Day Hiking Mistakes

I rarely read what's available on the survival blog circuit but this post by Ken Jorgusten at modernsurvivalblog.com caught my eye.  All too often people go into the backcountry poorly prepared.

(UPDATE) It’s the season for hiking – when many inexperienced people take to the trails during vacations, holidays, or summertime pleasure. Unfortunately some of these hikes are not as pleasurable due to mistakes that are made – some of them being potentially very dangerous.

Here’s one scenario where the hikers make mistake after mistake, with disastrous results…

A group of four friends set a date in late spring for a mountain hike, making the date months in advance. The night before the hike, they drove four hours from home to a lodging near the trail-head. The next morning the weather forecast predicted the day will be in the 60s to low 70s, but that late-season storms can be expected in higher elevations. It was warm and sunny when they left their overnight accommodations, so they set out in cotton shorts, T-shirts and sneakers…

To read the rest of Ken's post go here.

It all boils down to carrying the ten essential systems.  The basics of the ten essential systems can be easily put into a day pack.

My earlier post on the essential systems can be found here.