- Tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back. Also leave a note (at the hostel, on your tent, on your bike/car, etc.), which can be found if you don’t return around the expected time.
- Wear sensible, ideally bright (for visibility), rain-proof clothes and solid, durable shoes.
- Go out with another person, if at all possible.
- Always take a safety kit. It can include –
- mug (stainless steel if possible, to reflect),
- fire lighters (cigarette lighter/fire-stick/small cube of firelighter/magnifying glass, etc),
- metal spoon – for eating and digging (to avoid getting cut),
- whistle,
- small reflective safety blanket (for protection from rain/warmth/visibility) and if possible a piece of tarpaulin or sheet of heat insulating plastic,
- bottled water and small amount of food,
Most importantly:
STOP, THINK and EXPAND YOUR AREA OF THINKING AND/OR SEARCH
i.e. think wider, think outside the box, search beyond the boundaries of what you did before.
Deal with safety in this order of priority:
- Shelter (warmth, protection from the weather is vital)
- Fire (warmth, signalling, boiling water, cooking…)
- Water (water needs to be smelt and can be tested using saliva to see if there are pollutants in it – if there are detergents, a blob of spit will break up)…
- Food.
With thanks to Fraser Christian.