AJK Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Just in case anyone needs a reminder, check the weather, pack suitable gear - it's that time of year when a 60 degree day can turn rapidely into your worst nightmare: CNN Quote Link to comment
+Kealia Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 Yeah, we have a total of 8 hikers missing here in CA in three different spots right now.... Quote Link to comment
kayaker22589 Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 Yeah I just read the article on the rescue of all of the people. Quote Link to comment
+CompuCash Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 Everyone was rescued here in California except for an Oriental couple. They climbed the face of El Capitan without proper equipment, covering, food, etc. They got caught in snow and 60 mph winds according to the telly news. You don't last long in cold wind without decent coverings. For those of you not in California - it is really rare for us to get any rain at all until November. We got two storms one right behind the next - the first had a lot of water but was a southern storm - the second came out of Alaska - very cold, lots of water, and high winds. I have logged almost 2" of rain this month. They got upwrd of 5 feet of snow at the top of some of the ski areas. They are actually skiing already. It is pretty rare even for the ski areas to open before Thanksgiving. Quote Link to comment
+Kealia Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 I have logged almost 2" of rain this month. A month?!?!?! We got 2 1/4 inches in 24 hours from that storm! Quote Link to comment
+CompuCash Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 I have logged almost 2" of rain this month. A month?!?!?! We got 2 1/4 inches in 24 hours from that storm! that was for the two storms over the 2 days - my weather station just says inches this month/year/day and rate - looking at the graph it is 1.82" over just about 24 hrs. At one point abbout 4 PM it rained at a rate of 3" per hour - now that looks like a solid wall of water coming down. Scott Valley? No wonder! They were predicting over 3" up there - I'm surprised you guys didn't get washed away. You guys always get a lot of water up there. Quote Link to comment
Spike440 Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 The first hurricane that hit Florida this year dumped eight inches of rain on us in twelve hours, then Ivan dumped ten inches on us in ten hours a week and a half later. I'm in Ohio. Quote Link to comment
+cache_us_if_you_can Posted October 22, 2004 Share Posted October 22, 2004 I have logged almost 2" of rain this month. A month?!?!?! We got 2 1/4 inches in 24 hours from that storm! We had well over 3" from that last one... and most of that fell between 5-8pm. Flash flood warnings were in effect all night. Quote Link to comment
nobby.nobbs Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 i don't want to sound too harse but that's darwinism in action. not just survival of the fittest but the demise of the terminally stupid! accidents dod happen and people do get caught by suprise but sometimes people get what they deserve. i only feel sorry for the rescue teams who have to risk their lives to rescue idiots. Quote Link to comment
+NightPilot Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 Yeah, I guess winter is here. The temperature has only been up to the mid 90s here in SE TX this week, and is forecast to dip into the high 80s later. At night, it gets down into the mid to high 70s, so we have to be really careful. Remember the 7 P's - Proper prior planning prevents........... Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 My guess is that the victims were wearing cotton and the ones who survived were wearing synthetics. Summer's gone, so its time to put your cotton away and pull out your polypropelene underwear and fleece shirts, jackets and pullovers and synthetic pants. Cotton kills Quote Link to comment
GrandpaCannon Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 My guess is that the victims were wearing cotton and the ones who survived were wearing synthetics. Summer's gone, so its time to put your cotton away and pull out your polypropelene underwear and fleece shirts, jackets and pullovers and synthetic pants. Cotton kills Is cotton always bad in cold weather or just cotton alone without some additional protection? I always thought your underclothes were suppose to be cotton in cold weather but now I can't remember why. Quote Link to comment
+NightPilot Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 Cotton is comfortable, as long as it's dry. When it gets wet, it holds water and becomes uncomfortable. It doesn't dry easily, and thus draws the heat from your body. Cotton socks get wet, either from external water or sweat, and create friction, causing blisters. Throw some wet jeans in the dryer with some wet synthetic pants, and see how long it takes for the jeans to dry after the synthetics are completely dry. Quote Link to comment
+NimravusHSSR Posted October 23, 2004 Share Posted October 23, 2004 Well, for $500-$900 one can have the extra security of an EPIRB. One with a built in GPS or GPS interface +cable for your GPSr will alert the SAR in minutes. A weather alert radio like the Rino 130, some Motorola talkabouts, etc can be helpful in identifying upcoming bad weather. And always give your plan to a friend/family member as well as the local Ranger station. Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted October 24, 2004 Share Posted October 24, 2004 My guess is that the victims were wearing cotton and the ones who survived were wearing synthetics. Summer's gone, so its time to put your cotton away and pull out your polypropelene underwear and fleece shirts, jackets and pullovers and synthetic pants. Cotton kills Is cotton always bad in cold weather or just cotton alone without some additional protection? I always thought your underclothes were suppose to be cotton in cold weather but now I can't remember why. As long as the cotton stays dry and you don't sweat its fine, but cotton retains water and as soon as you start to sweat, it gets wet and it loses its insulating properties, drawing heat away from your body. The same reason its so comfortable on a hot August day is the same reason it can kill you in the winter. If you ever wore a wet cotton shirt on a cool day and took it off and felt warmer, you get and idea as to the effect it has on your body. The recommended setup is a synthetic underlayer like polypropelene, which doesn't hold water and a wool, or synthetic fleece middle layer, covered by a windproof, breathable shell. Quote Link to comment
+9Key Posted October 25, 2004 Share Posted October 25, 2004 While I was never a boy scout, I've always tried to plan for worst and "be prepared". Murphy's Law applies no matter what. Quote Link to comment
+Snoogans Posted October 25, 2004 Share Posted October 25, 2004 While I was never a boy scout, I've always tried to plan for worst and "be prepared". Murphy's Law applies no matter what. Yep. I have been hiking the remote Sierra Backcountry ALONE for almost 17 years now. In that time, on 5 separate occasions, circumstances could have caused me to die, or at least be seriously adversely affected, had I not been prepared for the worst and at least semi-trained in wilderness survival. As for Murphy that rat bastage: The ONE effin time that I decided to save space in my pack by leaving my Space Blanket (that I carried for 10 years and never once used before or since) behind, I spent the most miserable night of my life wishing that I had it. I was below 10,000 feet, so I was pretty sure I wasn't going to freeze to death, but everything I owned was soaked and it got below 33 degrees that night. I'll never forget that little lesson. I ached for days from shivering for about 12 hours straight. Quote Link to comment
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