Posts tagged prevention
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...
They are said to be little patches that simply stick onto clothing, lasting for 12 hours. They are made from "natural ingredients" and DEET-free so I have my doubts. How well do they work?
So every winter working in the dry cold, my skin, on my hands and feet, cracks. Particularly between my fingers and toes. What can I do to prevent this?
I'm currently hitchhiking in South East Asia where it's of course always hot. I'm getting a rash around my ankles that I've had in the past but never looked into. (The same rash, but on a differe...
A few weeks ago I was hit by IT-Band syndrome. I know that rest is paramount in healing it but the problem is that you do not know if it has fully healed. In a few days, I want to go on a 2 day hi...
I resumed climbing a couple of months back after a gap of a couple of years. After spending a month of quality time at the wall regularly in order to get back in touch, I have started to try differ...
I'm going to be winter camping, and I'm concerned about getting frostbite. What can I do to protect myself?
The last time I was attacked by leeches I thought I'd taken enough precautions such as pulling my socks over my trousers and avoiding walking through particularly wet areas or long grass but I stil...
What are the most common plants that can cause rashes when touched in North America? What are the most important ones to be aware of and avoid? Before coming to the US I was only familiar with th...
I have a very bad reaction to poison ivy. I take extraordinary measures to avoid any and all contact with it. I wear long socks and full pants in the middle of summer but I still end up getting i...
I read in an old tourist guide (from the beginning of the 20th century) that during mountain walks on sunny days one should wear a red headscarf or a hat with red lining to avoid heat stroke, becau...
In response to a question that was asked regarding preventing/treating blisters, a reputed and a respectable climber (DavidR) said: "Having 'duct tape', 'mole skin', or other adhesive products,...
On some backpacking trips a car could be left for a couple of weeks, what can I do to ensure that when I return the mice aren't inside and the squirrels are leaving the wiring alone?
In kayaking I've heard a term called the 'washing machine'. Apparently as a river is flowing over terrain it can create whirlpools and currents that swirl in all manner. Occasionally a condition ...
I'm planning a backpacking trip with a well-established partner. I would like to invite a third person along, but he has not met the second, and I do not want to extend an invitation to the third u...
Every year or so I'll end up with plantar fasciitis after periods of time where I've walked a lot. In general my walking shoes are fine and have arch support but occasionally I'll need to use sturd...
When hiking with a new pair of boots or if I haven't been hiking in a while, my feet might get blisters. How can I treat a blister and keep hiking? Are there things I can do to prevent getting ...
I've read many of the posts that are related to this and believe it to be a be a snowflake of a question on the site. If you have fallen into icy water and the temperature is very challenging, wha...
Thinking about going ice fishing this winter but I am worried about falling through thin ice. I know that ice should be at least 4 inches (10 cm) if clear and 8 inches (20 cm) if cloudy, but how c...
I work in the outdoor industry and I had never had any issues with blisters whilst hiking for years. Then one weekend I wore a pair of high heels out for a wedding and got blisters on my heels. No...
I read tobacco leaves can be used to prevent leech bites. I'm unable to find tobacco leaves so can I use cigarettes instead?
I want to drive to Hearst Lake (map here) and explore the area on foot, but I am unsure what wildlife precautions I should take at a high altitude. Do grizzly, black bears, mountain lions, elk have...
I'd like to use natural malaria prevention. Insect repellent patch seems to be very promising. One patch contains 75 mg of B1 and covers 36 hours. However, it's not very cheap. Many other traveller...
I have heard that eating the tips off a few match heads can help keep the bugs off of you. Supposedly you sweat out the sulfur and it repels the bugs. Has anyone else heard this or is there any tru...
When swimming in the ocean I often get rashes where I have skin to skin contact, especially where my arms move against my torso and where my thighs move against each other. What can I do to prevent...
I just moved to a new place (Edmonton, Alberta) and I wasn't really prepared for the strange weather here. My room is really hot right now and I want to sit outside for a bit in the rain where it'...
I've gotten shin splints on long hikes - once 2 weeks into a hike, and another time 2 months. I wasn't able to determine how I got them though, which has really annoyed me! I get that I could pro...
