming in will alway...
I am looking at buying a 22lr barrel liner, but the ones I have found online are longer than I want by about 6 inches. If I buy one of those, how difficult would it be to cut it shorter and then r...
There are two main kinds of railed mounting systems for rifle scopes and some other types of rifle attachments like bipods or lights known as Weaver and Picatinny. What is the compatibility betwee...
Can you pls elaborate on the 10 degrees and 15 degrees? I don't know geometry or math. How exactly do you hold out your arm against the sun? At what angle to the sun? Illustrations appreciated plea...
Talking about the basic A-frame formation, where there is a higher up ridgeline going through the middle of a rectangular tarp (non-diagonally) e.g. from tree to tree, and the two sides are pegged ...
This symbol appears on a forest in an OS 1:50,000 Landranger map at SO 24799 27221. It doesn't appear in the map legend. It does not appear at the same point on the equivalent 1:25,000 Explorer map...
I don’t know if shooting animals and eating them such as catch and cook in England is specified as poaching these days so anyone who gets what I’m actually trying to say I would appreciate if u do ...
I live in the southern part of Zealand, in Denmark. I assembled a chicken coop yesterday, and found this feather on top of the egg-collection box lid this morning. I have been unable to find out wh...
What are some slackline vendors or brick and mortar stores in the state of Maryland with people who actually know how to slackline? I agree that some vendors of slacklines from Amazon may be selli...
The impeller on my outboard motor (2002 2 stroke 75 HP Yamaha) was replace last year before I used it. It was fully serviced at that the time, but the motor hasn't been run in about 12 months. Does...
Where to I insert the slackline in this picture? Does the slackline wrap around a cylinder of the ratchet or just hang? I can't get the line to be locked in place. It'd be helpful if someone woul...
Sure you have to look out for crevasses which is nicely explained here: How to detect a crevasse on a glacier. But what else does one have to consider when trying to cross a glacier? Some glacie...
String walking is, Having a 3-under allows for string walking. What this is, is basically the ability to pull the string at a different position hence changing the distance of your shot. Sou...
At significant risk of tin foil hat jokes, I’ve read compelling evidence that a homemade hat incorporating angled and crumpled aluminum foil may slightly increase a kayaker’s visibility on radar — ...
If animals eat each other daily and defecate, why don't rainforests and the natural world smell like rotten corpses and feces? Wild animals don't have recycling people.
Can anyone tell me what type of bug this is? I found two of them in my bed in Tennessee, United States. It's not a tick. The shell is hard. It was alive and you could see it moving. It's .016", ...