[pct-l] "What's in your head?"

[ned at pacificcrestcustombuilders.com]

Of all the statements I've read, this one hits the nail on the head:

"If a compass and GPS gave you the confidence to enter a mountain range 
under
those conditions, than they just might be the most dangerous gear in your
pack."

Modern technologies can be helpful and hazardous. Even the ice axe, carrying 
one can lend a feeling of security, but if you can't recognize when to stop 
forward progress and take off your axe and put it in your hand, then it is 
useless. The key, here, is what are you thinking?

You can have all the waypoints entered into your 
electronic-device-of-the-decade, and not know where you are. You can go from 
point A to point B and not know where you've been. Are you spending all your 
walking attention looking at the gps screen rather than your surroundings? 
Are you more aware of the landmarks, ridge lines, creek curves, and the 
shapes of meadows and tree lines in order to locate them on the topo and, 
thereby, know where you are, or are you stumbling across the snow simply 
staring at some electronic line on a 2" x 3" handheld screen? And if the 
thing freezes, falls into the creek, batteries die, or in other ways fails, 
what do you have in your memories, experience, training to fall back on? Do 
you know where you are and where you are going at any given moment of the 
day, anyway? This is the skill of the mountain traveler that will keep you 
alive and safe.

Do you remember the Capitol One credit card ads that asked, "What's in your 
wallet?"? Relative to this thread, I have to ask, "What's in your head?" If 
the snowy conditions around you are setting off alarms of common sense in 
your head, will you hear them? Do you know from prior practice and 
experience what a dangerous snow slope looks like such that you should stop 
and consider the use of your axe or beware of an avalanche? Have you poured 
over your maps so well that you already know what the area looks like in 
your head before you get there (so you'll know if you're going over the 
wrong pass)? Are you questioning the footprints in the snow ahead of you for 
guidance; are they really going the way you want to go? Can you think for 
yourself, or are you relying on some electronic device to do that for you? 
If it fails, you've lost.

Train, practice, and learn from those who have gone before. Do this prior to 
departure. Don't hope to learn from someone else on the trail. Most of them 
are "learning as they go" as well. If this is the kind of situation you want 
to put yourself in, hopefully learning before you need the skill (I'm also 
thinking creek crossings, here!), then I hope you come out the other end, 
otherwise, be realistic and responsible for your own safety and train-up! At 
least have a back-up navigational method and the skills to use it.

Mtnned


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Paul Mitchell" <bluebrain at bluebrain.ca>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Monday, January 25, 2010 1:00 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Death on the PCT / John Joseph Donovan


> With all due respect to the late Mr. Donovan, I'd chime in to say that 
> much
> more valuable than a compass and GPS in his situation would have been a 
> bit
> of caution and sense.  John took on the San Jacinto stretch with 
> ultra-light
> gear, 3 feet of snow on the ground and foreknowledge that a storm was
> blowing in that night.  The other hikers who last met him had the sense to
> descent to Idyllwild to shelter from the inbound snowstorm, yet John 
> decided
> to press on through serious snow into a high altitude snow storm.
>
> If a compass and GPS gave you the confidence to enter a mountain range 
> under
> those conditions, than they just might be the most dangerous gear in your
> pack.
>
> - P178
>
> "This year the Idyllwild area has had its highest snow fall in 40 years, 
> and
> the area John was last seen in had approximately 3 ft. of snow and the
> weather report, (which John knew about) for that night was that a storm 
> was
> coming in. Other PCT hikers came into Idyllwild for shelter from the 
> storm."
>
> http://www.rmru.org/missions/2005/2005-017.html
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-l mailing list
> Pct-l at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
>
> __________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus 
> signature database 4805 (20100125) __________
>
> The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.
>
> http://www.eset.com
>
>
>