General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
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The related question Is it safe to drink snow? tells us that in addtion to then normal considerations for any wild water source, you also need to consider how the snow may tip your metabolism into ...
A friend was asking about grappling hooks the other day, apparently they'd seen a mountaineering program where the guy carried a grappling hook. We couldn't quite figure out why, I've never seen an...
When I go on for a multi-day hiking ( say, 7 or 8 days), my leg muscle will get painful in the middle of the hiking ( say, at the 4th day). Usually the muscle pain will take 5 days to heal, but I s...
An inversion in weather terminology is when the temperature actually rises with altitude, instead of decreasing like it usually does. As the lapse rate can be useful for calculating temperatures a...
We have a question about how to store dead bait shrimp, both answers suggest that you can simply eat the bait shrimp, but one says, As for freezing them, they won't be alive anymore but they sh...
I have been walking/running/hiking in my huaraches for about half a year now and have worn through 3 pairs of laces. I have been using accessory cord used in climbing as lacing material, since it h...
There are some big raven's I've noticed visit our housing estate in the early am. They're big majestic birds and I quite like them. What food would you put out to encourage these into your garden? ...
The reason I'm asking this is, I currently have a pair which I purchased from KMart for around $30 AUD, I've been using them for a while but I found they do not have proper griping on steep and une...
(click to enlarge) I acquired a bunch of camping gear from a friend who moved out of the country. There was one of these hockey puck shaped disks, half grey half black, remaining in the cooking ...
I bet the first thing that came to your mind, was... because humans are evil and hurt animals because we're bigger than birds because we are louder than birds because of all of the above ...rig...
I have a light gore-tex jacket. The pocket zip has detached from shell. The jacket is not ripped. Does anyone know how to "repair" it? Are there agencies in US who can do it for me?
Related Q (especially its link to inversion): What is the relationship between altitude gain and temperature decrease when mountaineering? This question is concerning the commonly used rule of thu...
I found a pink slab of stone with a nice dip in the middle and thought of using it as a mortar for grinding spices. Are there any stones whose makeup could potentially leach toxins?
Inspired mostly by this question, where a person was asking what the climbing rating of a brick wall was. Compared to all of the varied climbs in nature with the many different rock features and t...
Question prompted by: Should I run if I see wild dogs? Since Hyenas physically resemble Wild Dogs, more or less, is the advice in that discussion applicable for encounters with Hyenas too? Are th...
A friend said she heard there's a species of bird that hibernates during the winter. I was surprised because I've only heard of birds that either migrate to warm weather as it gets cold; or stay ac...
Hiking in the rain often left me with thoughts about acid rain. I wonder if I'm able to recognize it and if yes, how strong the recognizable symptoms are. Are there any direct (forest dieback etc...
I'm going on a multi day backpacking trip and I am planning on taking only a backpacking hammock instead of a tent. When I mentioned this to a friend of mine he jokingly referred to me as a bear t...
There may be an emergency situation where I find myself needing to lower myself but with no or damaged equipment. Assuming I only have a rope, can I lower myself to safe ground?
When wild camping, the general advice I've heard is to pitch up late and leave early. However, what times are considered "late" and "early"? One thought is that sunrise and sunset would be sensibl...
Stallions will kill unrelated foals, but I have heard that male mountain lions will kill their own kittens, ostensibly to bring the females back into heat so they can breed again. (Bears will do th...
The trigger on my hunting rifle has a rather heavy pull and doesn't break very well, will getting a trigger with a lighter pull weight help me be more accurate?
I'm going to buy a one-man packraft, capable going some wilder stuff. For the beginning I would like to try it with a used one. What should I look for when buying a second hand packraft?
Some background: I live in the western part of state of Maharashtra, India. The city of Pune is located on the Deccan Plateau. Deccan plateau itself is huge. The western section of the plateau has...
The United States is a very developed place. Sometimes this can prove to be challenging when trying to find a place to get away from everything, especially east of the Mississippi where I reside. I...
Fish like this have been caught recently (this Autumn) in many freshwater bodies in Sweden (like Dalbergsån) and no one knows what they are supposed to be (as written in this article). Apparently,...
Can someone help identify this fish? I was almost certain it was a smallmouth bass, which is what we were catching all day. But after looking back at the pictures this is the lightest one I've seen...
I caught this fish in a canal in South Florida that I believe is brackish because I also caught some Florida Gar. At first I thought it was a Blue Gill but I am wondering if it might be a Mayan Cic...
Cougar population is in decline. I wonder where the hunt for them is still possible in the US? Also what are the specific regulations for the hunt (especially in regards to the endangerment of the ...
My friends and I are going on our first hiking expedition through Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and I was wondering what type of shoes are recommended by experienced hikers? I have looked up informat...
I don't know many fish so I am trying to get names of fish as I catch them. Can you tell from these pictures what type of fish this is? Unfortunately, I gut hooked this one. It was caught in a rive...
I am fascinated and afraid (at the same time) of whirlpools and water currents. I wonder if a average human could survive water currents or whirlpools or maybe even the Saltstraumen?
After rappelling near waterfalls, or during the rain, the harness often becomes wet and hard to remove -- particularly for inexperienced people. How can I instruct someone in how to remove the har...
This answer made me wonder how a slingshot would compare in power to an airgun, especially as for that location, without a license you are limited to 12 ft-lbs of energy. For hunting with firearms,...
In addition to all of the ducklings currently around the area, one will also see mallard ducks without, (the mallards would run the duck with a red head off if they had ducklings). Lots of other...
What's the best way to repel flies and bugs when hiking in summer? Where I hike is not really humid (southern California) but it's hot on summer days and a lot of insects and flies gather around me...
I live in Oklahoma where a relative and I were fishing. We are new to fishing and didn't know you needed a license. We got stopped and the game warden gave us two options: buy a temp license or g...
I have flies always trying to get in my eyes and I wear glasses. The flies just fly right into my eye and it stings from where my eyes are dry. Why are they attracted to my eyes?
Today, I went fishing in a local water reservoir with my younger siblings. We wanted to see if this man-made fresh water lake would have any fish. We live on a tropical island in the Southwestern...
Do people living in middle mountains (500-1000 m.asl) have any measurable advantage against lowlanders when it comes to acclimatization? Are there measurable differences in blood cells density? ...
In hunting/shooting, you will often see the term MOA (which stands for minute of angle). What exactly is an (MOA) minute of angle when it comes to shooting?
Growing up in the Midwest, USA I have heard of being able to hear corn grow on a quiet night. I believe I may have actually experienced this at one time while waiting for some co-workers in the mi...
Do leeches fall from trees onto unsuspecting hikers? Or do they only dwell on the ground and attach to passing feet/boots?
The common House Sparrow, Passer domesticus, is one of the few birds not protected under federal law in North America, because it's considered a non-native species. However, it currently lives in v...
This is somewhat related to this previous question, however we are specifically looking for an area that allows gathered-wood fires. Yosemite is a first choice, but other than there, where within...
I have a hydration bladder with a screw on the drinking hose, and the problem is that given enough time it will come unscrewed and then leak inside my backpack. I have tried tightening it as hard ...
Note, I am not asking how to tie three different types of knots, but rather one knot that goes by three different names. Its a knot that can be useful in building anchors especially at the top of ...
When shooting it is a good idea to wear eye protection, most ranges and shooting competitions require them. There are two basic kinds, clear plastic, and amber/yellow tinted ones. From what I have...
The local shooting range requires eye protection, when I look on Amazon there are "shooting glasses" in the hunting section, and then there are "safety glasses" in other sections. From what I can ...
