General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
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My sister lives at sea level -- Baltimore and Chicago. She is coming to visit me in Denver (5280 ft or 1600m). She wishes to climb Mt Bierstadt (14,065 ft or 4200m) the same day she arrives. I hav...
This BBC news article Mount Everest: Altitude sickness claims third death in four days caught my attention. From what I understand the best cure for Altitude sickness is to get lower, fast. This...
I will be going above 15000 feet (4500 meters) on a trip next month, and I've heard people will often get altitude sickness. Is there anything I can do beforehand to prevent sickness or take while ...
I know the theory behind effects of high altitudes on the human body is not entirely understood and because of cross-influence it is a difficult topic. It's not an exact science. Having said that ...
Recently I did a trek in the Himalayan region and one of the group members was affected by what we believed was AMS at around 4600m. We had to evacuate the person from there and get to around 4100...
This question in some ways is related to this question asked by JollySin. When I did my first Himalayan trek, my guide there had told me that those with a low blood pressure (BP) are more suscepti...
After boiling water it went from clear to brownish red. I boiled the clear water in a stainless steel pan and as it was boiling it started to become brownish red. The more I boiled it the more pron...
On a recent run which crosses the Humber Bridge my GPS watch seems quite confused by my altitude as I crossed the bridge, as if there is an 8m shear drop half way with the south side being lower. ...
I'm training to climb large mountains. What kind of ascent should I train for at altitude. Let's say above 12000 feet and carrying up to 60 lbs?
Let's say that two persons are going to attempt to climb a mountain that is 6 000 metres high. These persons are equal in every way, except that one lives at sea level and one lives at 2 500 metres...
What is the lowest altitude where the effect of lack of acclimatization can be observed? I've heard that generally we speak about the need for acclimatization over 3000 meters (9800 feet). Are the...
I have been trekking nearly for a decade now and all those years I have never had a tent with me. It was roughly a couple of years ago, I bought my first tent. :-) I had always relied on natural ca...
When camping in more remote areas with young kids, how can you make sure they don't take a stroll and get lost in the middle of the night? We won't be near lights, established "bathrooms", etc. T...
What is the simplest way to approximate time after the sun has set? Perhaps using the moon's height and phase? This would make the most sense to me, but what could you do in the case of a new moon?
This is something I have pondered on multiple occasions, when the light of the full moon and the altitude induced insomnia kept me awake long into the night. I realize that this would be an unusua...
Some animals are big and dangerous and, when hungry, may realise that humans contain a pretty decent amount of meat. I've never hiked in such areas, but they do exist. Photo from Wikipedia, CC-B...
Which is better to use during a night trek - a flashlight or a headlamp? Which do you prefer? Would be great if recommend the one you use and tell me what made you buy it.
Could the use of anti-perspirant give benefit in extreme cold climate where sweating can be a significant problem. I've read many articles regarding keeping warm when alpine climbing in the extrem...
I know there are many outdoor-related adventure novels that can make great company while relaxing on one's own adventure, but are there any outdoorsy comic books? Perhaps the hero is a hiker with...
I'm pretty tall and I find that to purchase a brand-name sleeping pad means shelling out serious $$$. To solve this I have always just purchased a roll of foam padding that I could cut to make sure...
I am office bound for 10 hours a day working at a computer. As I am off skiing this season, are there any exercises that will help my leg muscles I can do whilst sitting at my desk?
Imagine a multi-pitch climbing situation where a lead climber has just finished belaying the second from a hanging belay position. The rope is coiled over the anchor cord (or clove hitched sharp en...
Sometimes I hike with people for whom bare chest or even bare legs would be uncomfortable. But I get overheated MUCH more easily than most people; anything about 70 degrees is too to wear clothes ...
Recently I heard as a general rule of thumb that one should leave at most the width of your hand as space between the knot (a figure eight for instance) and the harness. Its quite obvious that one ...
