General Trail Safety
Overall, backpacking is a relatively safe activity. There are three primary things you want to keep in mind when preparing for a backpacking trip:
- Exposure
- Exposure to nature, whether that be by dehydration, sunburn, windburn
- People
- In general, I like to approach life with the belief that people are good-hearted and mean well. Unfortunately, it’s healthy to apply a dash of reality to that mindset and know that the above statement is not always true.
- Animals
- What is important to remember when it comes to animals is that they are driven by their nature, so if you can understand what drives an animal to encounter a human, you can understand what precautionary measures you can take to minimize that from happening.
- The smell of food — if you are backpacking in an area where bears live in, you need to have a food management plan.
- For Grizzly Bears, you need a bear canister.
- For Brown Bears, you can use either a bear canister or a bear bag that you can hang.
- The smell of food — if you are backpacking in an area where bears live in, you need to have a food management plan.
- What is important to remember when it comes to animals is that they are driven by their nature, so if you can understand what drives an animal to encounter a human, you can understand what precautionary measures you can take to minimize that from happening.