Suggestions Appreciated: Field Gear for Squatchin'

[Talmadge Mooseman]

I am giving a presentation to a medium sized group pertaining to "Field Gear" as it relates to Bigfooting.

 

It is not necessarily the type of gear one would use in a large group, where there is little risk of getting lost

or encountering a predator, but rather when going out alone or in a small group.

 

The purpose of the presentation is to review the most best gear and its uses.  It's more about being outdoors than

looking for Bigfoot.

 

So, with that in mind, what follows is a general outline of my draft.  Feel welcome to add your detailed knowledge and 

suggestions.  This is not detailed how-to training (though I have skipped detail to keep this brief), but awareness training with tips.

 

Basically, I'm looking for some of your favorite gear and most important practices that you almost always employ out in the field.  Thanks!

 

Navigation

Map & Compass

Flagging Tape

GPS

If you think you are lost

Preparation in advance (for example, tell someone where going)

What to do in field if lost (what to bring, etc)

 

Insect Protection

permethrin

Repellant

Misquito Heat net

 

Ticks

 

Hunting Season

Know the season

What to wear

 

Squatchin' Technology

Audio Recorder tips

 

Safety

Clothing (e.g. vest with lots of pockets)

Personal protection (Bear Spray, Buck knife, Axe handle, etc)

Rain Protection

Batteries (alkaline vs. lithium vs. rechargeable)

 

Sleep

Tips for sleeping in cold weather, hot weather, rain

 

Misc

Many uses of Duct tape and importance of bringing

 

Headlamps

When to use 

Ettiquette 

 

 

 

 

[hiflier]

Hi, TM, for a small group. This is very basic and does not include what I consider personal things like electronics, batteries, insect protection head nets and other items. I have always treated my clothing, hats, nets, and gear with a Permathrim product BEFORE I go and so usually do not carry an insect repellant. One may or may not include plaster for casting. I used to, but do not anymore. I traded the extra weight in for a small axe and small machete instead. One just cannot bring everything they would like:

 

A good water filter

Fully stocked first-aid kit

Prescription medications if required

A compact flashlight that will shine out 50 yds. or better

Fire starters. They are cheap and they work

A small hatchet

A good brand multi-tool

Light weight folding saw that locks when opened or closed

Poncho- don't go cheap on this one

Brim hat

Tent, lean-to, or hammock

Sleeping bag

Ground cloth

Light tarp

100 ft. of paracord

Airtight bear bag for hanging food

Small camp stove or single burner

Cooking pot and utensils

 

For one person for a day, same thing, insect spray, electronics, and batteries would be extra.:

 

Water filter

Small first-aid kit

Rx Medications

Nutrition bars

Nuts and raisins

Dry socks and gloves

Brim hat

Poncho

Extra shoelaces

Compass and topo map (know how to use them!)

Whistle

Bear spray worn on the belt if in bear country

50 ft of paracord

Two or three good carabiners

Small powerful flashlight

Two or three glow sticks

[Talmadge Mooseman]

A great list.  A lot of good stuff to help round it out.  Thanks

[SWWASAS]

There are many kinds of fire starters.   The best have some sort of inflamable material that ignite easily in wet cold conditions.    Cotton soaked in Vasoline and a spark striker works pretty well.   A simple match will not hack it when conditions are cold wet and you need a fire the most.    The lists are good.    Since I do solo field work for the most part I carry a GPS personal locator beacon too.     They are not cheap but if I get sufficiently lost or break a leg,   I can set it off and NOAA will report my location (within 30 meters) to people I have registered as contacts.   It would be up to them to call the Sheriffs Department and mount a rescue.   I have a Garmen Oregon hiking GPS and quite frankly think the thing is not worth the weight to carry it.     The screen is so small that it is difficult to see.    When I have used it to find something (one time I looked for an old mine with it) it seemed more trouble than help.   Breaks satellite lock easily in heavy forest.    Even though most of the time where I go is out of cell phone coverage,  I carry the phone anyway.    I found an app that downloads USGS maps into the phone,   uses the GPS capability of the phone,  and shows your position on the phones screen that is much larger than the Garmen screen.   Some apps do not allow the map data download and that requires you to be in cell coverage to get the maps.    So be selective on the app if you want to use your phone to navigate.    When you engage the phones GPS function,  it drains the battery pretty fast.    You need a battery pack charger for the phone if you use GPS very much in the field.     I only engage the GPS function of the phone when I want to verify my location.      The rest of the time,  I keep the GPS off to save battery.    As I learned the area,   I learned what areas have cell coverage because of which mountains have the towers on them.   If you need the phone you just need to climb to get a vew of the mountain with the cell tower.    

[hiflier]

Good Info SWWASAS on the electronics side. Talmadge Mooseman, on the subject of security. I only carry something for close in defense. Probably should have a fire arm and if I was in BIG BEAR country I would. But here in Maine there are only Black Bears even though I do not say that lightly. I just use common sense on trails and make a lot of noise when bushwhacking and try to never get myself into a situation where visibility is less than 20 yards.

 

And now for the fun part. At the campsite, whether alone or not, I pay out a good sized circle of black thread, say 100' in diameter, and hang small cowbells over places where there are rocks. I run it consistently at about 2 ft. off the ground all the way round. In a nutshell, string gets broken, bells drop, and the rest you can guess. If the area around the camp is dense I run the string in segments across the more open accesses and tie a bell to each. The system is cheap and effective, allows small animals through unhindered and so only sounds off when something LARGER than a raccoon or small coywolf come through. The benefit? I sleep very well. I leave the system intact when away from camp and so always know if I've had a visitor. You'd be surprised how far away one can hear the bells drop onto the rocks. The entire set up stores in a small cloth bag.

