Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

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oldranger
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by oldranger »

I pretty much take the same items as Troutdog plus my spot locator. On more than one occasion though when fishing in the evening I realize I left the spot in camp and that if rendered immobile I would be SOL. :(

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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by JWreno »

My first Yosemite backpacking trip was in 1993 with my brother. We set up camp one night in a densely forested area, had dinner and decided to go up to check out a cascade after dinner to get away from the bugs. We forgot to bring flashlights. It was a very dark moonless night when we decided to return and we could not find our campsite. After wandering around in darkness for about 45 minutes without success we headed over to another campsite that had a fire going. We sheepishly asked if they could loan as a flashlight. With the light we found our campsite in about 5 minutes, got some flashlights and returned the loaner.

We were under no great danger but it just goes to show you, if you don't have what you need on your person and the gear is back at camp, you may be out of luck.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by Cross Country »

I always fished around lake with almost noting. The large majority of the time I was with a friend or my son mike (age 6 to 14). When I did this solo it made me very nervous. It was stupid and I always knew it but it´s what I did. I´m certainly not proud of this. It´s embarasing to admit this.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by Cross Country »

I always fished around lake with almost nothing. The large majority of the time I was with a friend or with my son Mike. When I did this solo it always made me nervous. It was stupid and I always knew it.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by ExploreABitMore »

I always try to think "what if I had to spend the night out there". So, I usually bring warm enough clothes to survive the night (but not necessarily be comfortable). I also carry one of those emergency blanket things in my 10 essentials. Once again, not going to be comfortable, but maybe provide a little more warmth, keep me dry, etc. It weighs next to nothing.

I always carry a water filter with me these days too. After I quit filtering a ways back, I went about 10 years drinking out of Sierra lakes and streams ... until I finally got a parasite. Well, I don't even know for sure if it came from the mountains, but it's most likely it did. It wasn't giardia, something more rare, can't remember the name right now. It was subtle but apparently caused me some digestive distress.

I also carry a little more food than I need for the hike planned, usually in the form of something high energy like a bar, etc. Again, maybe to help keep me warm, or energy to help me get out the next day

I always carry my Spot with me these days too. Went solo many times without one, but now that I got used to having it along, seems strange to think I ventured out there without one in the past.

Other than that, standard day hiking stuff.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by Wandering Daisy »

Most of my "backpacking" has been mountaineering- classic "base camp"/climb. Mostly we just take enough to spend an uncomfortable but survivable night on the mountain, if need be. You really MUST go light when doing roped climbing. I have spent over a dozen nights out on a mountain, some planned, some not. Never took a sleeping bag or tent - simply too bulky. Here is where a bivy sack comes in handy. My climbing day-pack also uses a foam pad for the backing, that good to sit on. Ropes also will insulate from the rock a bit. The bivy sack is weatherproof- wear all clothes inside. Not comfortable, by any means.

My solo day-hike gear now consists of : 2x2 blue foam, head lamp, first aid, rain gear, at least one layer of extra insulating clothing, fleece balaclava, extra wool socks, 1 L. water, a few extra trail bars and fire-starting stuff. Since just hiking, I do not plan for a night up on a mountain, usually can find some protected spot in timber. I keep a mental note of all water sources and potential "bivy" sites and if I had to spend the night, I would try to stop at a water source. On one trip I packedmy bivy sack in addition to my tent and took the bivy on day hikes - it definitely added a bit of assurance, but I did not really use it. And on one hike I took my sleeping bag, simply because there were TONS of bear and I was afraid a bear would rip up my camp and with a $600 sleeping bag, I did not want it torn to shreds.

The old saying "two dog night". My dog is a great heat source to cuddle up with!

The best thing is to practice surviving a cold night with day gear only. Do this in a controlled environment, like your back yard in the winter. It is good to test out what you really need, to survive, NOT to be comfortable.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by LMBSGV »

Explorative day hikes are one of my favorite things to do so I always plan at least one layover day on any trip. I wear my hat and polartec jacket with snacks and a map in the pockets, and usually carry a trekking pole. The main thing I bring with me is my camera case. Besides the camera and lenses, that includes a compass with mirror, whistle, squeeze light flashlight, lighter, wilderness permit, and a satellite phone with the Yosemite, SEKI, and Inyo S&R numbers programmed into the contacts. The phone resides in the bottom of the camera case in the space under the camera along with my mini-wallet with driver’s license, credit card, senior pass, and credit card. Before getting the satellite phone, I carried a SPOT and before that trusted my instincts. On layover days, I’ll wander for 3, 4, 5, 6 hours wherever my whims take me. I keep an eye on the weather, but it’s usually when I run out of snacks and get hungry that I return to my campsite.

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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by Fly Guy Dave »

The one thing that has always stuck in my head is the "rule of the threes" when it comes to survival. You can last three hours without shelter, three days without water and three weeks without food. I don't know for certain if this formula is at all accurate, never having tested it myself, but I can see the importance of shelter to keep you out of the elements, which could do you in quicker than the lack of water or food. I have a very small stuff sack that I carry along with me when I am venturing out from my base camp. It has a length of lightweight (but strong) nylon cord, two large and heavy duty garbage bags, a compass, a lightweight emergency blanket, a whistle, a small knife, a small flashlight and a small mirror, plus a device so I can light a fire. All of this sounds like a lot, but it weighs less than a pound. I also carry a bit if extra food, a beanie, gloves and a rain jacket. Since the sole purpose of me being in the high country in the first place is to go fishing, I would most likely be near a source of water, and hopefully the snacks I brought along would sustain me for a while. I also have a rudimentary knowledge of edible plants in California, so if I was lucky enough to come across some of them, I would indulge. All of this prep has come to naught so far, but since I am almost always solo, I feel better prepared than I would be with nothing at all.
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Re: Solo Basecamp>Day Hike>Injured

Post by Tom_H »

Firstly, It depends upon the season. If it is shoulder season, I will take a parka and powder pants. If high summer, then fleece jacket and pants, pad, space blanket, and enough energy bars for an extra day or so, fire starter and multi tool knife. Just enough to bivouac and survive depending upon the season. In the Rockies, I used to know all of the edible plants, but they gave me bloated stomach pains and gas like nothing I ever experienced before. Hell, I could have cooked using my own methane! Never even bothered to learn what's edible in the Sierra after I came here.
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