|
|
Navigation and Survival
Maps, guide books, and the knowledge of locals are your sources to find interesting routes to explore in your Land Rover Product. Study the maps and guide books at home and hi-lite your chosen route on the map. MAPS: The best maps that I have found are the U.S. Forest Service 1:125,000 (1 inch equals 2 miles), that cover a complete National Forest. They show all of the main roads, most of the backcountry roads, and most of the hiking trails. They also list the areas that are open to motorized travel. They do not show contour lines, but the major geographic features are shown. The Bureau of Land Management also offers similar maps of their lands. Forest Service and BLM maps are available for a fee at local and regional offices. The 1:50,000 (1 inch equals 4,000 feet) county map series and the 1:50,000 USGS topo maps are excellent for vehicle travel. These are topographic maps that show roads, trails, and all topographic features. They are also a new map series that is up to date. The USGS 7.5 minute quadrangle maps 1:24,000 (1 inch equals 2,000 feet) are good for hiking or vehicle travel if you are interested in fine detail of a small area, but they cover too small an area for general vehicle travel. This is a very old map series that has not been updated in many years. USGS maps are available at sporting good stores and from the USGS.
GUIDE BOOKS:
Guide books and the four wheel drive magazines are a great source of information on four wheel drive routes. They usually tell the location, degree of difficulty, and history of the various trails that the author has explored. Here are a few sources that we have used. US Forest Service Guide To Your National Forest. Publication #FS 418 is free if you write to: USFS The BLM also offers
a free National Recreation Guide, but remember to tell them you are interested
in off highway vehicle travel when you write. BLM Public Affairs Stewart Green
offers a guide book to BLM lands. Falcon Press Many state outdoor
recreation departments offer maps and guides. Contact each state you plan to
visit for the availability of this information. Pass Patrol offers excellent
guides that cover Colorado and Utah. Pass Patrol A good book
covering Colorado's high country passes is Don Koch's The Colorado Pass Book
(Pruett Publishing Company, Boulder, Colorado). This is available in bookstores
in Colorado. Harry Lewellyn's Back Road Trips and Tips covers trails in Southern
California and Baja California. This guide is also an excellent source of
information covering survival, navigation, and four wheeling tips. Harry Lewellyn LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:
After studying the maps and guidebooks the next step is to contact the local land managers (Forest Service, BLM, or state) and ask about the conditions on the route that you have chosen. Many mountain areas are impassible until late summer because of snow, some roads may have been closed or have seasonal restrictions on travel, and flash floods may have destroyed road sections. Four wheel drive clubs and shops are also a source of information on possible routes. Many of the current maps do not show 4 wheel drive trails that are open to travel. You can also ask people you meet on the route about trail conditions and directions. COMPASS: Two good books on the subject are:
Since vehicles are
restricted to existing roads and trails the compass is mainly needed to tell the
general direction the vehicle is heading. An orienteering compass can also be
used to give your location if two known landmarks are visible and you have the
proper map. See the above books to learn how to do this. A hand held compass is
affected by metal and electric currents. To get a true reading you must be at
least fifty feet away from your vehicle and not be wearing any metal objects. A
compensated compass (commonly use in air and watercraft) adjusted to your
vehicle will eliminate the need to leave your vehicle to get proper compass
readings. LOG SHEET: A log sheet and odometer are used together to record your journey. The odometer gives your mileage from a known road intersection to each intersection you encounter along the route. The direction of travel at each intersection is recorded along with the mileage. A properly written log will allow you to follow the route at a later date and it will give you directions to retrace your steps (by reversing the information) if this becomes necessary. The comment section of the log allows you to note landmarks and signs that are noticed along the route. The wording from signs are noted in parenthesis. LOG
SHEET EXAMPLE
ROUTE FOLLOWING: In order to know where you are at all times you must pay attention to your map and make sure the number and location of intersections, curves in the road, and stream crossings are the same as what you are finding on the trail. The distance that you have traveled from your starting point must agree with the distance that you have calculated on your map and your direction of travel must also agree with the map (your compass will confirm this). Forest Service maps indicate road numbers and these are very helpful in determining your location when the road intersections are marked with these road numbers. If the map is up to date, you will have little problem finding your way. If new roads have been added or old roads deleted from the map you will have to pay close attention and keep a careful record on your log sheet to unravel the maze of roads that are not on your map. Asking directions from others encountered in the area can