Baboon Encounters in Kruger and Cape Town, South Africa

I’m currently on a three-week trip in South Africa and have been learning a lot about the local flora and fauna, including some animals that could kill a human in an instant (lions…leopards) and about others that are just plain fascinating or oddly cute (ostrich and warthogs).

While in Kruger National Park, we encountered two troops of baboons, and now in Cape Town, I’ve heard plenty of baboon stories and seen baboon warning signs at all of the local trailheads. I wanted to share a few photos from our Kruger baboon encounters and also share a link to the article I wrote about surviving baboon encounters on the About.com Survival Skills site (more info below).

First…photos:

We encountered the above baboon troop while crossing a bridge in Kruger National Park on our drive from Berg-en-Dal to Lataba rest camp. There were a few big males leading the way across the bridge, and the whole show caused a brief traffic jam.

The troop contained many large baboons…

…and a few youngsters.

We again saw our first signs of baboons further north when one scurried across the road in front of us. When we looked around, we started seeing them everywhere.

In trees……and in the bush beside us.

Of course, as it is when trying to view wild animals, we got a lot of butt shots as they tried to walk away.

Want to know more about hiking and baboon safety?
Read my article on the About.com Survival Skills website:
“How to Survive a Baboon Encounter”

Jewelweed: An Antidote for Poison Ivy Pain

Jewelweed is a known natural antidote to poison ivy pain. But if you’re out there on a backpacking trip, you need to know how to find this jewel of a plant because it can save you from some serious itching, burning, and oozing. If you’ve already failed to identify poison ivy, don’t mess up twice. Watch this video to learn how to identify jewelweed, and then read my article “Poison Ivy Survival and Remedies” on the About.com Survival Skills website to learn how to avoid poison ivy in the first place and how to use items in your backpack or in your surroundings to treat yourself in case you still don’t get it quite right…

First: Jewelweed.

Second: “Poison Ivy Survival and Remedies.” (Click that link for the full article, which includes info about habitat, identification, dangers, and treatments for poison ivy problems).

Recipes for Common Edible Plants

I just posted an article about four common edible plants on the About.com Survival Skills site. Yes–plants such as dandelions, clovers, cattails, and nettles can help give you energy in a survival situation, but many of these common edible plants can also be good–or even really, really good–to eat when you prepare them in your own kitchen. Wild plant recipes abound, but I wanted to share a few here that relate to the common edible plants I just wrote about.

Nettle Pizza
For a lot more information about how to harvest and prepare stinging nettles, click here to view the nettle information on the About.com Local Foods site. One recipe I wanted to highlight: Stinging Nettle Pizza, described as having an “earthy yet nutty flavor” with bubbly cheese that’s melted on a sizzling pizza. Yum!

Dandelion Root Coffee
I recently read Rebecca Lerner’s book, Dandelion Hunter. The book contains several recipes, and Lerner also often posts recipes on her blog at http://firstways.com. Since I’m a coffee lover, I couldn’t help but get my curiosity perked by her recipe and blog post, “Dandelion Coffee: better than the ‘real’ thing!”

Red Clover Pancakes
Clover leaves and flowers can make a nice addition to any salad, but I found a website page devoted entirely to red clover recipes. The recipes range from red clover cocktail infusions to the red clover pancakes and red clover almond biscuits.

Try out one of these recipes, or leave a comment here to share some of your favorite edible plant recipes.

Want to know more about common edible plants?
Check out my article on the About.com Survival Skills site:
“Four Common Edible Plants”

P.S. The above photo is of neither nettle, cattail, clover, or dandelion. It’s just a pink desert flower I saw once when I was thirsty after climbing in western Colorado. Even though I felt tempted to pluck it and eat it right there on the spot, it was so beautiful that I spared it and only took a photo…

Wet Snow Avalanche Destruction

During the winter in Colorado, a high mountain pass called Independence Pass remains closed for the season because the road weaves through an area with high avalanche potential. But each year in the spring, helicopter-aided avalanche control work is done on the area before it’s opened. Last Monday, May 13, as avalanche control work was being done, YouTube user “tmaspen” filmed the bombs being dropped. The footage is notable because it not only shows how helicopters can help in avalanche control but it also shows how big and destructive a wet avalanche can be:

Wet avalanches, sometimes called wet-snow or wet loose-snow avalanches, occur more frequently in the springtime as temperatures rise rapidly and saturate the winter snowpack with water.

