The Hiking and Camping First Aid Kit

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

While the hiker who’s a trained doctor is a rarity, most doctors would agree that it’s better to self-treat when out in the wilderness and encountering an emergency medical situation, rather than not to treat at all. For this reason, when you’re hiking or camping, constructing a quality first aid kit that adequately prepares you for the challenges of the outdoors will be one of the most important stages of your preparation.

First aid kits can only carry so much, but if you know what to carry and how to use it, you can help those materials make the greatest possible impact on the positive health and safety of yourself and those you’re travelling with. Here are some items to include in your hiking or camping first-aid kit.

-Bandages.

Covering up cuts and scraps will be crucial for preventing infection and promoting the healing of your dings and dents, and will be especially crucial for deeper knicks and cuts. Carry a variety of bandages, including a bandage roll for taping, triangular bandages, butterfly bandages, and an assorted variety of adhesive bandages, in a range of sizes.

-Disinfectants and alcohol swaps.

Again, preventing infection is often one of the highest priorities in outdoor medical situations, and treating cuts or marks the proper way will go a long way toward preventing infection. Before even dressing a wound, being able to apply disinfectant of some sort, fighting against bacteria, will be a key issue.

-Medicine.

This seems obvious, but what kind of medicine? Many recommend Aspirin or ibuprofen, so those might be good to carry. But also consider a possible attack of diarrhea or other stomach sickness that will require some ideal digestive medicine to help ease suffering and get the recovery process going more quickly. Consider medicines for treating diarrhea, especially, as an essential element, even if you carry small amounts of that medicine.

-Gauze and wipes.

Gauze and wipes are important to carry because you don’t exactly want to clean wounds with leaves while you’re out there. Gauze is very lightweight, so it makes sense to carry plenty without adding any burden to what you’re carrying on a hike, and it might just come in handy.

-A Swiss Army knife.

A Swiss Army knife already has plenty of tools for working in the outdoors, but scissors can prove especially useful in medical situations, helping cut through clothing to get to a wound, or helping to dress and replace the bandages on a wound.

Be sure to look at first aid kits and check out the local situations of each hiking and camping opportunity to make sure that your first aid kit is customized to your needs.

Photo Credits: gregor_y

Must-Have Survival Equipment for Hiking

Saturday, September 5th, 2009

Let’s face it: some of us take rather tame hikes. We might head out to a “bunny” hill, or a place with clearly-mapped trails that never veer off too far from civilization. Some of us are amateur hikers who prefer to still be able to hear the sounds of the highway even as we reach the hilltop.

But for more serious hikers, not everything is so comfortable and predictable. Bottom line: you could get lost on a hike. Rather than worry about it, it’s better to prepare for it. Here are some must-have pieces of equipment to bring with you in case you get lost:

• Navigation: Whether you bring a map/compass or a GPS watch, you should have some sort of contingency for finding your way around. At the very least, be able to discern your direction so that you know where you came from and where you’re going.
• Fire-starters: Flint, matches, a lighter: whatever you need to get a fire going, bring it. If you ever get lost into the night hours and the temperature drops, you’re going to need a fire to stay warm. Fire also has other practical purposes, like boiling water and preparing food.
• A knife: In addition to helping you start a fire with flint, a knife has so many practical uses that any survivalist will tell you to bring a knife whenever you head out into the wild. From building shelter to hunting down food, a knife (especially a multi-purpose knife like a Swiss Army Knife) won’t seem like a luxury. It will seem like a necessity.
• Medical packs: A first-aid kit with disinfectant, tape, gauze and other necessary items will be vital, especially if you ever get knicked or gashed and need to prevent an infection without the help of civilization. Make sure to bring enough medical supplies for everyone in your party – and, to be on the safe side, bring a little extra.
• Food and water: Water is always a necessity, but the need for it increases with higher temperatures. If you get lost, it’s a much safer bet to find your water supply first, as humans can survive much longer without food than water. But bringing more than enough of both will keep you going as you gather your bearings once lost.

Keep in mind that most hikers don’t encounter an emergency situation like this – but it does happen. Rather than assume the best on the hiking trail, it’s wise to take a more cautious approach. Bring more food than you need, bring a Swiss Army Knife even if you can’t think of any uses for it. Simply by making these survival items a staple in your hiking pack and keeping them there, you’ll be prepared for getting lost every time you venture out in the woods.