also help. GPS: A global positioning system unit can greatly simplify knowing where you are. It will give you very precise latitude and longitude coordinates that can be transposed on your map with a scale. This will tell you exactly where you are on the map. A GPS can also give compass headings that will tell you if you are going the right direction and altitude. ALTIMETER: An altimeter can be used to give your position on a road or trail in mountainous terrain when coordinated with a topographic map. Contour lines on a topo map represent a certain elevation above sea level. When your properly adjusted altimeter gives the same elevation reading as a contour line on your map that intersects the road or trail you are traveling, you can mark your position on the map. This must be coordinated with other information (stream crossings, road intersections, and direction of travel) that you have noted to make sure that you are looking at the right contour line on the map. SURVIVAL A modern four wheel drive vehicle can take you many miles into the back country in just a few hours. On foot those same miles could take you several days if you are in good physical shape and the weather conditions are mild (avoid travel when snow is predicted in the high country). Every person who ventures into the back country has to face the possibility of their vehicle experiencing a mechanical breakdown, becoming damaged beyond repair or becoming hopelessly stuck. If you have regularly serviced your vehicle and repaired any known problems, the probability of a breakdown is greatly reduced. If you do breakdown it can usually be repaired with ingenuity and your tool kit. If you have followed the rules, traveling with a group of vehicles, letting someone reliable know your route and planned return time, sticking with your plan, and carrying enough fuel to complete your trip (remember your vehicle gets about one half the mileage off highway that it does on highway) a serious breakdown or getting stuck will not become a survival situation. Even if both vehicles become inoperable and you have followed the rules, you only need to make yourself safe and comfortable until the person you left your route schedule sends out a rescue party. You may be able to get help sooner by contacting other people in the area, by CB radio or in person if they are near by. A cellular phone in many areas can be your rescue link, but remember this system does not work in most of the west. To make yourself safe and comfortable you need to be prepared to spend the night. Preparation means to carry enough food, water (at least 10 gallons per vehicle when in the desert), warm clothing, a first aid kit, and sleeping gear for each person, plus your tool kit and recovery gear. Matches, candles, mess kit, tarp (to be used for shade and shelter from wind and rain), and a small stove should also be part of your gear. Once the decision to spend the night is made build a fire and make a nice camp. A good nights rest will make everything seem better in the morning Stay with your vehicle, it is your support system. All of your supplies are contained in your vehicle and it is your shelter. Your vehicle is also easily spotted from the air if a rescue is launched. If you followed the Tread Lightly rules, you will be on a road where others can find you. Be prepared to signal for help. A bright fire at night and a smoky one during the day can attract attention. Anything in flashes of three is a distress signal, honk the horn 3 times, fire 3 gunshots, flash a light beam 3 times, or flash the reflected light from a mirror 3 times. Flares can attract aircraft as can messages formed on the ground. Survival is a mental attitude. The first thing you must do is decide to live. Once you have decided to live things become easier. Stay cheerful, keep a positive altitude, evaluate the situation, organize the group, and divide up the work. If you have injured or sick people in the group administer first aid and keep them warm, hydrated, and comfortable until your group is rescued. Dehydration and hypothermia are the biggest killers in the back country. Drink lots of water and stay warm and dry. Even in rainy weather one can become dehydrated. You must assume that all of the water in streams and lakes is unfit to drink unless it is chemically purified, filtered, or boiled for a minimum of five minutes at sea level. Add 1 minute of boiling time for every thousand feet you are above sea level. Water is very difficult to find in the desert and it is the most important item. See the sketch on how to make a solar still to produce water in the desert. A true survival situation begins when you have broken all of the rules and you ventured off with one vehicle into a remote area without telling anyone your travel plan. Staying with your disabled vehicle is still the best policy. It is easily spotted and it is your connection with civilization. If you are absolutely positive no one will find you and you can not contact anyone nearby or by radio. Then you must make the decision to leave your vehicle. This is a risky undertaking. When you leave the vehicle you must get oriented, carry a map and compass, follow roads, railroads, fences, or water to civilization. Cross country travel is very risky. When hiking out pace yourself, carry water, mark your route, and use common sense. In the desert travel when it is cool and do not eat much. Dehydration is a quick killer when it is hot. RECOMMENDED READING THE SAS SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by
John Wiseman SURVIVAL KIT
|
