Properly Equipped
Except when hiking on gentle trails in city parks, hikers should always carry a pack with certain essential items. The standard “Ten Essentials” have evolved from a list of individual items to functional systems that will help to keep you alive and reasonably comfortable in emergency situations.
| 1. | Navigation: topographic map and a compass or GPS device. |
| 2. | Sun protection: sunglasses and sunscreen, especially in the mountains. |
| 3. | Insulation: extra clothing that is both waterproof and warm. |
| 4. | Illumination: a flashlight or headlamp. |
| 5. | First-aid supplies. |
| 6. | Fire: a candle or other firestarter and matches in a waterproof container. |
| 7. | Repair kit: particularly a knife for starting fires, first aid, and countless other uses. |
| 8. | Nutrition: enough extra food so you return with a little left over. |
| 9. | Hydration: extra water and a means to purify more on longer trips. |
| 10. | Emergency shelter: a tent for overnight hikers or a large trash bag, bivy sack, or emergency blanket for dayhikers. |
I strongly advise adding a small plastic signaling whistle and a warm knit cap to this list.
Just carrying these items, however, doesn’t make you “prepared.” Unless you know things like how to apply basic first aid, how to build an emergency fire, and how to read a topographic map or use a compass, then carrying these items doesn’t do you a bit of good. These skills are all fairly simple to learn and at least one member of your group should be familiar with each of them.
More important to your safety and enjoyment than any piece of equipment or clothing is exercising common sense. When you are far from civilization, a simple injury can be life-threatening. Don’t take unnecessary chances. Never, for example, jump onto slippery rocks or logs or crawl out onto dangerously steep slopes in the hope of getting a better view. Fortunately, the vast majority of wilderness injuries are easily avoidable.
Some Special Hazards
Sadly, venturing out into the natural world doesn’t guarantee an escape from the problems of civilized life. Car break-ins and vandalism are regular occurrences at trailheads, so hikers need to take reasonable precautions. Don’t encourage the criminals by providing unnecessary temptation. Leave your shiny new car at home, and drive a beat-up older vehicle instead. Leave nothing of value in your car, especially not in plain sight. My car has been broken into three times over the years; the last two times, the thieves only took home some pairs of ratty old tennis shoes, to which they were welcome. If all trailhead vehicles held only items of similar value, the criminals would soon seek out more lucrative targets.
In general, all water in the backcountry should be considered unsafe to drink. Dayhikers can carry all the water they need. Backpackers, however, will have to purify the water. Boiling is the most effective way to kill the nasty little microorganisms that cause the problems, but the simplest purification methods are filtering and chemical treatments like iodine.
A special hazard in autumn is hunting season. Hikers need to advertise themselves with a bright red or orange cap, vest, pack, or other conspicuous article of clothing to avoid being mistaken for a suitable target. Hunting is prohibited in state and city parks and in some wildlife refuges. It is very popular, however, in state and national forests. Oregon’s general deer-hunting season usually runs from the first weekend of October through early November. In Washington the season usually starts one week later and runs farther into November. In both states, the elk-hunting season is in late October or early November.
Ticks are a minor annoyance in spring and early summer, especially in grassy or brushy areas and in the Columbia River Gorge. Ticks in other parts of the country often carry serious diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease. Fortunately, only a handful of cases have been reported in Oregon and Washington, so ticks here are more disgusting than dangerous. Still, it’s wise to check your body and clothing regularly when in tick habitat and to remove the little buggers quickly.
Also not terribly dangerous, but extremely bothersome, are mosquitoes. These annoying invertebrate vampires can be numerous enough to ruin your trip if you’re not prepared with bug repellent, long pants, and a long-sleeve shirt. The flying blood suckers are most abundant around lower elevation marshes and near lakes and ponds in the Cascades. At low elevations, they are at their worst from spring to midsummer. At higher elevations, they peak for a period of about three weeks following the snowmelt at any given elevation.
Two other bits of common wisdom also deserve mention. The first is that you should never hike alone. This is probably good advice on rarely traveled wilderness trails, but I would never forego a trip just because I couldn’t find a hiking partner. You can simply choose a more popular trail. These routes invariably have a fair number of other hikers around, so you’re never really alone.
The second bit of advice is that you should let a responsible person know where you’re going and when you expect to return. That will greatly aid in any search-and-rescue efforts, should they become necessary. If you stay on the trail and stick to popular areas, this caution may not be necessary, but it never hurts, and it’s a good habit to develop.
Being a Good Neighbor
All hikers take with them a responsibility not only for their own safety, but for being good stewards of the natural environment. Be respectful of the land you are visiting, and leave it in the same condition as you found it. Common sense should make the following rules obvious: never litter; never pick wildflowers; never cut switchbacks; and never let your dog or children chase wildlife. Less obvious guidelines help not only to preserve the resource but to leave it in even better shape than before you arrived. One easy thing to do is to pick up any litter left by others. You should also do some minor trail maintenance as you hike by removing rocks, limbs, and debris from the path.
These rules are either common courtesy or carry the force of law: avoid disturbing other hikers and wildlife with shouts or any other unnatural sounds; leave all plants, mushrooms, logs, and even rocks where nature put them; do not damage or remove any item of historic or archaeological interest, such as Native American vision-quest sites or pits, old trapper cabins, pottery, or arrowheads, all of which are protected by federal law; stay on the trail and avoid trampling plants, especially delicate meadows and streamside locations that tend to draw crowds.
If you are backpacking, be especially scrupulous to follow “no-trace” principles. Camp well away from water on an established site that won’t be further damaged by your tent and your activity around camp. In wilderness areas, the rules generally require that all camps be at least 200 feet from any trail or water source. Leave the site in as natural a condition as possible. Avoid building a campfire and rely instead on a small backpacking stove to cook your food. Finally, deposit human waste in a small “cat hole” about 6 inches deep and cover it.
How to Use This Book
I hope that this book will serve as both a field reference and a catalyst for dreaming about the outdoors. On those all-too-frequent dismal days of winter you can pick up this guide and read about the beautiful places you hope to enjoy as soon as the rain stops. You don’t need any explanation for how to use a book for dreaming, so this section will focus on the best ways for using it as a planning tool and a field guide.
For hikers unfamiliar with our region and for outdoor veterans looking for new places to explore, I suggest that you start with the Best Hikes listing in Appendix