By Buck Tilton

When bullets and arrows start filling the autumn air, we know a few of them will strike a hunter and fewer still non-hunters. Everyone knows the danger of a loaded gun, but gunshot wounds during hunting season—at least gunshot wounds to and from hunters—are on the decline, says the US Forest Service, probably due to mandatory hunter safety courses. While this is not a time to be less than perfectly careful with a firearm — with new hunters hitting the field each year — statistically, depending on where and how you hunt, there may be dangers greater than a rifle or a bow.

By Buck Tilton

When the earthquake of 12 January 2010 ended, much of Port-au-Prince lay in ruins and the lives of a quarter million human inhabitants had suddenly and violently ended. Then the hurricane hit, and then the deadly cholera epidemic. Haiti, poorest nation of the Western Hemisphere, has yet to recover. In an area just a little smaller than Maryland, an estimated 9.7 million people struggle for basic health and without hope for much more than that.

By Buck Tilton

It’s your gear—closer to you than many people, as familiar as that face in the mirror. Maybe that’s the problem: Familiarity. It breeds contempt, and we forget gear can cause injuries. So, take heed of these pointers before hitting the trail this spring:

By Buck Tilton

To combine the three essential elements–oxygen, heat, and fuel–successfully into a fire requires more thought than usual when white stuff cloaks the ground.

Assuming you’re carrying a source of heat,  finding fuel will be the great challenge. Dry tinder, kindling, and larger pieces of fuel are not only harder to find, but wood with its moisture frozen inside may appear deceptively ignitable yet fail to burn.

Tinder

By Buck Tilton

Not all snow is created equal—it can be soft and dry, heavy and wet, hard as rock—but most snow can be shaped into a quick shelter and, in an emergency, a shelter may save your life.

Make Use of What the Terrain Offers

Buck Tilton

A simple fact towers above all others: if you aren’t prepared to survive an unexpected night outside in winter, you probably won’t. In ideally bad conditions, cold will suck out enough body heat in a couple of hours to disable you—and chill you off beyond recovery in three.

How did you get in this situation? You were backcountry skiing, or hunting, maybe hiking on a pre-snow, cold afternoon. Your story could be like CNET reporter James Kim’s whose drive in Oregon mountains with his family on a winter day, almost exactly four years ago, turned fatal.  You didn’t anticipate the snowfall, or the blinding wind—and wasn’t the sun supposed to be up at least another hour?

By Buck Tilton

Encounters between humans and bears are rising in number. Why? The weather partially explains it. Warmer temps keep bears active longer. But the main reason, all things considered, is more likely to be the increase in the number of bears. Wyoming, for instance, estimates triple the population of grizzlies (about 200 to more than 600) in the Yellowstone ecosystem since the mid-1970s. As Brian DeBolt, the bear management officer for Wyoming Game & Fish, told the Casper Star-Tribune: “. . . if you’ve got more bears, you are going to have more conflicts.” And hunters top the list of possible victims because they walk around quietly, stalking game in bear country, and smelling like dinner.

By Buck Tilton

With the season of the orange-clad huntsman comes an opportunity for a wound — more than 35,000 of these incidents occur in the U.S. each year — usually relegated to the wilds of major metropolitan areas. What you don’t know or what you think you know, but are mistaken, can make someone with a gunshot wound worse. So, let’s take aim at some of the enduring myths and misconceptions surrounding this potentially life-threatening injury:

Labor Day Weekend, just before the kids go back to school, is typically the last gasp of camping in many parts of the country. But the unofficial end of summer doesn’t mean the potential hazards that exist in the outdoors at the start of the season are any less of a threat. In the second of his two-part piece on camping safety, AMK’s wilderness safety blogger, Buck Tilton, tackles bears and the basics – starting with how to choose the right campsite.

Timing is Everything

It’s summertime! That means it is time to get outside and explore your state and national parks, recreation areas, and favorite campgrounds.  Before you pack up the kids into the SUV,  be sure to review this list of outdoor first aid tips from wilderness safety expert Buck Tilton, who this month joins AMK as a regular blogger. Welcome aboard Buck!

AMK's Newest Expert Blogger Buck Tilton

When you pack for a camping trip, a first-aid kit is a mandatory item. Heck, it has been on the list of Ten Essentials ever since the invention of lists. If your gear includes the Adventure Medical Kits’ Day Tripper with the Easy Care First Aid System, you can handle the most common problems—even without advanced first aid training.