“Experience is a dear teacher, but fools will learn at no other.” – B. Franklin
Buddy of mine gets a call from his 30-year old son. Son shot an elk 6.5 miles off the road in the backcountry and needs help hauling it out.
Turns out, the young man and his buddy were out bowhunting and shot this elk 6.5 miles off the road…at the end of the day. No way they were going to get it out in the dark, so they gutted it and prepared to spend the night outdoors. They built a fire and had their cheesy little space blankets so all was…ok. Next day, both their phones are at 2% from constantly looking for a signal. Neither guy thought to bring a small charger with them. And, most critically, after starting to haul the elk out, they had no water to drink. The place was lousy with creeks but they wouldnt drink from the creeks unfiltered.
Dad shows up, finally, after playing Marco Polo with handgun fire to locate each other. When he finds them, theyre both exhausted, theyve stopped sweating, and son is shaking from dehydration.
It was at this point I interjected that I had given dad one of these as a Paratus gift, and he needs to hustel junior and his buddy up to CostCo and buy a few for their hunting packs. If theyd had one of these things they could have drunk their fill from any of the creeks they were crossing. I always carry one of these in my bag anytime I’m out in the field.
Same thing for whistles. I always have at least two loud-as-funk whistles…one in my bag and one on my person. Thats the easiest and most efficient way to do that Marco Polo where-the-heck-are-you dance short of having a radio.
And speaking of electronics, I also carry a small battery pack to recharge my phone off of. Sometimes theres no signal when youre out in the sticks, but more often than not you can get a signal these days.
I would have thought his kid knew better, but I guess not. Moral of the story: even if youre not planning on spending the night afield, have some gear with you just in case.
The Eleventh Essential:
The sense God gave even a jackass, to tell you to always carry the Other Ten.
You have no farking IDEA how long you’re going to be out in the outdoors. Ever. Weather can change. You could slip, slide and tumble down a canyon with a freshly broken leg or back, and be unable to hike out for days. You could have a run-in with wildlife, and come out lower on the food chain than you thought you were. Or simply a lot worse for wear.
I vote that survival kits should hencforth be acronymed NWD kits, for Now What, Dumb@$$?.
Yes. Thanks Commander for the situation report as it is useful as a training tool to learn what not to do by other folks mistakes. Your kit items are good recommendations for anyone to have any time they are INNAWOODS. as a Wyoming anon I also pack the vehicle with all of those b.o.b. and camp out gear items for any weather extremes and as well as for shopping forays out of town or county when away from home base of operations, just because.
Stay frosty out there.
Prepare for a night in the woods is a requirement for any hunter. Most people tend to carry too much shit anyway, and reality is most hunters never get more than a mile from the road. In that case going lighter may be justified. Anyone hunting alone or in remote locations (6 miles certainly qualifies), needs first aid, firemaking, a good knife, and water filtration as a minumum.
Re: Whistles……
50 years of doing missing person Search and Rescue and my go-to are Fox brand whistles…
Low effort, and painfully loud.
Seconded
I use to talk to a small boat owner on the net and to go out in his state you had to carry a signalling device. Under the signalling device are listed a whistle. It did not even need to be a brand name one. Any that passed for lifeboat [International Sea Regulations Approved] use would be more than fine, Fox ACME etc, and you most likely would get away with the kind they give out in children’s party bags if it worked. It turned out he keep going out without anything as he did not keep anything on the boat and he kept them at home. Not only was this a danger to every one if a fog came in, the fine was over $1,000. He had three sets of keys so I asked why he did not just keep a cheap whistle on every key-ring. In the end I had sent to him four Fox 40 copies from China, They cost me $2.20, he never used them. They do work, maybe not as high a note as a real Fox 40 or as good as the Acme Slimline Tornado 636 I use as a key-ring, but they do the job fine.
Commander:
Those who feel they have a “Right to be Wrong” will NOT thank you for proving them wrong. Darwin deserves his chance…
I’ve been ‘lost’ twice in my youth and fortunately lived to learn. Out here in remote NW Montana, we are often out side of cell service.
Most, or some, hunters carry GMRS/FRS radios (UHF) that are typically very short range transceivers, particularly in a pine forest. VHF transceivers, such as 2 meter Ham hand held radios, or license free MURS transceivers (radio) have more than twice, or thrice, the range. Just this morning I was examining a potential site for a repeater to service the typical and ubiquitous GMRS/FRS (Family Radio Service) radios that are not capable of interfacing with standard duplex repeater that most Hams use. Use the Argent Data Systems simplex repeater, (ADS-1), a Boafeng and a 100 watt PV panel with a battery, would tie our sparely populated mountain communities together using radios that they already possess, and know how to operate. Total cost is around $300. I’ve made the purchase. As an aid to hunters, and those who are preparing to defend themselves from zombies, a community that can only organize if this repeater is in place, will be far more effective. And it could also lubricate an island -barter type economy.
At least these young folks are still around for some proper instruction.
I would suggest the Army Ranger school but with the C in C being a total idiot I won’t recommend even enlisting in a Boy Scout troop at this time.
Situational awareness in hunting situations is critical. Hunting with a buddy is good, but can’t save you both from near-terminal poor decisions. I have passed more elk than I can count when it is warm and I am too far in.