We live in Colorado, one of the most adventurous states in America. No matter what direction you go in this amazing state you will find adventure: skiing, mountain biking, hunting, rafting, exercise, and on and on the list goes. People come from all over the world to visit. In a state so filled with outdoor adventurers there is likely an interest in survival TV shows, preparedness, books on the outdoors and outdoor classes like the ones we teach at Mountain Marrow, but is all the information we pack into the backwoods as helpful as we think?
My business partner and I are avid believers in the concept of the more you know the less you carry and the more you can handle, but let’s make sure we are packing our knowledge bag with the right stuff. The following are 10 common survival myths that may lead you into trouble if you’re not careful.
Boiling makes any water safe to drink
Many books and classes advocate boiling alone as the end all be all in clean water procurement. It is true that boiling water is one of the best actions to take with suspect water, but it has limitations too. Boiling will kill viruses, bacteria, and other microorganisms that can harm your body, but no matter how long you boil the water it will not remove chemicals or harmful sediments that may be in the water. This is a big deal in Colorado because farming and mining are such a huge part of our states history, both of which can cause harmful chemicals, heavy metals, and other dangerous sediments to get into the water supply. It is best practice to filter before boiling to remove sediment from the water. Getting rid of chemicals is above the ability of the gear carried by most of us on short treks, so avoidance is key. You may have heard of boiling water and collecting the steam to remove chemicals. Depending on the boiling point of the specific chemical this could help or it could actually give you a stronger dose. A better practice is to take the time to go up river some and pay attention to what might be running into the water, then filter and boil. While talking about water myths, let’s address iodine and bleach as well. The current CDC guidelines state that neither bleach nor iodine is effective in killing cryptosporidium, whereas filtering and boiling demonstrates high effectiveness in removing not only cryptosporidium, but viruses, Giardia, and almost all other biological threats found in water.
If you get lost just build a roof
There are few things as romantic as the look of a primitive shelter. Outdoor companies love to use them in our advertising because they are proven to grab people’s attention. However, building a primitive shelter is harder, and burns more calories than most people realize. On top of that you are better off focusing all that energy on building some type of bed in a naturally sheltered area in order to prevent heat loss due to conduction. Conduction is when heat moves from a higher concentration to a lower. In practice, your heat will move from your body into the earth until you are drained of heat. Any true survival shelter needs to prevent conduction. A roof over your head is nice, but a basic roof and a detailed bed is what you are after. Trees can protect you from wind and rain, but only insulation will protect you from conduction. Build a bed out of sticks, grass, newspaper, leaves, or any other debris you can find. In our classes we teach people how to build practical shelters with easy to carry things like trash bags, ponchos, tarps, coats, and branches.
Moss always grows on the North side of trees.
Every navigation class I have ever taught has a component of primitive navigation, and this myth always comes up. It is true that moss prefers less sunlight and damp conditions, conditions often found on the north side of trees and other structures. However, in the thick woods, where you are most likely to need a compass, trees can be shaded from any direction. Therefore moss will grow on any side of a tree not in direct sunlight. I have had the privilege of teaching primitive navigation in the USMC and at different survival schools around America: I carry a compass you should, too. If nothing else it can ensure you are walking in a straight line and not slowly creating a big circle.
You can drink water stored inside a cactus
Sometimes this is true, but only if you know a great deal about cactuses. Most of the time drinking cactus water will result in more harm than good. The water in some cactuses has toxins and alkaloids in it that your body will have to use more water to process than you will get from the cactus water. Many cacti also have toxins in them that can lead to vomiting and diarrhea, neither of which are ever good, but even worse if you are already short on water.
Rubbing your hands together keeps you warm and prevents frostbite.
