Equipment Outfitters

Jungles

To go to the other extreme, let us examine the tropical rain forest, or jungle. The first priority for entering the tropics, even without leaving the city, is to check on local and endemic diseases.

These thrive in the hot, humid, steaming tropics, so it is advisable to get a full range of vaccinations, inoculations and pills. Anti-malaria tablets need to be taken before the trip starts, and personal hygiene is most important.

The humidity in the tropics can be enervating, and time for acclimatization is advisable.

Clothing

Clothing for the jungle needs to take into account not only the humidity but the insect life, and the wide variety of thorns and creepers which can clog the trails. Loose cotton clothing, ankle boots and a brimmed hat or peaked cap are essentials. The use of insect sprays, soaps or powders is also recommended, but of limited use. A detailed body check each evening to remove thorns and `beasties’ is essential.

The jungle is truly an alien environment and cannotbe entered casually. Quite apart from the fact that the rain forests are different from more temperate terrain, the word ‘jungle‘ itself is one with a variety of meanings. I have been in the jungles of the Far East, Africa and Central America, and all are different. You can encounter relatively open country under a canopy of high trees, or swamp, or virtually impenetrable ’secondary’ jungle. Jungles are not necessarily flat. The Malayan jungle is thick, hilly and very, very tiring, while the swamps of Panama are indescribable.

Animals are rarely seen in the jungle, although frequently heard. Monkeys and birds scream about in the trees, while pigs crash about in the undergrowth. Insects, well equipped with stings and teeth abound. They can’t be avoided and must be endured. You can combat them to a degree, but not defeat them. Most can be removed with salt, masking tape or a pair of tweezers. Swamps will usually reward you with leeches, and these must be not ripped off. Salt or a lighted cigarette will cause them to curl up and fall off.

Like the Arctic, the Antarctic, and the great mountains deserts and jungles are hazardous, because they present the human being with extreme conditions, in remote areas far from his normal environment. This is no reason to avoid them and far more accidents occur in more familiar, even innocent settings — such as crossing a stream.

Streams and rivers

Ankle-deep, shallow streams can be splashed across in boots and gaiters, probably without even getting your feet wet. If they are deeper than this they present a potential hazard and three (perhaps four) factors govern the character of streams and rivers: width, depth, and the rate of flow. The height of the banks can also cause a problem.

A wide, shallow river can be deceptive when viewed from the bank. There is almost certainly a deeper channel out there somewhere and the rate of flow can increase on the outer bends. Don’t be deceived by the rippling, sparkling appearance of a wide, dancing river. It may be a death trap with a deep channel somewhere in the middle.

The best advice is to stay out of streams and rivers altogether. Find a bridge or a marked ford. Mountain streams and rivers can often be followed upstream until they narrow sufficiently to jump across, but never follow a mountain stream downhill in the dark or in fog. Water takes the shortest route off a hill and following a stream will probably lead you over a cliff.

Where it is unavoidable to wade across a river, take the following precautions :

1. Remove the socks and stockings, but wear the boots.
2. Take off the rucksack or pack-frame and carry it over one shoulder only.
3. Have a stick or walking staff for three-point support on the bottom of the stream bed.
4. Cross one at a time, with help standing by, packs off, on the bank.
5. In fast water, have a rope attached to your waist, with a bowline, and head upstream against the current for extra stability.

If the flow is so fast you need to rope up then, in my opinion, the river should not even be attempted, but in the unlikely event that you have to cross right there, then take all possible precautions.

By removing the socks, but wearing the boots, you protect your feet from the rough bottom and a probable stumble. Boots are awkward to carry slung around the neck by the laces and would, in the event of a fall,either fill with water and be an added problem, or be swept away and lost. The place for the boots is on the feet. Worn with dry socks, they will not be too uncomfortable after the crossing, even when wet.

Some people contend that it is sufficient merely to release the hip-belt, carrying the pack over both shoulders and slipping it off if you fall. I have tried this in a swimming pool and found that getting a loaded pack off under water is very difficult, as you have no purchase against the pack and simply turn over and over. What it would be like rolling along the bed of a river I hate to think, but carried over one shoulder, the pack can simply be dumped, although it is admittedly less stable to carry like that.

A three-point purchase on the bottom is certainly desirable. To obtain it you will need to have a walking stick or branch cut from a nearby tree, or picked up from the ground. Be sure it is sound. If it cracks under your weight in mid-stream a fall is inevitable, as I know to my cost.

Only one person should cross at a time and the best swimmer should stay ashore, crossing either first or last, and so be ready to help if necessary. If it looks that dangerous it would be far better for everyone to stay out of the water altogether.

It is possible, with deep rivers, and assuming you possess an air mattress, to float the pack across. Colin Fraser did this several times in order to cross the Colorado when walking down the Grand Canyon, but it still seems a hazardous business. In my limited experience, mattresses invariably unroll or items slip off the raft just at the crucial mid-stream moment.

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