HIKING EMERGENCIES ON THE TRIAL

DRAKENSBERG

KwaZulu-Natal  South Africa

Mountain of the Dragons

South Africa’s mightiest mountain range with its spear-like peaks – reminiscent of the saw-toothed spine of a gigantic dragon.

 Where Adventure beckons..........

DRAKENSBERG WILDERNESS PHOTOS © WILLEM PELSER

“HIKING THE WILDERNESS IS NOT ABOUT SURVIVAL. RATHER IT IS BEING EMBRACED BY MOTHER NATURE, THE ACCEPTANCE OF A WORLD RADICALLY DIFFERENT THAN CIVILIZATION”

HIKING EMERGENCIES ON THE TRIAL

This is not a substitute for a proper first aid course or mountain and wilderness survival training. Statistically, besides common blisters, burns, insect bites, scratches and sprains, most people will never be affected by altitude sickness, hypo- or hyperthermia, malaria or bilharzia. However, you will not be affected only if you are aware of how to avoid the dangers.

   Analysis of survival cases has proved that mental stress associated with emergencies – especially with being lost and alone – produces fear and anxiety. In turn, these psychological stresses detrimentally affect judgment and attitudes. The prepared hiker can certainly curb, if not eliminate such stresses.

  

   Obtain adequate information about your route by reading guides and relevant hiking pamphlets thoroughly.

   Each member of the group should carry a map. If you don’t have enough to go around, make more copies.

   Know how to use your equipment. Be familiar with the use of a compass, reading maps, lighting a camp stove, setting-up a tent, fixing a broken backpack frame, preparing foods, using a first aid kit, treating snake bites and purifying water. It is the responsibility of the hiker to prepare himself with such knowledge before setting off.

   Build into your schedule ample time between overnight points. Taking into consideration stops en route for rest, nature study, food and water, the hiker should average at least 2 to 3 km an hour. Remember, however, that more time will be needed for steep climbs.

   Discuss plans of action for all foreseeable emergencies with members of the party. Make sure that each member carries his own water, snacks, emergency rations and first aid kit.

   In an emergency, stop immediately. Review the situation thoroughly, consider possible solutions by analyzing the weather, terrain, available resources and time of day, and only then plan a course of action which best suit your available energy, health and resources. Above all, stay calm and stay together.

Getting lost

   If you lose your way on a trail, retrace your route, returning to some clear indication of the path. Make certain that you have not overlooked a change in direction. If you find yourself completely lost, stay put. Usually if the hiker does not wander aimlessly, he will not be far from the trail. Signal for help audibly and visually.

   Dense smoke, produced by green leaves or grass in a fire, will generally be seen from far away. Don’t start a veld fire! If you have not wandered far from the trail, there is a good chance of other hikers or officials responding. Air searches can be assisted by placing a large, bright object, such as your space blanket, in a conspicuous place.

Air, Water, Shelter and Food

   These are essentials for survival. You can live for three weeks or more without food, three days without water, three hours without protection in hostile weather and 3 to 5 minutes without air. It is, therefore imperative that the hiker is familiar with techniques to provide these essentials if faced with a survival situation.

Water

   If you become lost without sufficient water, conserve body fluids by moving only in the cool of day, taking as little as possible and keeping your mouth closed.

   Study the immediate terrain, searching for clues to water sources, such as dense reeds or thickly marked, converging game trails. Large movements of animals, including birds, during sunrise and sunset usually indicate the directions in which water can be found. Dig beneath the surface of dry riverbeds, especially near the base of big rocks and cliffs where an abnormal amount of vegetation is growing, or at the base of large sand dunes on the shady or steep sides.

   Many of the water securing techniques of the Bushmen can teach modern man how to survive. For example, if you find water by digging, preserve the hole with a bark lining and bury a grass bundle with two reeds projecting. The bundle acts as a sieve, and the reeds act as a straw. Dew or moisture from rocks and plants can be gathered, using a cloth to gently mop up moisture and then wringing it into a container. During the rainy season, collect water by digging a hole and lining it with a groundsheet or poncho.

   The probabilities of having to resort to the extremes described above in order to find water while hiking is very slight. However, the possibility that water on the trail is contaminated with bacteria or disease-causing viruses is increasing. All water not originating from high mountain areas should be sterilized by boiling for at least 3 minutes, by adding water purification tablets; or by using one of the lightweight filters on the market: be sure to follow the instructions carefully. The use of tincture of iodine is one of the simplest, safest, most rapid and effective methods of water sterilization. It is superior to other common chemicals used to sterilize water.

Shelter

   When building a shelter, avoid expending excess energy. A cave or natural depression is far superior to a complicated wooden structure. Your shelter must minimize body heat loss and maximize body protection. Choose an area protected from the wind. Avoid valleys, streambeds or areas close to rivers. Avoid camping near anthills as snakes are often prevalent there. Also avoid fig trees, as the figs are often infested with flies and insects teem around them. Urine on paths leading into your campsite will help to discourage wildlife visitors.

Food

   In an emergency, food is your least important worry and excess energy should not be expended searching for edible plants and animals. Many plants in southern africa are toxic and should not be eaten unless you are absolutely sure of their identification and edibility.

We as hikers, explorers, and adventurers have the absolute duty to respect and protect our Wildernesses. Nobody else will do it for us. Take ownership!

The End.

Safe Hiking.

References and Acknowledgements

Book - “Walks & Trails in Southern Africa” – J Levy

Photos:  ©W Pelser

Compiled by:  Willem Pelser

TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON.........

