Search
Do any of the Scafell Pike ascents cross rivers/lakes? I want to hike Scafell Pike, but I don't want to be looking at rocks the whole time. I'd prefer to lake or stream/river scenery. Does anyone k...
As, I have been using a Double Fisherman's knot to join the two ropes. With some physics that I know, in Double Fisherman's knot the same amount of pressure (stress) is applied over the two turns o...
I know this isn't Great Outdoors in the sense of planning a vast trek and seeing vistas, but I wanted to ask for a postmortem on an unwanted great outdoors encounter in the suburbs. I was getting ...
I have an expedition planned in Himalayas, around the Mt. Kanchenjunga region. I believe at higher altitudes, apart from preparation (both physical and psychological), one has to be sure about a fa...
During a fire building process, can heartwood be used as a fuel for the fire? Assuming you are working with less than perfect materials, there is always a danger that your fire will go out at the p...
I have come across two good products for carrying the water during expeditions. I wonder which of them would be scientifically better to have along. Yes, I agree that this question may sound lik...
Although some have said that Tide was acceptable, I've read that any kind of detergent is unsuitable for washing water repellent / breathable material. Apparently detergent leaves behind a residue...
Everyone knows an undercammed piece is bad. Does any data exist on how bad it gets? In other words, how does the strength of a cam placement change with the retraction angle?
I noticed I have to pee more than usual out in cold weather. Does anyone have a scientific explanation for that?
What are the repercussions of entering National parks during the US Government shutdown? There's a trail near my house that I go to almost every week. It's really just a fence with a gate in it. ...
I wear US 14 / Euro 48 size shoes, and Alpine Touring / Randonee boots don't appear to be available at online retailers (e.g. REI and Backcountry.com) despite some manufacturers making them in this...
What gear did John Muir actually take on long trips? I live in California these days, and around here we revere John Muir as a legend of the outdoors. But the legend seems larger than is possible....
I am preparing for an expedition which is going to be in Mid-July next year. I am quite aware about the level of physical fitness that we require for such a trek, and I am preparing for it as well...
I've always footprinted outside of my tent but found water inside my tent after really heavy rainfall. This has led me to wonder whether an additional liner inside of the tent would serve useful a...
In one of the trail journals I read, the author mentions packing her boots with newspaper to dry them out. On the one hand I can see perhaps some wicking action, but this would greatly reduce airf...
I'll be trekking through a dense monsoon forest which has a sizable population of king cobras and vipers. I'll be at least 5 hours away by walk to the nearest human settlement and another 1-2 hours...
I had a campfire discussion not long ago with a man that got pulmonary edema while attempting the summit of Aconcagua, and we got into the discussion of the effects of high elevation. I had always ...
For a very long time now, I've believed and taught that burning Rhododendron or Mountain Laurel in a campfire will make you sick because of the toxins in these plants becoming airborne then inhaled...
On a recent walk my girlfriend and I discovered a decomposed horse carcass, nothing but bones left. We took some photos and moved on. She's now decided that the bones would make great ornaments and...
I've often heard that it is the altitude and exposure that makes Everest most challenging, but technically speaking, it's not a very challenging climb at all. Supposedly, if base camp for Everest w...
I'm a +5 in the ape index, (6'2" tall, with almost a 6'7" wingspan) Buying nice fitting jackets has never been a luxury I could enjoy. My solution for a while was to buy jackets made for ice climbi...
I think it would be fun to climb all the Munros as a single long distance type route. The wikipedia page indicates that several people have climbed all the Munros as a continuous round. Where can...
It's about -30°C this morning, and a couple random thoughts popped into my head while enjoying a nice hot shower. The first was how terrible would it be to get out of a shower at -30°C in a tent. T...
Where would I look if I was in a survival situation and wanted to find some rocks for fire starting? Where does flint occur naturally? What environments could you expect to find some in? I've creat...
So of course the common standard for proper burying of solid human waste is burial in a cat-hole, and generally this means one hole per instance per person. This is what I practice and teach on per...
