CHAPTER FIVE: Bushwhacking
“The
comforts of life’s essentials -- food, fire, and friendships…”
-
Julia Child
On winter camp cooking
Because, like everything else, meal preparation is more difficult in winter,
many winter campers prefer to prepare simple meals. Some limit their
cooking to heating canned goods or frozen bags of foods in boiling water.
Depending on level of physical activities, you need 4,000 calories or more to
keep your body warm while on a winter outing, so in addition to your regular
meals, snack once every half-hour on high calorie foods such as fruitcake,
granola bars, cookies, dried fruits, hard candies, and boxed lunches.
These are foods that can be consumed straight out of the package. Some
winter outdoor recreationists prefer taking most of their nutrition from
snacking and five or six small meals a day rather than from the usual three daily
meals.
“Investment in travel is an
investment in yourself.”
- Matthew Karsten, known as the
Expert Vagabond
Also, when on a cold weather outing, remember to keep drinking plenty of hot
liquids to keep warm and stay hydrated. Some winter outdoor
recreationists like to mix Jell-O ®, a dessert that contains gelatin, sugar and
fruit flavoring, in a cup of hot water for a tasty, high calorie, nutritious
drink. Even plain, hot water warms the body, and helps to prevent dehydration.
Stay away from alcoholic and caffeinated beverages as these are diuretics that
contribute to dehydration through increased urination.
To help stay hydrated while on the move, many experienced winter campers carry
a large‑mouthed pint plastic water bottle hanging from a neck cord. The
bottle rides between the underwear and shirt where body heat keeps its contents
in a liquid and semi‑warm state. While traveling the bottles contents can
be replaced by adding water or snow.
“...it only takes one voice, at the
right pitch, to start an avalanche.”
- Return of the Wolf
Avalanches
While traveling in snow-covered mountains look for and avoid slopes that are
clear of tall trees and/or have steeper grades than the surrounding
areas. These may be avalanche troughs; places, where avalanches have
occurred before and may do so again. The records of the Colorado Avalanche
Information center list 367 persons, mainly skiers and mountain climbers, who
were killed by avalanches between the years 1950 and 1991. Any long
snow-covered slope of more than twenty degrees presents the possibility of an
avalanche.
There are two basic forms of
avalanches. One is a dust avalanche which occurs when new fallen snow
slides off a crust of old snow. The other is a slab avalanche which
occurs when a thick sheet of consolidated snow slides off a weak layer made up
of granulated snow (sometimes called sugar snow because of its texture.)
The dust avalanche, being lighter, moves faster than the slab avalanche which
is usually more massive and more destructive. Both are dangerous to life
and property. After new snowfalls, avoid passing on or under all steep,
snow covered slopes. After most snowstorms, known avalanche zones inside
recreational areas are usually closed to public access in an attempt to protect
people from the dangers of avalanches. However, in spite of the many
posted warning signs, every year a number of people enter these restricted
areas where avalanches have killed some.
Some outdoor extremists seem to have a very cavalier attitude of, “No, that
can’t happen to me.” These people believe that because they or their
friends have gone into restricted areas in the past and lived that they are
able to keep on taking chances in avalanche country and live. They are
apparently unaware of the adage “Nature bats last”. Partly as a result of this risky behavior,
avalanches are still killing people. It can even happen to you! You
don’t even have to be in a closed off avalanche zone. Avalanches have
killed people while in ski lodges, in parking lots, driving cars, and even
riding on passenger trains.
“I travel a lot; I hate having my
life disrupted by routine.”
- Caskie Stinnett
Ironically, the victims trigger most avalanche accidents. When in the
snow-clad mountains, travel high above the danger zones to avoid being the
trigger that starts the snow moving. Keep clear of areas of heavy snow
accumulation during and immediately after a snowfall. The simple fact is
that the deeper the snowfall, the greater the danger. Snowfall of more
than an inch an hour poses the possibility of an avalanche. The most
dangerous slope angles are between 30 and 45 degrees. Heed the advice of
local professional foresters and knowledgeable recreationists and stay out of
restricted areas.
“I love ‘Tank!’ that is the main opening
theme song to Cowboy Bebop. However, I
would never blast it out a portable media player anywhere outdoors, especially
in known avalanche paths.”
- James P. Buchanan
In January 1998, a group of 32 French private school students ages fourteen to
sixteen accompanied by six adults, including four professional mountain guides,
went on a one day snowshoe trek in the French Alps on the last day of their
school holiday. The area they were planning to snowshoe had just received
five feet of new snow on the day before. This massive deposit of new snow
presented a high avalanche potential that was rated four on a scale of one to
five and was marked by bright and large warning flags. However, the
group’s adult leadership chose to ignore the flags and other warnings from area
residents. Thus, these leaders walked
the children into a closed off avalanche danger zone. They were moving
through a forested slope when, suddenly, under the weight of the 38 snowshoers,
the five feet of new snowfall slid off the underlying older, and much harder,
snowpack in a dust (dry) avalanche. Moving at close to two hundred miles
an hour the snow carried the entire group down the slope and through a
forest. Nine children and two adults were killed either from crashing
into trees and rocks, or from suffocation by being buried in snow.
“It’s the group itself which set off the slide on its path,” said Lt. Laurent
Jaunate of the area mountain police. “It’s clear they had no business
being there.”
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