General Q&A about the great outdoors and outdoor pursuits.
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I'm planning a hike in the White Mountains of California; see also this related question. So far, all my hiking have either been day hikes in the densely populated hikes, or treks for up to three ...
A few years ago camping in Dorset, England we had an issue with the wonderfully cute local wildlife nibbling away at our guy ropes. At the time, we didn't have a replacement. So with a guy rope loo...
What wild animals are there in California that can be dangerous or create hassles, and how do I avoid problems with them?
What can I do to see wombats in the wild? I'm aware of places that have wombats as I have seen their droppings, but what can I do to see wild wombats?
I'll be doing some backpacking in sections of desert in Eastern Washington, U.S. and I was wondering if anybody has tips on food storage while hiking? There will be no trees to hang the food in. I...
I have never camped using a tarp (and just a sleeping bag under), and I am wondering about it. I am thinking about camping in Canada, and the animals around there are apparently mostly bears and ot...
My husband transplanted a sedum to an area under our bird feeders about ten feet away. The plant is 6 inches wide, 14 inches long, and the hole was approximately 10 inches deep. After removing it, ...
When visiting areas with free-roaming wildlife such as American Bison and Texas Longhorns, there are numerous signs warning about keeping a safe distance. They don't, however, actually specify the ...
Unlike other places, in India, the region where I stay and trek, we don't have warning boards stating the crocodile threats/warnings. I have been wandering in the region for almost a decade now an...
When I slept outside in central Europe, I often recognized extremely loud snoring noises. It's not really rattling but more like rhythmical breathing. I heard it as a kid for the first time and I r...
I'm living near the black forest and one of my favorite animals are lynxes. Since 2014 the lynx-population in the black forest is growing. Still they are quite seldom and of course shy. Nevertheles...
I live not far north of Boston, up against some conservation land. Last night I heard something that, from its movements, sounded about the size of a raccoon but didn't move like a raccoon. It wa...
I have a question about something that happened on the conservation land just behind my house 3 or 4 years back, not far north of Boston. For a couple of weeks, I occasionally heard some creature ...
Long time ago I saw a jaguar (I believe it was one). The strange thing was, that it was extremely dark. I wouldn't refer to it as "black" but actually pretty dark. What does such a color signal? ...
Once we were out hiking, we saw a goat-like animal in the hills around Tàrbena (Alicante, Spain). I wasn't sure what it was, cause it didn't have any horn but my mate insisted on a mouflon. I didn'...
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...
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...
After almost half a year working in a hostel in Tbilisi, spring has come and it is far warmer than anywhere further west in Europe so I'm going to hitchhike around Georgia with my tent in warm area...
There's a delightful thrill to the call of a band of coyotes when you're alone in the dark woods. Do they present a danger? That is, have healthy coyotes (that is, not rabid) been known to attack o...
I saw a opossum (the North American kind) on a golf course the other day. It looked pretty dead - there was foam coming out of its mouth and flies buzzing all around it. However, I know opossums ca...
My husband and I love animals. All of our vacations are planned around opportunities for viewing wildlife, birds, marine animals, farm animals, backyard animals, butterflies, insects, and just abou...
I have this binding with height of 39 mm. I like to freeride and do jumps. I would like to know what are pros and cons of high and low ski bindings and how particularly the height affects ability t...
These are the first skis I've ever bought for my son. I'm not sure if the bindings have been mounted properly? It looks as though the screws may have been drilled in too deep? It's the same on the ...
What is the difference between manual lock and auto lock in Dynafit Low Tech Race ski bindings?
I've been hearing that a lot of people are recommending wasp spray as a bear repellant. Proponents argue it has a longer range, and is more accurate to aim. How effective is wasp spray as a bear ...
I'm new to alpine touring skiing, and I'd like to purchase some new (more comfortable) AT boots. I currently have frame-style bindings on my AT skis. I'd like an "upgrade path". Can I purchase and ...
This summer I'm planning to mount my first 4000 m mountain in Switzerland. So far I only got around 3300 meters while hiking and had no problems. However 4000 meter an above is definitively a diffe...
I'm new to alpine touring and skiing in general. As such I (stupidly?) bought some beginners (cheap) alpine ski boots. They don't seem to have a lot of flex in them, even when they are in "hike" mo...
When using a CamelBak (or other hydration bladder system), it is easy for mold to grow if the bladder is left sitting with water in it. What is the best way to avoid mold (or other nasties) growing...
Just got this Weather advisory, and it appears over-dramatic, so would like some feedback if it's actually possible to get frostbite within 30 minutes if it's only around -30-35 Celsius (that's not...
There is a bit of mold on the sticky side of my mohair climbing skins for my skis. How can I get rid of it?
I took my sandals out of storage in the basement today because it's two-hobbits-just-threw-a-ring-into-my-room kind of hot in here and outside, too. The problem is that they have mold on them. How...
I took a picture of this in mixed wooded hills in Oregon in winter. I thought it might be animal scat and was wondering what type of animal, but I asked someone who thought it might be slime mold, ...
Say I'm leading on a single-pitch climb, or the first pitch of a multi-pitch. The maximum fall factor I could theoretically have without hitting the deck is 1, but that's with a static rope, which ...
I'm looking into buying a rope for rock climbing, and I know that I need a dynamic rope for lead climbing. However, trying to find information on the elongation percentages of ropes is proving tric...
I just got my first set of frame touring bindings (I have not toured before, but want to start). I am using my alpine boots with Tyrolia Aambition (10 and 13 models that are both frame touring bin...
I just saw this BBC news clip Does Canada have the solution to slipping on ice? at about 1:20 into the clip (not counting the commercial) a scientist says "most footwear performs poorly" he also sa...
Winter is quickly approaching, and my friends and I (relatively inexperienced backpackers - only been on 2 trips of 9 days each) were wondering how much experience is necessary to safely backpackin...
I have some obsidian and I know that it can be made into knives and other sharp objects such as arrowheads. Historically this was done for a long time in the United States before there were steel b...
As an outdoor beginner, I was interested in some possible tool combinations for shorter outdoor hiking trips, say, 2-5 days. From what little experience I have, I reckon that the most common tasks...
I just got a sample of Petzl's new assisted braking device, the Grigri+. I must admit I look at it with a lot of disdain, mostly because It's bulkier than the Grigri 2; It's heavier than the Grig...
Several month ago me and my climbing partner were climbing a mountain over 7000m. In first few day my climbing partner got AMS. It was high-altitude pulmonary edema (he felt very bad, he had strong...
I have a multi-tool and I want to disassemble it – not for any repairing just to take it apart and take the blade for other uses – but it has no screws. How can I disassemble it? (See image below)
Often times I find myself with cramps in the muscles on the sides of my knees (or the ligaments, I am not sure which). This happens most often during or after a sustained inclined climb. What shoul...
Another question asked what survival equipment should be carried in an emergency kit. But very little was about medical or first aid supplies (band-aids, gauze, tylenol, moleskin, etc). What items...
I'm planning to fly to Tromso in February with my friends. We'd like to stay for 3 - 4 days and have few questions, I'd be glad if someone could answer them. We are going to get a tent so we can ...
What is the most reliable way to start a friction fire using foraged materials? Not necessarily just the overall technique (ie: "drill" or "plow" or whatever); it's good to compare specific varia...
Last weekend, we had a nice hike up Price Peak in the Sierras. We went from sea level to above 10,000 feet (3,000 m) in about 6 hours. And I had a ROARING headache. I could hear my heart beat in m...
