[normhead]

Regardless of "wild" or domestic or highly trained, any animal large enough to accidentally damage me triggers caution. Bison, elk, moose, cows, horses, etc.

People fear bears and mountain lions because we are potential food for them. Too many people dismiss the non-predatory dangers.

A ranger at Yellowstone told me every years there is either a serious injury or a death caused by someone snuggling up to a buffalo. The guy I knew who owned a buffalo farm told me he wouldn't go into it unless riding atop his bulldozer.

[SSGGeezer]

A ranger at Yellowstone told me every years there is either a serious injury or a death caused by someone snuggling up to a buffalo. The guy I knew who owned a buffalo farm told me he wouldn't go into it unless riding atop his bulldozer.

My acquaintances said that when they would cull one for meat processing, they had to get out there after shooting it, quickly, hook it up to the hook on an excavator, (after making sure it was dead and not just stunned by the bullet bouncing off of the skull,) then getting out of there before the rest of the herd surrounded you and stomped you to paste for what you did. Great lean meat but farming them is a risky business.

[timb64]

Giant Revolvers are good in case you run into Grizzly Bears. Smaller semi automatics in case you run into muggers.

...and for crowds of innocent bystanders??

[DW58]

I grew up in Jackson WY. Went to Yellowstone often. Watched a guy taking pictures of a cow moose and her calf. When he got between the cow and her calf his picture taking was over for the day. His friends helped him hobble back to the car and they drove away. He was lucky he didn't get hurt worse. I remember hearing about the guy who got gored to death by the bison. The bison never even stood up. Whipped his head around and stuck him like swatting a fly and went back to chewing his cud. His family tried to sue the National Park Service. That didn't work out well for them either. Others have been boiled to death by ignoring all the signs and wandering around the geysers off the boardwalks. I learned a valuable lesson growing up in a tourist town. When I go on vacation I do my best not to act like a tourist.

[SSGGeezer]

...and for crowds of innocent bystanders??

Training. and "Don't lead them as much." "Full metal Jacket"

[MarkJerling]

My dad had a friend who's son was visiting a game park in South Africa. Signs everywhere telling you not to leave your vehicle. Young guy got out of car to photograph a pride of lions. They appeared to ignore him so he went a bit closer for another photo. This carried on for a bit until he was closer to the lions than to the car. And they ate him. His girlfriend witnessed the whole thing from the car - needed therapy.

[MarkJerling]

And here by us, hikers are regularly caught out hiking without suitable alpine gear. When the weather changes, it does so incredibly quickly and people freeze to death if they don't have the right equipment. These are often experienced hikers. (Or trampers as they're called here.)
In all cases, death would have been avoided if they headed into a valley when the weather changed, reducing their altitude and getting below the snow line into the bush, where the temperatures are always higher. Often, they're found on the path or just off the path and usually within a few hours walk from a tramping hut.

[DW58]

And here by us, hikers are regularly caught out hiking without suitable alpine gear. When the weather changes, it does so incredibly quickly and people freeze to death if they don't have the right equipment. These are often experienced hikers. (Or trampers as they're called here.)
In all cases, death would have been avoided if they headed into a valley when the weather changed, reducing their altitude and getting below the snow line into the bush, where the temperatures are always higher. Often, they're found on the path or just off the path and usually within a few hours walk from a tramping hut.

While working at a photo lab in Jackson we processed the film for police, sheriff and coroner. I remember printing a roll showing the recovery of the bodies of three tourists who went hiking in the Tetons in shorts and tennis shoes. A late season storm rolled in and dumped 4 feet of snow on them. It took a while for enough snow to melt for them to be found.

[Tamia]

Lots of good points here. I had an unusual almost-disaster on an impromptu -- didn't tell anyone where I was going, in other words, and no smart phone -- photo jaunt around a wooded-over abandoned auto graveyard. Camera and wide lens planted to my eye, I concentrated on what was in the viewfinder. I was lucky to pull the camera away from my face just as I was stepping back from a row of old cars. A slight give underfoot made me realize I was standing on a rusted out piece of sheet metal that spanned a pit of unknown depth. Sidestepped away from that one.

