The Backpacker's Field Manual, Revised and Updated: A Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Backcountry Skills
by Rick Curtis
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Book Summary Information
Author: Rick CurtisBrand: Random
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-05-24
ISBN: 1400053099
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Product features:
- Portable and packed with information, this manual is the ideal resource for anyone interested in
- 100 line drawings.
- Author: Rick Curtis.
- Satisfaction Ensured.
- Great Gift Idea.
Book Reviews of The Backpacker's Field Manual, Revised and Updated: A Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Backcountry Skills
Book Review: Excellent if you don't stray too far from civilization
Summary: 5 Stars
A distinction must be made between "outdoor" books that assume that your trip into the wilderness happens in the context of a working civil society, i.e. you buy food at the store, you have your tent, your map, maybe a GPS, and if you are in trouble a competent attempt will be made to rescue you. Then there are the "survival" books which assume that if you don't do "it" (gather food, build a shelter, find water, etc.) yourself, it ain't gonna happen. Maybe you can get help, but maybe other humans even pose a danger to your life, perhaps because of violent behavior, stupidity, clumsiness, or for whatever reason.
This book falls mainly into the first category, but makes interesting forays into the second. Perhaps the strongest impression is left by the First Aid section (which is also the longest). If you are really in an emergency, in which case you will definitely not have the time to read five pages on the Heimlich maneuver or whatever, this is probably the book you should pick up in a hurry. Of course ideally, you should know the content of the section by rote, but the descriptions are short yet detailed enough that they can be read quickly and confer all the vital information. A variety of more obscure illnesses are included that you will probably not find covered in other First Aid texts.
The nutrition section is quite short and the recipes are probably not something you would want to eat every day -- burritos, pizza, pesto. Don't expect any information on game, edible berries or the like...
A number of good sections cover such things as crossing a river or bearproofing your camp. These are well-written and stress the importance of understanding the situation first before acting. Along the same lines, there is an extensive review of leadership skills -- this is definitely an outdoor book for the thinking man.
All in all a thorough book, but if you are in situation where help does not arrive after a short while, it might not be enough. The SAS Survival Handbook: How to Survive in the Wild, in Any Climate, on Land or at Sea would be an excellent complement to this book and nicely covers those things which the BFM leaves out.
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Summary of The Backpacker's Field Manual, Revised and Updated: A Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Backcountry Skills
When it was first published in 1998, The Backpacker's Field Manual set the standard for comprehensive backpacking books. Now exhaustively updated to offer a more complete view of backpacking today, it covers the latest developments in gear?such as Global Positioning Systems and ultralight hiking equipment?first aid, and Leave No Trace comping, and includes a chapter devoted to outdoor leadership resources and basics. Beginners and experienced hikers alike will find this book indispensable for trip planning strategies and also as a quick reference on the trail for:BACKCOUNTRY SKILLS?how to forecast the weather, identify trees, bear-proof your campsite, wrap an injured ankle, and more--illustrated with more than 100 line drawings.
TRICKS OF THE TRAIL?time-tested practical lessons learned along the way
GOING ULTRALIGHT?downsizing suggestions for those who want to lighten up
Every traveler knows that space in a backpack is limited, so on your next trip, carry the only guide you'll ever need?this one?and take to the great outdoors with confidence.
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