Avalanches can be destructive at any time of the year, but when wet slides occur, they often move slower than their lighter winter counterparts; however, their increased water weight makes them have a high destructive force.

Here’s another example of a wet avalanche and its aftermath; this wet slab avalanche occurred last spring in Bridger Gully as avalanche control work was being done at Bridger Bowl Ski Area:

Want to know more about wet snow avalanches?
Read my article on the About.com Survival Skills website:
“Recognize and Survive Wet Snow Avalanche Conditions”

Thin Ice and Spring Melt

I recently went hiking in one of my favorite spots in the San Isabel National Forest near Leadville, Colorado. I didn’t quite know what to expect since I hadn’t been there in a while, but I thought that I’d find some combination of mud, snow, and ice. And that’s exactly what I found. The lower portion of the trail was sloppy and slippery with mud. But then as I got higher, the mud turned to snow, and I needed to put on my showshoes to prevent post-holing and breaking through the unstable crust.

When I came to the Buckeye Creek crossing, the water was still entirely covered with snow and ice (see photo, above right), but I could hear the moving water gurgling underneath as I approached. I could see recent ski and snowmobile tracks going over the crossing, but I still checked the area carefully before crossing on foot.

I found open areas in the snow, and I could see water flowing underneath:

I also crossed a deep, clean crack through in the snow. I peered through the crack and saw the water flowing about three feet below.

I know this area well and knew that it was safe enough to cross with that much snow and ice still on top of the water. But even if I’d never been to this area before, I had several terrain clues in my surroundings, alerting me to presence of water. First…the willows:

Buckeye Creek also flows through an obvious ravine, and I could hear the water flowing underneath the snow and ice. All of these clues, including local knowledge, helped me hike safely through the area.

Want to know more about icy water crossings?
Read my article on the About.com Survival Skills site:
“How to Survive a Fall Through Thin Ice”

Photos © Traci J. Macnamara.

Improvised Floatation Devices

Encountering high water or swift water on spring hikes isn’t uncommon. Warmer temperatures are causing winter snow to melt, so streams, creeks, and rivers are gushing. I just wrote an article for the About.com Survival Skills website titled “How to Make Improvised Flotation Devices,” which offers information about how to use items such as clothing, deadwood, plastic bags, empty containers, and other items as floatation devices.

I wanted to add a few additional demonstrations here; these either expand upon the ideas I share in the article or offer additional information. This video, for example, demonstrates one version of a plastic bag floatation device:

And this demonstration shows how to use a tarp and pine needles to make a floatation device sturdy enough to support a heavy man’s body weight:

While improvised floatation devices might not have the durability or buoyancy of manufactured life jackets or other high-quality personal floatation devices, it’s good to know how to make them in case you need something to help support you when you need it the most.

Want more information about how to make your own floatation device?
See my article on the About.com Survival Skills website:
“How to Make Improvised Floatation Devices”

Throw Bag Success

It’s (finally?!) spring here in the Vail Valley. Even though the snowfall this year wasn’t exactly epic, we got a few good spring snowstorms that will make an impact on this summer’s rivers, streams, and creeks. As temperatures are on the rise, people are out on their bikes, and hikers are getting back out on (currently muddy) trails.

Swift water encounters may be dangerous at this time of year, especially, as unsuspecting hikers may not have planned ahead to cross bodies of water swollen with spring snowmelt. Waterways that are barely flowing in the fall may be treacherous to cross at this time of the year. Therefore, it’s important to check on local conditions before going out and to plan carefully for any potential swift water crossings by carrying rescue gear such as a throw bag and a personal floatation device.

I wanted to share some images of a successful throw bag rescue; even though this one focuses on a rafting situation, I thought that it would 1.) get you excited for upcoming rafting and kayaking, or 2.) remind you how to use a throw bag in any situation, or 3.) both 1.) and 2.).

Above right, there’s the raft on its approach (notice the foaming rapids and squirrely-looking boulders).

Now…dropping into the hole:

Whoa! Getting sucked in:

Man overboard!

Rescuers get the throw bag to the swimmer, ASAP:

Rescuers hold their ground, and the swimmer swings to safety:

Want to know more about how to use a throw bag?
See my article on the About.com Survival Skills website:
“How to Rescue a Swimmer with a Throw Bag”