The Great Outdoors Stack Exchange
The Great Outdoors Stack Exchange

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1500 questions
17
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9 answers

What is the fastest style of sled?

Winter is here and, like every year, I am still thrilled when the extended family rounds up all the little kids and we go sledding. This year we compared our sleds and found that some were significantly faster. What is the fastest style of…
john_science
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What is the difference between single and double wall tents?

Tents are described being either single or double wall. What is the difference and when is one preferred over the other?
Reverend Gonzo
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5 answers

What natural (non-synthetic) fabrics are good for the winter?

Which natural (non-synthetic) fabrics are good for hiking winter weather? I know cotton will generally trap moisture and invite hypothermia, while wool is warm but heavy. What other natural fabrics will work well in winter conditions?
Russell Steen
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17
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5 answers

Can I heat a shelter with fire?

So I built my survival shelter and I decide a nice fire would really warm things up. Is there a way I can build a fire that would heat the shelter without too much smoke? I know I could make the shelter better and warmer, and I would need to sit and…
MaskedPlant
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17
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7 answers

Power for devices in cold and dark?

First post here -- and not an electronics expert at all. I really hope, though, that someone might give me an idea about best practice for this: I haven't found a similar question using search. What is the most efficient (in terms of…
Henrik
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17
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3 answers

Mortality statistics: Ski touring vs rock climbing

In Switzerland, where I live, the communities of rock climbers and ski tourers are quite overlapping. I often rock climb in sport setups (single or multi-pitch and bouldering) but almost never go ski touring because I feel it's too dangerous in a…
G. Gare
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4 answers

How do I tell if this single climbing rope is still safe for use?

I've lent my friend a five year old single climbing rope for a garden project. It was in meticulous condition until then. Instead of a weekend it took him more like six weeks to complete his project to fix a leaking roof of a hut in a…
Andreas Schwab
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8 answers

Sailing an age-of-sail sloop with 2-man crew

For writing a story, I'm trying to figure out if 2 people could crew an age-of-sail (15th/16th-19th century) sloop and sail it effectively. Various sources give various crew numbers for various types of vessels and estimating where the ship in…
JANXOL
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17
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9 answers

Are there any GPS devices with no transmission capability?

I thought about it for both privacy and energy saving. A GPS after all needs only to receive the signal and check the cached map, I also remember that until few years ago car sat/nav could not transmit anything. So, is there currently a device on…
FluidCode
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Can I record my route electronically when underground?

Portions of a hike I did recently involved me going through tunnels that had some twists and turns. How would these work with an app like AllTrails or another GPS tracker? As I understand it, assisted GPS is able to keep track of where you're at,…
neubert
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4 answers

When hiking, is it harmful that I wear more layers of clothes and drink more water?

I am a 38-year old that loves hiking as a hobby. I usually do 10-20km hikes with up to 2km altitude change. This year I started tours with a new crew and two people talked to me independently that my walking regime is unusual if not straightforward…
i_prob_should_know_this
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5 answers

Figuring out from a map which direction is downstream for a river?

If you pull up a river on Google maps it's not clear what's downstream from what. Like the Colorado River... Hoover Dam is downstream of the Grand Canyon, which is downstream of Lee's Ferry, which is downstream from the Glen Canyon Dam. I know this…
neubert
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10 answers

Keeping a backpack from being stolen whilst sleeping in a tent

In the past, I have always slept with my backpack wedged uncomfortably beside me due to limited room in a fully manned tent, since I'm concerned about bag theft when miles away from civilization. However, I've heard from people recently who stash…
James Paul Turner
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17
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2 answers

How do I recognize if someone is suffering from hypothermia?

How can I recognize symptoms of hypothermia on myself and other people I camp with?
Jasper
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17
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6 answers

Hiking with a mule or two?

For an older guy (say 65+) who likes to hike alone - are a mule or two a help or a hindrance? Maybe a mule for the pack, and a second mule to ride when I get really old? Historically people preferred to ride a mule - I am not sure it is still…
Censored to protect the guilty
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