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1500 questions
13
votes
5 answers
Dangers of solo hiking (in Ontario)
I have the next week off and I was thinking about exploring some parks in Ontario (e.g: Algonquin). I am prepared for the colder weather and am thinking of doing some trails. Some people I've talked to are asking me not to do this because it might…
SivaDotRender
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1 answer
Why would people descend to sleep while acclimatizing?
I am watching a video about a climb of Annapurna. To acclimate the climbers head up from base camp to another camp higher up, stay for a day or two, then return to base camp. They repeat this process a few times, each time going a little…
jsf80238
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13
votes
4 answers
Why do some people stand inside the river fishing?
Why do some people stand in the water to fish and not just stand on the bank of the river? They get wet this way.
ronenfe
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13
votes
3 answers
Does the solar powered fridge work as advertised whilst hiking?
I stumbled across this link which seems rather ingenious and was wondering if anyone has tried such a contraption whilst hiking? If not, do you think it would be effective? I'm tempted to try to make one and then see how it performs in various…
berry120
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13
votes
2 answers
Trekking Poles - Carbon Fiber vs. Aluminum
What are the advantages and disadvantages of carbon fiber vs. aluminium when buying trekking poles? Are carbon fiber really lighter, do they break easier if jammed wrong, etc.?
Russell Steen
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13
votes
1 answer
How to rappel with a dog?
My wife and I are planning a camping and climbing trip and we would likely need to rappel with our medium-sized (45lbs/20kg) dog. Holding the dog is obviously unacceptable, and using the dog's backpack is also unacceptable due to the flimsiness of…
Chris Mendez
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13
votes
3 answers
What are these strange insect nodules on my front porch?
Twice this summer, I've found some little brown domes / nodules attached to the window sills or the porch railing. They seem to be made by some sort of insect and I think when I removed them, there were some sort of larvae inside.
I live in North…
Matt Hamann
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13
votes
3 answers
Can I expect a mountain stream to have less water in the morning, even when it is not primarily fed by meltwater?
In late September 2015, I hiked part of the trail in the incredibly beautiful Lónsöræfi in southwestern Iceland, near Vatnajökull. The easternmost segment of the trail requires fording Hnappadalsá (Satellite/aerial view). Some people by-pass this…
gerrit
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13
votes
1 answer
What to do when a snake blocks a narrow trail?
Some time back I was on a very narrow mountain trail with a cliff rising to my right and a steep gorge dropping to my left. The trail was blocked by by the viper below (with the gorge just out of shot). The weather was chilly and the viper was…
Tullochgorum
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13
votes
2 answers
Is it possible to identify the sex of a caribou without a pair of binoculars or a spotting scope?
Both male and female caribou have antlers. Last year we saw a large herd cross the road we were traveling on, but had no way of telling which ones were male and which ones were females. Unfortunately, I do not possess a scope or binoculars.
Is it…
Ken Graham
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13
votes
1 answer
How can I tell if a opossum is truly dead?
I saw a opossum (the North American kind) on a golf course the other day. It looked pretty dead - there was foam coming out of its mouth and flies buzzing all around it. However, I know opossums can convincingly play dead by involuntarily entering a…
C_Z_
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13
votes
2 answers
Quality of duck vs goose down
While searching for a sleeping bag I was told that goose down is clearly superior to duck down in terms of quality. I guess that means e.g. the fill power (measured in cuin). What exactly are the differences, is goose down always preferable?
What I…
Wills
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13
votes
3 answers
What's the advantage to a bent-shaft paddle?
What's the advantage (or advantages) of a bent-shaft canoe paddle?
I've been told that it allows for more efficient use of both arms: the rationale I heard was that your arm on the grip does more work than your arm on the blade with a straight…
Edward Thomson
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13
votes
3 answers
What sleeping bags are needed for a northbound thru-hike of the AT
If you were attempting a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, starting roughly now (being mid to late March) and going northbound, how many sleeping bags and of what types would you need, assuming cost is not an option?
So a little background. I've…
Justin C
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13
votes
1 answer
Magnetic deviation at either pole
I know that the magnetic north is not exactly at the polar north, so when hiking very close to the Northern Pole, you have to take the difference into account.
This got me thinking: Is this also a problem on the Southern Pole?
I would say "yes," but…
Henrik Hansen
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