What diseases you should know about before going on a mountain trek

When preparing for a trek, we usually think about routes, weather, and gear. But health is a traveler's most important asset, and in the mountains, it faces unique challenges. Far from civilization, with changing climates and high altitude, your body experiences stress. In some countries, particularly in Asia or Africa, you may also encounter infectious environments unfamiliar to you.

First Aid on a Hike: Burns, Overheating, and Hypothermia

Our body is an amazing system that can effectively maintain a constant temperature. And there are good reasons for this. As I already wrote in the guide on temperature conditions, the critical threshold for a person ranges from 28.8 °C (fatal hypothermia) to 42.7 °C (fatal overheating). But even a slight deviation from the ideal 36.8 °C makes us feel extremely uncomfortable.

First Aid for Fractures and Dislocations in a Mountain Hike

In the wilderness, far from the city, it's crucial to be able to distinguish a serious injury from a minor bruise and provide proper first aid before medics arrive or you can transport the victim. Let's look at two of the most complex cases: fractures and dislocations.

First Aid for Wounds on a Hike: A Survival Guide

In a hiking or camping environment, even a tiny scratch can turn into a serious problem. The main dangers associated with any skin injury are the risk of infection (sepsis) and severe blood loss. Therefore, it is crucial to act quickly and correctly.

First Aid for Choking: The Heimlich Maneuver on a Hike

Even in the fresh air of the wilderness, a good appetite hits hard, and eating at a camp or rest stop is one of the great pleasures of hiking. But in the mountains or forest, whether you're in a hurry or just distracted by conversation, it's easy to forget to chew your food thoroughly. It's in these moments that choking is most likely to happen: a piece of food goes down the wrong pipe, blocking the trachea and cutting off the airway.

Wilderness First Aid: How to Handle Fainting and Rescue Breathing

Being prepared for emergencies is crucial when hiking or camping. Knowing basic life-saving techniques can mean the difference between life and death while waiting for professional medical help. Here is a guide to handling two critical situations: unconsciousness and stopped breathing.

First Aid in the Mountains: Skills That Can Save a Life

In the wilderness, far from civilization and city hospitals, the ability to administer first aid becomes more than just a useful skill—it becomes a necessity. When you are in the mountains, there is no ambulance that can arrive in ten minutes. This is why the responsibility for the health and life of the group lies with every single member.

Wildlife Photography and Videography on the Trail: A Practical Guide

When you're hiking in the mountains or trekking through the wilderness, you'll inevitably want to capture what you see: a majestic sunrise over the peaks, a curious marmot peeking from behind a rock, or your group crossing a rushing river. With today's technology, capturing these moments is easy, but making your shots truly come alive requires more than just pressing a button. Here's how to photograph nature and wildlife properly so your photos and videos bring back memories for years to come.

Night Vision: How to Observe Animals in the Dark

Night is a special time in the wilderness. The world grows quiet, but it doesn't fall asleep: many animals are most active after dark. For a hiker or nature enthusiast, observing them is a unique opportunity. But there's one problem: the human eye isn't well adapted to nighttime conditions. To feel confident in the forest after sunset, you need to understand how your vision works and how to adjust it.

The Art of Tracking: How to Observe Wild Animals

Wanting to observe an animal in the wild is one thing, but simply following its tracks isn't enough. For forest dwellers, humans have always been the ultimate predator, so they are constantly on high alert: listening, sniffing the air, and assessing whether a threat is near. Their survival depends on their ability to hide. Our task, in turn, is to outsmart them using equally sophisticated methods.

Whose Tracks? How to Read Hidden Animal Signs

Tracking is a true art. It takes more than just looking at the ground — you need to understand animal behavior, decipher prints, and know where to look for each forest dweller. The tracker's golden rule: study the theory first, then head out.

The Art of Observation: From Kim's Game to Finding Trail Signs

Before you can track anyone, you must know how to look. And to master camouflage, you need to understand how other creatures perceive a human. This may seem like a simple task—after all, we are constantly looking at things, aren't we? In reality, looking and seeing are two different things. True observation is a skill that must be learned and then trained relentlessly. You can refine it endlessly.

The Art of Animal Observation and the Secrets of Trackers

"Observing animals is incredibly fascinating, and tracking a stoat is often no easier than tracking a lion," noted Lord Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the scouting movement. When we go on a hike, we enter territory that belongs not to us, but to hundreds of other living beings. To many, a forest seems empty and silent, but this impression is deceptive. You just need to know where to look and how to notice. Then a whole world full of amazing creatures will open up before you.

The Most Important Skills for a Hike: Signaling for Help and Reading a Map Correctly

In today's world, where everyone has a mobile phone, it's very easy to report that you're in danger. It's foolish to underestimate the role of these phones as a means of calling for help. So, if you have a mobile, take it with you. However, as with a GPS navigator, you can't rely on a phone alone. What if its battery dies or there's no stable connection in the area you're in? Therefore, you must know how to signal for help using improvised means.

How to Navigate by Weather Conditions on a Hike

Predicting the weather is a challenging task, even for professionals. Meteorologists use sophisticated equipment and computer models, yet they still make mistakes quite often. However, nature often gives us clues about upcoming changes—you just need to learn how to interpret them correctly. Without this skill, heading into the wilderness is risky: getting caught in severe weather isn't just inconvenient—it can be life-threatening.

How to Navigate by the Sun on a Hike

Navigating by the sun is a classic and reliable method for determining direction when modern tools aren't available. You can master it using simple objects: a stick or a regular analog watch.

Celestial Navigation: How to Find Your Way by the Stars

Celestial navigation, or astronavigation, is one of the oldest methods for determining one's location. Long before the invention of maps, compasses, and GPS, people charted their course by the heavens. This technique was particularly vital for sailors, who, lacking landmarks in the open ocean, relied on the Moon and 57 navigational stars to plot their route.

A Hiking Navigator: An Indispensable Assistant, But Not a Replacement for Skills

Originally developed for military purposes by the U.S. Department of Defense, GPS navigators were once secret technology for special forces. Today, they have become a standard part of everyday life, a common feature in cars and even smartphones.

How to Estimate Time and Distance on a Hike

Figuring out how many kilometers you need to cover and how long it will take are crucial questions when planning an expedition. We're used to road signs and speedometers telling us where we are in a car. On a hike, we'd like to know that too.
Unfortunately, it's not that simple—measuring distance in steps, especially over rough terrain, is monotonous and tedious. A map can show the total distance to your destination, but it doesn't account for hills, gullies, and other obstacles that add extra kilometers. So, distance can only be estimated. However, there are situations where a rough calculation of time and distance is not only useful but necessary.

How to Read a Map Correctly and Plan the Perfect Route

In the United Kingdom, you have access to excellent maps created by the Military Topographic Service. However, not all maps are of such high quality, so you must learn to extract the maximum amount of information from them. To do this, you need to master topographic symbols.