Another point: Don't shoot carelessly when near a precipice, like a high riverbank above rapids or deep water. I was canoeing a rapids toward a vertical rock wall of about 20-feet in height before the river made a right-angle bend. A group of photogs and spectators were on the bank watching. One was shooting. He stepped forward into air and did one of those cartoon-like leg spins before plunging into the water, which was deep. One of our canoeing party rescued him but not the camera.

[normhead]

Many near disasters have come from a hike taking longer than expected and not having proper maps , compass , pocket knife , lighter small things but important if things don't go as planned.

Nothing worse than being confused about where you are, and being off your map, because you only printed a map of where you planned to go, not where you might end up.

[SSGGeezer]

Many near disasters have come from a hike taking longer than expected and not having proper maps , compass , pocket knife , lighter small things but important if things down' go as planned.

Nothing worse than being confused about where you are, and being off your map, because you only printed a map of where you planned to go, not where you might end up.

Learning how to orient and read a map is pretty important also. They (we) said in the military that the most dangerous person to our troops is a 2nd Lieutenant with a map and compass. (Often true even with GPS.)

[normhead]

Learning how to orient and read a map is pretty important also. They (we) said in the military that the most dangerous person to our troops is a 2nd Lieutenant with a map and compass. (Often true even with GPS.)

I've been in situations where a GPS could not communicate with the satellites because of the canopy. Depending on a GPS can also get you into some real bad situations.

When we are out, the GPS is used for lakes with lots of bays and inlets where it can be hard to tell exactly where you are. Or for find obscure portages. But most of time in the canoe, the GPS is off. Keeping track of where you are on paper map is still the way to go. The biggest problem with GPS being the map is either too small, or doesn't show enough detail. You have the little picture, but often, the big picture is more important.

I have taken out people who specifically requested map reading training who judged couldn't do it. I once sat in the middle of lake, pointing out the islands and shoreline and explaining how what were seeing related tot he map, and had the guy inquisition look at everything, and go the wrong way. SOmepeople just don't have map skills because it's not part of their hard wired skill set.

[SSGGeezer]

I have taken out people who specifically requested map reading training who judged couldn't do it. I once sat in the middle of lake, pointing out the islands and shoreline and explaining how what were seeing related tot he map, and had the guy inquisition look at everything, and go the wrong way. SOmepeople just don't have map skills because it's not part of their hard wired skill set.

And it is something that takes more than the limited time available while canoeing. The military takes days to do it at different rank levels.

[LensBeginner]

While working at a photo lab in Jackson we processed the film for police, sheriff and coroner. I remember printing a roll showing the recovery of the bodies of three tourists who went hiking in the Tetons in shorts and tennis shoes. A late season storm rolled in and dumped 4 feet of snow on them. It took a while for enough snow to melt for them to be found.

...ouch... reminds me of a - fortunately less serious - occurrence... I trekked up the main mountain on Isola d'Elba, planning to go back down with the cable car (for scenic/photographic purposes). It's not high nor difficult, except for an exposed portion near the top, which is a mess of wobbly stones. When I saw the prices I went back down on foot: I had trekking boots and it was still early afternoon so no issues there.

At the hut/bar near the cable car station there were some people who were asking me how difficult the trail was... they had bought the one way ticket thinking that they could go down on foot (because going down is easier than going up, I guess)... but they were wearing flip flops...

In the end they didn't even benefit from the discount for the up+down combined ticket...


Condensed thousand-words :

[DeadJohn]

Adults have varying levels of spatial awareness. Some people can naturally point to their start point after hiking through many twists and turns. Others have trouble comprehending any map, compass, or GPS despite training.


I'm a north-south-east-west thinker. I'm okay at navigation, but if I look at a rotating GPS unit where up=forwards rather than always being north I lose my bearings.