Bush Basics : A Common Sense Guide to Backwoods Adventures

Bring extra socks and water. Take off clothes before getting hot and put them on before getting cold. This was some of the advice friends gave as we hiked through the mountains of Vermont, but not everyone is so lucky to have a good backwoods mentor. That's precisely the gap Glen Stedham fills with Bush Basics. Written in an easy style, Stedham provides a dose of reality in the first chapter with descriptions of hypothermia and basic survival techniques. Drawing on years of experience as a rescue searcher, Stedham identifies common mistakes that can lead to tragedy. But this is not a book full of paranoia. With a modest bit of preparation, every walk can lead to places as "lovely, dark and deep" as Robert Frost's snowy woods. Stedham has a great capacity for making somewhat complicated topics (compass declination, distance calculations) easy to understand through step-by-step explanations and helpful illustrations by Jill Deuling. Nor is any topic too sensitive-there is an extended section on "toilet technique," with critical points to ensure the safety and pleasure of all hikers. Bush Basics will enlighten neophytes and more experienced overnighters. By helping hikers to be more prepared for the unexpected, Stedham enables them to have more fun on the trail and may even allow the author an extra day or two off from rescuing folks caught out unawares. -- From Independent Publisher