DRAKENSBERG

KwaZulu-Natal  South Africa

Mountain of the Dragons

South Africa’s mightiest mountain range with its spear-like peaks – reminiscent of the saw-toothed spine of a gigantic dragon.

 Where Adventure beckons..........

DRAKENSBERG WILDERNESS PHOTOS © WILLEM PELSER

“IT WAS ONE OF THOSE WILD, SHINING DAYS, WHEN THE VERY AIR SEEMED POLISHED, A DAY OF FAST MOVING SKIES, AND THE CLOUDS BLAZING, A DAY OF LEANING SPIRES.”

UNKNOWN

TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON

Summer: Soaring anvil clouds herald the approaching thunderstorms, precursors of lush growth, swollen rivers and rushing streams. Autumn brings forth its golden hues as the time for growth passes. Winter arrives with frosty mornings, tinder grass glistening white. Spring, warmer by the day, sees fields once burnt low flushing bright green, flowers and new leaves abound. Every season in the Drakensberg is special in its own way.

The Drakensberg lies close to the tropic of Capricorn and, in keeping with these latitudes, the climate is generally mild. From time to time, however, there are other factors that come into play, and they make for interesting and, occasionally, even severe weather conditions.

Although the warm Indian Ocean is almost 200km to the east of the Drakensberg it nevertheless plays an important part in the mountain range’s climate. From the coastline, travelling westward, the land rises steadily for about 100km. Here, it reaches an altitude of roughly 1500m and levels off to become an undulating inland plateau, dissected by a number of major rivers. To the south a number of foothill ridges protrude outwards from the mountains well into the midlands, and the topography is more extreme. In the west, presiding over it all lies the majestic Drakensberg Mountain range. More than 160km long, it rises abruptly to a height of 3 000m and more, creating a rugged barrier that affects the local weather in various ways. Be it thunderstorms or cold front, the result is often dramatic, intensifying the beauty and the extremes of nature.

For all but the winter months, the prevailing winds are from the north-east. Warm, humid air off the ocean, on its way inland, is forced higher and higher. When it reaches cooler altitudes, condensation takes place and clouds and thunderstorms form. Nowhere is this phenomenon more graphically displayed than along the Drakensberg escarpment in summer.

Every now and then the highs and lows of the pressure systems cause the wind to turn and blow strongly from the direction of the Antarctic, bringing with it colder weather.

Summer in the Drakensberg is warm, often hot. Mornings typically start with low-lying mist, especially in the valleys, but this soon burns off, absorbed by the heat of the sun. A breeze from the east brings with it more moisture, forming clouds above the peaks. By noon there is a fair chance that billowing cumulo-nimbus clouds, with their distinctive mushroom or anvil shapes, will form high above the mountains. Soon, thunder will reverberate among the peaks and lightning rake the sky. Huge raindrops will splatter the earth. Once on the move, the storm will make its way eastwards down the valleys………… often continuously reviving itself, until dissipating well out to sea, hundreds of kilometers away.

It’s a time of caution and respect for the power of nature! Walking in the mountains during an electrical storm, as spectacular as it can be, is not a good idea. In these mountains lightning has probably killed more people than all of nature’s other risks combined. One should be sure to keep well away from high ridges and not to take shelter under exposed trees. If a summer’s day trek is planned to be a long one, it is wise to get going early, even to start off well before sunrise. One has a good chance of beating both the heat of the day and the afternoon thunderstorm.

The sensations of experiencing a typical electrical storm: The rumble of the storm draws closer. The air, motionless at first, starts to bluster. It has an almost warm feeling about it. The sound of thunder becomes louder, lightning more threatening. The first drops fall. Intermittent at first, each audibly defined. Then the pace is increased, faster, louder, until the combination of thunder, wind and rain is a deafening cacophony. Suddenly the rain can be accompanied by hail. The air is charged and lightning strike the high ground all around as though you are in the middle of a war zone. In the face of nature’s onslaught, you are powerless.

Then, suddenly, as quickly as it arrived, the storm moves on. The sound of rushing water is everywhere. It spills down and off the cliffs to run through the grass, finding its way to the nearest gully. The sky becomes brighter. All around you the rocks and the landscape glistened, washed clean. Cloud, like steam, wrap the peaks, and obscure your view into the valleys below. The air is sweet with the smells of heather and grasses after their pounding by the elements. The rumblings diminish, moving away to the east. And towards the west it is dark and there is another storm forming. Soon, it will be heading your way…………

The region’s high summer rainfall can also create risk, with rivers beneath the peaks very quickly becoming swollen. If one is cut off while out hiking and there’s no alternative route, the sensible option is simply to wait for the flood to subside.

At this time of the year there is something special about the way that there is water everywhere, gurgling, and trickling in furrows and off the rocks beside the pathways. These small beginnings, from the tiniest trickle, gentle rivulet and stream, all eventually combine to form the raging torrents in the valleys below. Streams, often dormant during winter, become vibrant, with spectacular waterfalls appearing in unexpected places. Summer is also the time when wild flowers provide their colorful display and pleasant herby scents of woody fynbos and other sweet fragrances permeate the air.

We as hikers, explorers, and adventurers have the absolute duty to respect and protect our Wildernesses. Nobody else will do it for us. Take ownership!

The End.

Safe Hiking.

References and Acknowledgements

From the book – “Best Walks of the Drakensberg” – David Bristow

Photos:  ©W Pelser

Compiled by:  Willem Pelser