This is extremely important when dealing with frostbite. Rubbing frostbitten skin is often recommended, but in truth it makes the problem worse. The friction generated from vigorous rubbing of the skin actually severely damages any skin affected by frostbite. Do not try and warm the area up with fire either. You have likely lost feeling in your hands and can severely burn and damage your flesh before you realise it. You need to get into shelter and out of the elements, get some layers on, and drink something warm to restore internal temperature. We stress the skills of 5 minute shelter, 5 minute fire, and 5 minute water boil in our Weekend Adventurers class because these basic skills may not be survival TV sexy, but they can save your life and help you have a safer time in the backcountry.
Play dead to deal with bear attacks
This might help or it might get you killed, depends on the type of bear. Experts recommend this method with brown/grizzly bears but it is not recommended with black bears. What type of bear is most prevalent in Colorado? That’s right, dear reader, black bears. State wildlife agencies recommend packing bear spray if hiking Colorado trails. If you do not have spray and you come across a black bear that attacks, fight back. Most black bear charges are a bluff, what experts call a false charge. Typically the black bear will not engage with something that can fight back. Use anything and everything as a weapon, rocks, pans, sticks, bags, whatever you have. Do not run! Bears have a high prey drive and can run faster than most Olympic athletes. Do not climb a tree, bears are excellent climbers. Most bears are non aggressive and chances are you have been close to one before and never even known it. If you keep a clean camp, make noise on the trail, and look around to make sure you are not near cubs you should be ok with black bears.
Water is easy to find in the winter
Snow is frozen water, so it should have the same hydration value as water right? Technically yes, but in practice eating snow requires valuable energy to warm up enough for your body to digest it. You risk lowering your internal temperature which can lead to hypothermia and the conversion of calories to heat requires water. To get the water value out of snow, you should melt it before consuming. For that matter ice is better than snow because ice is mostly water and you will get more volume of water from melted ice than the same amount of snow, which is mostly air.
Finding food is a priority
Most survival TV would lead us to believe that when lost in the woods we need to immediately find a food source. This is a great wow factor for selling a TV show. The ability to identify all the plants and the gumption to eat bugs is great as far as surviving sweeps week and getting high ratings, but the truth of the matter is a healthy human can live for weeks without food. Also, digestion of food requires water, so absolutely do not eat until you have found a way to stay hydrated.
Suck out snake bite venom.
We see this in movies, TV shows, and even some old survival books. This myth is so wide spread we have to address it in both our Bare Essentials and our Hike with Spike classes. The belief is that we can cut or suck the venom out of a snake bite victim. The reality is that doing either, cutting or sucking, is likely to make the victim’s condition worse. Not only do you damage the tissue around the bite, but you also actually cause the venom to spread faster. A venomous bite delivers poison straight into the bloodstream. No human can generate a strong enough vacuum to remove the venom fast enough before it starts spreading around the body. Plus now you have likely transferred venom to your mouth and or mouth bacteria to the punctures. Another big myth in this category is to use a tourniquet on the bite. Do not do this. It will not stop the spread of the venom but it will promote damage to your limb. Do not wash out the wound, the leftover venom can be used to help identify the snake that bit you.
You are better off trying to remember the snakes appearance; if you can safely take a picture all the better. This helps medical experts identify the snake to get you anti venom. Once you have moved to safety your next big task is to calm down and place the wound below your heart. This will slow down the spread of the venom. If you can, lay down to lower your heart rate and send someone for help. If you are alone, then walk out at a leisurely pace and do your best to keep your heart rate low until you find help.
All I need is my knife
This is the most beautiful of the myths. Ladies and Gentlemen, I have had the honor of assisting in teaching survival instructors at one of the larger survival schools in America. I have taught United States Marines, Boyscouts, and Search and Rescue teams. Between my business partner and I we have trained with some of the largest names in the outdoor and survival communities. We call some of the best in the business friends, teachers, mentors, and students. I assure you that none of them would go out with only a knife if they could help it. A small kit and a little training plus a decent knife can drastically alter your time adventuring in the woods. There is nothing wrong with training for the worst, but let us not forget that the backwoods and mountains are about fun not fear. Take a class or two, pack a small kit, and enjoy all that this amazing state has to offer.
Keep on adventuring,
I hope to see you on the trail sometime.