I am planning to hike a section of the Bruce Trail next year with my German Shepherd. It's mostly low hills but every once in a while I run into vertical ladders. How can I carry my German Shepher...
When backpacking in a coastal region, you sometimes have access to both fresh water (e.g. a stream) and salt water (sea, bay, etc.). If you do not treat the water used for washing dishes, what are...
I like to take a frozen Nalgene bottle of water to my Bikram Yoga class. The problem is, every bottle I have used so far becomes deformed and, as can be seen in the picture below, the bottom bulges...
This is something I have been thinking about since answering this question about guessing the size of a shark. What precautions would a scuba diver take or is this something that is simply avoided?
I've never been hiking in such extreme situations, but if in the situation in the question, i.e. you're hiking in very cold weather and someone falls in (let's say so pretty much their whole body i...
For diving in the UK in colder weather the water temperature can easily be below 10C. Warm water regulators seem to be 10C +, and then cold water regulators for below that as they need to be able t...
This is a common problem during wild camping or survival activity, especially during colder seasons. You are tired, you have lost a lot of calories during day, and now you want to wash, but the onl...
This question was prompted by PaulD's question about hypothermia prevention after a falling into icy water. A subsequent answer by Roddy stated that the immediate danger of cold water immersion is ...
I am pretty much a newbie when it comes to wild swimming, or swimming in rivers and lakes having only went once or twice. However, I'm an avid swimmer and have participated in several swimming cont...
Various sources (mostly TV stations, at least in my region) are constantly warning about the danger of cold shock response, if someone goes to water too quickly. But on the other hand, Bear Gryll...
If climbing shoes are resoled, will they fit differently afterward? If so, in what way does it change (narrower, shorter, tighter, looser, etc..)?
How can I choose the right climbing shoes especially for toe and heel hooking? More specifically: I have been using very comfortable beginner shoes for the last two years. When I started to advanc...
Why are climbing shoes a slightly tighter than the regular mountaineering shoes?
Does anyone have experience trying to resole climbing shoes using products like the Five Ten resole kits? If so, how involved was the process and how did it turn out? I'm trying to decide whether...
My feet were frostbite, so I put my feet in hot water when I got home. Ice was forming in my shoe. After I put my feet in the water they puffed up A LOT, they were badly swollen!!! Should I get med...
My brother and I were out backcountry sled-skiing yesterday, and my brother froze his feet in his new ski-boots. We were sitting at just above 2000m, my brother had his boots off and was trying to ...
Assuming equivalent fitness, what is a fair way to split up weight when hiking as a couple/in mixed gender groups? Should the weight be proportional to the individuals weight? Are there other consi...
Not just children can be whiny on long backpacking trips. I am interested in learning how to boost morale with both, adult groups, or when hiking with children.
On trips I lead, we always split up into smaller cook groups, yet I did have one occasion a long time ago where we cooked as one large cook group. Long enough that I don't remember if it worked wel...
I have been given conflicting information for how to minimize the impact of traveling in small groups in wilderness areas. For groups traveling off-trail in areas where it is appropriate I have hea...
Because I had a major issue with reeky water shoes, I am considering getting different water shoes. I came across some that are nyloprene instead of neoprene. They are not as warm, but in a lot of ...
Really hoping someone else may be able to help me. I am very allergic to neoprene and am looking for some shoes to wear in water and in the pool. Almost all the shoes have neoprene in them -- so fr...
I have a pair of water shoes with a thick rubber sole and a neoprene upper. They provide good protection from coral cuts, stonefish etc. In the past I've used these in the Ontario wilderness (f...
The other day the strap on my helmet snapped. It's not the main strap but the one that sits across the back of you head and has a tightening dial. So the helmet doesn't fall off but it also doesn't...
Whenever I see clothing articles geared toward hiking and backpacking that discuss layering (base layer for wicking, mid layer for insulation, etc.), they always seem to discuss these things in ter...
I often see 100% nylon pants a lot in stores. What properties does it have that make it effective when hiking? Is it effective in all seasons or just under certain conditions?
