General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
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It is fairly common practice to drive to a trailhead, park your vehicle and then go backpacking for a while. It would be a real bummer to come back from a trip and find that your vehicle has been b...
I am not exactly sure where I am in the world. It could be that I am in a boat on the ocean, been in a plane crash, or suffered some other calamity. In any case I either have a compass with me or...
I was reading all of the answers to Are there any situations while backpacking that would require a watch? and surprised at the number of answers that said you need a watch so you would know how lo...
Last night I watched a film about a crew that sailed from New Zealand to Patagonia, with a stop in Antarctica, taking over two months to do so. One of the things that caught my attention is when ...
One of the recommendations for sleeping warm is to empty your bladder before bed, When your bladder is full, your body is expending energy keeping that liquid warm. If you empty it out, your bo...
Propane is naturally odorless, the smell we associate with it is the result of adding ethyl mercaptan. Is it possible for the ethyl mercaptan to deteriorate, bind with something in the tank or s...
If I wanted to use fire to cut down a tree how would I accomplish this safely? Clearly if I build a big bonfire at the base of the tree it will burn down and possibly cause a forest fire.
Photographed off the Western coast of India, Goa, to be precise. Not even sure this is a creature since I've never seen anything like it. It appeared to move by shooting tiny jets of water from its...
After a rather unpleasant experience with my current bivy sack, I am looking to replace it. I know that I want one that will hold up in rain, but what else should I look for?
A friend of mine has a reloading shotgun machine in his basement and often makes specialty loads upon request. He is able to make shotgun shells that have mixed shot sizes of various weights. Are...
Are there any reasons, other than tradition, to have archery season either before or after rifle season? I was chatting with a couple of Stack Exchangers when one of them remarked that in Pennsylv...
There is some trouble. One of my close friends has acrophobia (fear of heights). But he wants to go for a trek for what it offers than just the mesmerizing view from the top. How can I take care of...
In 2014 I moved to Alaska. After a few days there I started feeling something crawling and flying around my head and neck area. At first I thought I was imagining things because it would only happ...
Why do some people stand in the water to fish and not just stand on the bank of the river? They get wet this way.
I have access to a 23ft Sonar sailboat that isn't mine. It's pretty difficult to get back into after going for a swim. Can anyone recommend a type of portable ladder I could bring with me when I u...
Although not greater in number, our hummingbirds this summer seem to be larger than in the past. I think it may be because my husband started making our own nectar, so it's fresher, and might taste...
Is there a camping stove that works with fuel you are allowed to take on a plane? Often I fly somewhere without possibility to buy any fuel for my stove after landing. In those cases I take an Esb...
I spent one really miserable night because I found out during the rainstorm that my bivy sack wasn't waterproof. Drying it out wasn't an option because of the rain and moving some where else also ...
I've fun creating archery targets. I experiment with different materials and building styles. However, I wonder what would be the characteristics to measure the quality of the tries. So, what to lo...
Main specification I need a knot to attach the self blocking non-releasable part of the pulley used to my slackline setup with a small piece of cord. Therefore the knot should be secure for high l...
Here in Germany (and I think I can even speak for the majority of the EU) it's indeed quite common to bait game. I've recognized that this technique generally encounters critic on US media (blogs, ...
Are there any recommended methods for disposing of ash from fire pits while primitive camping? I have run into several fire pits in National and State forest camping areas where the fire pit or fir...
If I use a space tarp (basically a heavy-duty reusable space blanket) as a sunshade or as a ground tarp with the shiny side facing up, do I need to worry that someone might see it and think that I ...
Both male and female caribou have antlers. Last year we saw a large herd cross the road we were traveling on, but had no way of telling which ones were male and which ones were females. Unfortunate...
While searching for a sleeping bag I was told that goose down is clearly superior to duck down in terms of quality. I guess that means e.g. the fill power (measured in cuin). What exactly are the d...
We encountered these guys in a small inland (freshwater) creek in southern WA. There were hundreds, covering low flat rocks in the water; every one carrying a shell made out of either tiny rocks,...
A lot of deer hunters put a rifled barrels on their shotgun and shoot sabot slugs. I know that without rifling a sabot slug has no stability. But there are two common types of slugs designed for ...
I need to do paper tuning in a few days. Is there any recommendation on how to quickly setup a paper tuning jig? I'm in a shooting range, so I basically need the jig (frame holding the paper) only.
This weekend, I was hiking in the Spanish Sierra de Guadarrama. On a small trail north of Navacerrada (used by only a handful of people each day at the moment), at 1905m height, I encountered the p...
When you find large trash items left by others in less accessible places, what should be done? The exact scenario: We were hiking a ten mile trail on US Forestry Service land with river crossings ...
While taking my usual stroll along Del Monte beach in Monterey yesterday, I found this sand dollar with a clump of barnacles attached: Is this rare at all? Any observations on why it would wash ...
I run often at night in the mountain. For that I use a headlamp that works very well, allowing me to keep my path illuminated and my arms free. However, when it is cold my breath creates some stea...
What is the process for boats becoming "winterized"? Do all boats need to become winterized and is this a one-time process?
I know that a pocket of still air is an excellent insulator. Would placing a tent inside of another tent provide any substantive benefits to warmth? For a concrete example, consider placing a sma...
As we wandered through a valley in a South-German forest, we stumbled across this skeleton: A few key-facts: Big eyes It had two sharp "ear like" bones coming out of its skull The pictured rem...
I know that there are exceptions to every rule. Like for example not all plants with leaves in groups of 3 are poisonous. Also there is mimicry in some plants to deter animals from eating it even ...
I was riding late in the night and weather was colder than what we normally have. (May not be cold for others, but it was cold for us, people used to with typical subcontinental weather. Temperatur...
Thank you for taking the time to read through this ! I just noticed there is a chance of Blizzard (Winter Storm Jonas) in our region (NY/NJ) and I would like to take this unique opportunity and go...
I've a Bear Archery Grizzly recurve bow. Bows from this manufacturer are commonly equipped with two threads to attach a Bear Archery bow quiver. You can see them in this image: If I attach an o...
I've gone sub-freezing camping a few times and each time I've had an ember (without noticing) melt/burn through an outer layer. The first time was through a synthetic down type jacket (fairly thin...
Open 60 sailboats have a pedal-looking control in the middle of the cockpit. Does anyone know what it does and how it works? Image source: https://feelinknotty.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/dsc_07...
The practice of mindfulness involves being aware moment-to-moment, of one’s subjective conscious experience from a first-person perspective. I often have the problem that I can't bring mysel...
I got a Fjällräven Barents Trousers for Christmas! Hell yeah! It's made of the "G-1000" material. 65% polyester, 35% cotton. G-1000 Original is the original fabric in Fjällräven’s comfortabl...
This question is specific to France, as different countries have different hunting cultures and regulations. There have been a number of highly publicized accidents in France this year (1, 2, 3). ...
The Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is defined as the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. source There were several attempts...
How can one cross a barbed wire fence safely? Assumptions: Height of the person: 5.8 (172cm) Distance between barb wires is roughly 9 inches (20-22 cm), Fence is 4 to 4.5 (120-140cm) feet tall, no...
A local archery dealer measured my draw length to 29". He told me that this is not the same as the length of my arrows. I wonder how long an arrow has to be?
I thought about trying unconventional breeds for hunting. I stumbled across the "Akita", which was initially cultured to hunt. However, it seems that it's pretty much a common house/pet dog nowaday...
Does rain (or moisture in general) harm a modern (hunting) recurvebow (including the string)? Let's talk about a "Bear Archery Grizzly" for example. A glass laminated, wooden recurve. Crown...