day. If weather conditions threaten and you are inadequately prepared, flee or hunker down.
Treat shivering at once: Get the victim out of the wind and wet, replace all wet clothes with dry ones, put him or her in a sleeping bag, and give him or her warm drinks. If the shivering is severe and accompanied by other symptoms, strip him or her and yourself (and a third party if possible), and warm him or her with your own bodies, tightly wrapped in a dry sleeping bag.
Lightning: Although the odds of being struck are very small, almost everyone who goes to the mountains thinks about it. If a thunderstorm comes upon you, avoid exposed places—mountain peaks, mountain ridges, open fields, a boat on a lake—and also avoid small caves and rock overhangs. The safest place is an opening or a clump of small trees in a forest.
The best body stance is one that minimizes the area your body touches the ground. You should drop to your knees and put your hands on your knees. This is because the more area your body covers, the more chance that ground currents will pass through it. Also make sure to get all metal—such as frame packs, tent poles, etc.—away from you.
If you get struck by lightning, there isn’t much you can do except pray that someone in your party is adept at CPR—or at least adept at artificial respiration if your breathing has stopped but not your heart. It may take hours for a victim to resume breathing on his or her own. If your companions are victims, attend first to those who are not moving. Those who are rolling around and moaning are at least breathing. Finally, a victim who lives should be evacuated to a hospital, because other problems often develop in lightning victims.
Wildlife Hazards
Rattlesnakes: They occur at lower elevations (they are rarely seen above 7000 feet but have been seen up to 9000 feet) in a range of habitats, but most commonly near riverbeds and streams. Their bite is rarely fatal to an adult, but a bite that carries venom may still cause extensive tissue damage.
If you are bitten, get to a hospital as soon as possible. There is no substitute for proper medical treatment.
Some people carry a snakebite kit such as Sawyer’s extractor when traveling in remote areas far from help and where snake encounters are more likely: below 6000 feet along a watercourse. This kit is somewhat effective if used properly within 30 minutes after the bite—but it’s still no substitute for hospital care.
Better yet, don’t get bitten: Watch where you place your hands and feet; listen for the rattle. If you hear a snake rattle, stand still long enough to determine where it is, then leave in the opposite direction.
Marmot
Rodents and Birds: Marmots live from about 6000 feet to 11,500 feet. Because they are curious, always hungry, and like to sun themselves on rocks in full view, you are likely to see them. Marmots enjoy many foods you do, including cereal and candy (especially chocolate). They may eat through a pack or tent when other entry is difficult. Marmots cannot climb trees or ropes, so you can protect your food by hanging it (though this is illegal in some areas because of bears). Smaller, climbing rodents might get into hung food. We’ve heard reports of jays pecking their way into bags, too. Sealed bear canisters are excellent protection against all kinds of rodents, birds, and insects. (Please see for information about bears.)
Mosquitoes: Insect repellent containing N, N diethylmeta-toluamide, known commercially as deet, will keep them off. Don’t buy one without a minimum of about 30% deet. Studies show adults can use deet in moderation, but it is dangerous for children. To minimize the amount of deet on your skin, apply it to your clothes and/or hat instead—but test first to be sure that deet won’t damage the garment.
A newer, time-release deet preparation works well and is much less objectionable than straight deet; however, it may be more expensive. Try this if you can’t abide straight deet.
Most non-deet and low-deet repellents work much more poorly than those with 30% deet or more, and electronic repellents are useless. Clothing may also act as a bar to mosquitoes—a good reason for wearing long pants and a long-sleeved shirt. If you are a favorite target for mosquitoes (they have their preferences), you might take a head net—a hat with netting suspended all around the brim and a snug neckband.
A tent with mosquito netting makes a world of difference during mosquito season (typically, through late July). Planning your trip to avoid the height of the mosquito season is also a good preventive.
Terrain Hazards
Snow Bridges and Cornices: Stay off them.
Streams: In early season, when the snow is melting, crossing a river can be the most dangerous part of a backpack trip. Later, ordinary caution will see you across safely. If a river is running high, you should cross it only there is no safer alternative, you have found a suitable place to ford, and you use a rope—but don’t tie into it; just hold onto it.
Here are some suggestions for stream-crossing:
If a stream is dauntingly high or swift, forget it. Turn around and come back later, perhaps in late summer or early fall, when flows reach seasonal lows.
Wear closed-toe shoes, which will protect your feet from injury and give them more secure placement.
Cross in a stance in which you’re angled upstream. If you face downstream, the water pushing against the back of your knees could cause them to buckle.
Move one foot only when the other is firmly placed.
Keep your legs apart for a more stable stance. You’ll find a cross-footed stance unstable even in your own living room, much less in a Sierra torrent.
One or two hiking sticks will help keep you stable while crossing. You can also use a stick to probe ahead for holes and other obstacles that may be difficult to see and judge under running water.
One piece of advice used to be that you should unfasten your pack’s hip belt in case you fell in and had to jettison the pack. However, modern quick-release buckles probably make this precaution unnecessary. Keeping the hip belt fastened will keep the pack more stable, and this will, in turn, help your stability. You may wish, however, to unfasten the sternum strap so that you have only one buckle to worry about.
The Bear Problem
The bears of the Sierra are American black bears; their coats range from black to light brown. Unless provoked, they’re not usually aggressive, and their normal diet consists largely of plants. The suggestions in this section apply only to American black bears, not to the more aggressive grizzly bear, which is extinct in California.
American black bears run and climb faster than you ever will, they are immensely stronger, and they are very intelligent. Long ago, they learned to associate humans with easy sources of food. Now, keeping your food away from the local bears is a problem. Remember, though, that they aren’t interested in eating you. Don’t let the possibility of meeting a bear keep you out of the Sierra. Respect these magnificent creatures. Learn what you can do to keep yourself and your food safe. Some suggestions follow.
Bears—Any Time, Anywhere: You may encounter bears anywhere in the areas this book covers. If they present special problems on that trip, we mention them in the “Heads Up!” paragraph of that trip. Bears are normally daytime creatures, but they’ve learned that our supplies are easier to raid when we’re asleep, so they’re working the night shift,
