There are a lot of changes going on in the world of backpacking, in fact, it's very noticeable to those who sell equipment, do search and rescue, or are avid hikers. Not long ago, I was discussing this with an acquaintance at the local Starbucks, he volunteers as a Search and Rescue person at the Joshua Tree National Park in California. It seems these days people take their cell phone with them as protection rather than the actual supplies they need in case something happens, and they get lost or into trouble. They simply go to the tallest nearby peak and call for help.
Perhaps, you can see the problem with all of this, as it wastes park ranger's time, and that little smart phone becomes a real hindrance and aids in what he calls the "stupid factor" and I can't say I disagree with his summation. Likewise people assume that if they have a portable GPS and cell phone, that everything will be okay. But if the sun goes down and you are not wearing warm clothes that cell phone is not likely to heat up much more than one cheek on your face, certainly not the whole palm of your hand.
Now they make backpacks that use electromagnetic induction to charge up all your personal tech devices, so you can Twitter your friends with your smart phone, or charge up your GPS, but still, if you are so busy playing with gadgets - one has to ask; why are you even there? Specifically it gets dangerous when you are not watching where you are going and you step on a sunbathing rattlesnake, and it bites your ankle, now what? Are you going to Twitter your social network to come save you - "give me a break" my acquaintance said.
You see, he's getting rather tired of going out to save stupid 20-somethings who don't know enough to play it safe or plan ahead. Quite frankly, I cannot say I don't blame him. And in fact my friend said he had half a notion when they called the phone to just tell them to call back in 12 hours and they would see if they were busy and then come out get them. Although, he's not allowed to do that right now, he believed it would serve them right and they could sit on their butts and wait.
Indeed, if you were a hiker or a backpacker, I hope you will please consider this and plan ahead, and take the necessary supplies, first aid, and water, along with the proper clothing to make it through your hike. Think on this.
Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank http://www.worldthinktank.net - Lance Winslow believes it's hard work to write 22,222 articles; http://www.bloggingcontent.net/
No comments:
Post a Comment