Edited March 25, 2018 by hiflier

[cmknight]

I carry a water canteen, an emergency foil blanket, bear spray, and my military-issue combat knife, on any walk in the woods. It doesn't matter if it's a weekend excursion, a 5-day camping trip, or just an afternoon hike.

[ShadowBorn]

Learn what you can about survival skills out in the forest. You never know what might happen out on your travels ,so it is good to have those skills learned. Be as proficient as you can since your life depends on it.. Learn to navigate with out electronics and always use a compass that is on you as well as a whistle for emergency use only. Plan your trips before you enter the woods and learn the land marks , like creeks and rivers and hills and roads, and ridges. Even if you have a topo map on you learn to recognize that area . Also keep your wits and do not panic when SHTF when you are out there .Just advice I have learned over the years. Oh yea make sure you bring baby wipes with ya . They do come in handy as well as plastic bags and a small shovel. Plastic bags are to keep things dry.  

[Talmadge Mooseman]

I appreciate all the sharing of information.  There is a lot that needs to be whittled down, as one could do a whole day course on just a few of these topics.  It's a jumping off point, mostly,

to get people to think, and first and foremost, put their safety first.

[hiflier]

At the end of the day of course, folks will take what they personally enjoy to have with them. I take some things that are not at all practical that I just like to have along. To me those small unnecessary items just add to the pleasure of being 'out there'. So on a personal level I've made them 'necessary' to enhance the experience,

[Talmadge Mooseman]

Well put, hiflier.  This is a diverse group and there will be everyone from the near elderly, to obese to seasoned hikers.  It will be a challenge not to bore some.  I'm somewhere in the middle in terms of knowledge and I suppose I got selected to present because of my 

training and presentation experience.  I personally, have learned quite a bit and I am not done assembling my slide show.  I know I will be a safer squatcher/hiker in the future.

[Airdale]

I have always carried a camera. Modern cell phones have excellent cameras as far as they go, but are designed with landscape shots in mind and the "zooming" simply amounts to cropping and enlarging the image on screen, with a resultant loss of resolution. After 45 years of using mostly Canons, both film and digital, last year I switched to a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ300 as my primary model. It is moisture sealed, has a 25 mm to 600 mm equivalent zoom lens made by Leica, and maintains its maximum f2.8 aperture through the entire zoom range. Focus is nearly instant, it will shoot both raw and jpeg, in bursts as required, as well as video up to 4k, has a good built in mic and a jack for external stereo mics and sells for under $500. I carry an extra battery and keep a UV filter on at all times; it protects the lens without having to mess with a lens cap and cuts through atmospheric haze. It also incorporates a good eye level viewfinder with diopter adjustment and an artificial horizon making it easy to keep shots level in landscape and portrait mode.

[hiflier]

15 hours ago, Talmadge Mooseman said:

I'm somewhere in the middle in terms of knowledge and I suppose I got selected to present because of my 

training and presentation experience

 

In the presentation, since you mentioned the elderly and obese, and even if one is neither but has other issues, a dependable pair of collapsible walking sticks would be a welcome addition that could easily be attached to the outside of a pack. My is a strong, fit, avid hiker, ice climber, and competitive kayak racer and when on a trail other than fairly flat he uses the devices for uphill and down and when crossing brooks. I do to now........because believe it or not, I AM teachable LOL.

 

Airdale, a beautiful camera for all of the reasons you mentioned  My concession to electronics is one trail cam and one Generation 1 NV unit. Both take stills as well as video and the trail cam has audio as well. They are a bit bulky of course but light weight.

[Talmadge Mooseman]

If you are out hunting/squatching and it is hunting season, what are the best ways to let hunters know you are in the area?  Yell?  If so, what is the best phrase.  I know this sounds like a weird question, but you know how bicyclists have standard keywords to let other

bikers know of their intentions.  Of course, I could always say, "human in the area, please don't shoot me!"

[hiflier]

If you know for certain, beyond avoiding hunting seasons altogether, that you are or will be in an area actively hunted? A blast from the wistle every now and then will alert them of your presence. And of course wear orange, especially head gear. Don't sneak around, stay on trails wherever possible and be less worried about chasing off animals than alerting Humans. I don't think BF would be anything but curious as to who is in their woods. Playing a harmonica, even if one isn't very good, would therefore have a dual purpose- sounding your presence to Humans and sounding your presence to our Hairy Friend..

[SWWASAS]

My experience avoiding most hunters is easy.   Some are very noisy and I just avoid them as I do most people I encounter.      It is funny to watch a hunter or hiker pass completely unaware you are there.  Sometimes I wonder what a watching BF would think watching you avoid a passing human seeing you.    .   It is the skilled hunter that moves quietly or not at all that worries me.   It does throw an interesting dynamic into the BF search.     If BF are avoiding hunters,  they are subject to needing to move to avoid contact.   Hikers are easily avoided because hikers use trails and make no attempt at being quiet.   So a BF simply hides behind a tree as they pass.     .    But hunters are among the few humans to go off trail and try to move quietly.  The danger of unintended contact must bother BF because it forces them to move faster,    out of their stealth mode.       If you know what to listen for you can hear BF moving.  Not that I am capable of discerning between a bear and BF.  I just know that some large animal is moving and making nearly sub-audible thuds as soft heavy feet or paws impact the ground as they move.