What to Take With You on an Outing Into the Woods

by Terry Trainor

With contributions from the membership at large

Edited by Kisal

The purpose of this article is to offer suggestions to neophytes, regarding important items to carry with them when they go into the woods looking for evidence of Bigfoot.  This is by no means a complete list, as different locations and circumstances will require differing equipment.  You will not need galoshes in the desert, nor will you require a snake-bite kit in Alaska, so use this as a guideline, modifying it as needed.  Although this article is aimed at a day-hike trip, rather than an extended stay, certain items have been included to help the researcher be prepared in the event of an emergency.

There are three categories of gear to carry with you;

1.      Personal Protection and Comfort materials

2.      Research equipment

3.      Survival gear

First, a few items for Personal Protection and Comfort:

Be sure to carry insect repellent as needed for the area into which you intend to go.  Ticks, mosquitoes, chiggers, etc. can spoil a day trip very quickly and, in some cases, can even infect you with various diseases.  I know this from personal experience, because I was infected with Lyme disease last year from a tick bite.

You will find a pair of dry socks in a zip-lock bag to be most welcome if you get your feet wet. Being able to change into dry socks will not only make you more comfortable, it can protect your feet from developing blisters as a result of hiking while wearing wet socks.

A walking stick can serve multiple purposes. It is useful for balance while walking, which is a great assistance when hiking up and down hills.  It can also be used to part vines ahead of you to protect you from scratches and scrapes, and can be used to part the weeds on the ground to allow you to see exactly what you might be stepping on, such as a well camouflaged copperhead.  If the situation warrants, a sturdy walking stick can be used as a self-defense weapon against anything that is unhappy about your presence in its domain.

Sunscreen and a hat may come in very handy, depending on the area into which you expect to travel.  (If you are as bald as I am, the hat may keep the reflection off of your head from frightening the animals you encounter.)

A couple of ‘space blankets’ will be a handy addition to your personal comfort if you get caught in the rain while you are out.

Water!  Always carry water with you! And drink it!  Dehydration is sneaky, and you can become a victim of it very quickly when traveling through rough country.

Benedryl would be very handy if you were to get stung or bitten by an insect, as it will reduce the inflammation and discomfort of the sting or bite.

Toilet paper in a zip-lock bag.  It is much better than those leaves which you cannot identify. If possible, use biodegradable toilet paper.

Secondly, your research equipment:

A camera!  Never go on an outing without a means to record what you see!  A digital camera with plenty of memory is ideal, but don’t forget extra batteries, as these little gems are battery hogs.  And don’t forget to use your camera.  Take pictures of everything unusual that you come across, from footprints to odd stacks of wood or rocks.  Always keep your camera close at hand. If you are fortunate enough to get a glimpse of Bigfoot, he will not wait around while you try to retrieve your camera from your backpack.

An audio recording device.  One of the new solid state digital recorders would be ideal, because they have an extended recording time, relieving you from having to fiddle with changing tapes and worrying that your recordings will be damaged before you can return home.  In addition to recording any unusual sounds you may hear, an audio recorder can be used for making verbal notes about what you observe, or what you photograph.  The performance of your audio recorder can be greatly enhanced through the use of directional microphones, such as the Bionic Ear, but keep in mind that these are big, bulky, and seem to become heavier as the day wears on.

A hand lens.  This can be used for close examination of any evidence you come across, such as hair or scat.

Binoculars are great to have, enabling you to check areas at a distance from your location, which might increase your chance of making a sighting.  When selecting a pair, pay special attention to size and weight, as well as to quality and power.

Specimen bags.  Carry several paper bags for hair and other dry samples, and some zip-lock bags for wet samples, such as scat.  A notebook and pencil will be useful for making notes about each specimen and, if necessary, making sketches of its location to go along with the pictures you took of the evidence.  The pencil, and also a Sharpie pen, will be handy for marking the evidence bags, so you can link the individual items to your notes.

A small pair of tweezers may come in handy for removing hair from tree bark or a fence.  Rubber gloves should be worn to prevent contamination of the hair, in the event there is a chance for DNA analysis in the future. These items take up minimal room and weigh almost nothing.

Finally, important survival equipment:

The worst has happened.  You are lost, stranded, or too injured to make it back out of the woods on your own.  What do you do?

A couple of disposable lighters or a small fire-starting kit will make it possible for you to build a fire to keep yourself warm, to cook food, or to signal for help by piling lots of green leaves on it.  The fire-starting kits are watertight containers about the size of a matchbox, and usually contain waterproof matches and small blocks of material that is easily ignited. Such a kit can be extremely helpful if you are lost or stranded and cannot find dry kindling with which to start a fire.  The forest service will think your fire is a forest fire and dispatch the authorities to your location.  After they put your fire out, they will bring you to safety.  If all else fails, you may be able to start a fire using the hand lens from your research material kit.

It is not possible to carry enough water for long term survival, so carry one of those little bottles of Iodine tablets.  You can fill your bottle from a stream, lake, rainwater, etc., and treat it with iodine tablets to make it safe to drink.

Carry a few protein bars.  This might be included under ‘comfort’ as well, but if a disaster were to happen, it might prove more important toward aiding your survival than in simply keeping you comfortable.

Carry a good knife!  If possible, choose one of the large survival knives that have a compass, fishing line, hooks and needles in the handle.  Make sure it is stainless steel, so it is ready when needed, and keep it sharp.  Your knife can be used to hunt, clean game, cut wood for a fire, cut wood for a shelter, and can even be tied to a long stick to make a very effective spear.

Carry equipment for hazards unique to your specific location.  If there are poisonous snakes, carry a snake-bite kit.  If there are Bears, carry a bear repellent spray.

The space blankets you included for comfort are great for keeping warm at night if you find yourself stranded, and they are shiny enough to use for signaling to draw attention to your location.  If you don’t pack space blankets, be sure to pack a small mirror for signaling.

A GPS can be a great addition to your kit. It will help to keep you from getting lost in the first place, and will be a great aid in finding your way out if you do get lost.  The poor man's version of this is a good, up-to-date map of the area, along with a compass, and the ability to read both.

A cell phone can be important, but don’t depend on it too much, since you may not be in a service area when out in the woods.  A walkie-talkie might be a better choice, if you have someone who is standing by with another unit.

A first aid kit can also be a lifesaver.  Literally!  This is truly an essential item.

A length of rope.   There are so many survival uses for this that it is difficult to list them all.  You can lower yourself down a steep incline with a rope by throwing it around a tree and hanging on to both ends, then turning loose of one end and retrieving the rope to re-use on the next tree.  You can use it to make a snare to catch game for food.  You can use it to tie sticks together to make a shelter or a raft.  There is no need to carry the kind of rope you might use to tow a car, but it should be strong enough to support your own weight in case you need it to let yourself down a steep slope.  If you select a lightweight, small diameter rope, you will have no difficulty carrying fifty or even a hundred feet.

Include in your pack some of the brightly colored plastic tape, such as surveyors use. It can be used to mark your own trail, or to mark the location of evidence you are not equipped to handle and plan to return for, such as a footprint you want to make an impression of, but must go get plaster to do it.

Yes, this is quite a pile of equipment.  But remember the UBRG axiom number one:

The single item which you leave at home to save weight is the exact item you will have a vital need for when out in the field.  Get a comfortable backpack, load it up, and head for the woods!

And don’t make fun of that old man you see creeping through the trees on his cane.

It is probably me!