Thoughts on GHB's

[Grumpy Grandpa]

Scythe, I think your approach is a good one - for you - and maybe for others who are young, super-fit and have boundless energy. In a 'get home' situation, I would be as desperate to reach my loved ones as you or anyone else would but I don't think your method would work for me, not even when I was able-bodied. My way would have been what I know - having effective shelter and sustaining food.

I don't know what kind of mileage you've put in wearing flip-flops but for me, they cause 'hot-spots' on the skin of my feet, particularly at the strap contact areas but also where they move against the skin - everywhere! A pair of lightweight sandals or similar, would have a use for me but it would be for moving around wherever I was laying up, to keep my clean dry socks clean and dry! No - it would have had to be well broken in, comfortable boots for me. Removing them for fording perhaps but not even then, if I couldn't see the bottom - the last thing you would need in the circumstances would be foot or ankle damage from sharp debris or uneven boulders. In typical British weather, they're probably going to get wet but with the right sock arrangement and with powder and dry socks to wear when laying up, my feet would bear up just fine. I know that because I've done it many times; I'm familiar with it.

I don't think I would have considered travelling any significant distance without factoring in quality rest. If they distance was short, I'd probably push through but if not, I'd want effective shelter. You mentioned putting some branches against a tree for shelter and climbing into a space bag. I don't mean to sound negative but have you tried those a few times? I think I'd rather have something wind and water tight - being wet and cold day after day is bloody demoralising! Putting up and taking down a tarp shelter takes only a couple of minutes, when you've had practice doing it; a lot less time than cutting a load of branches. Once, on a really cold (sub-zero) night, I had the bright idea of using my space blanket as a liner for my sleeping bag. It was great! Warm as toast! Then I woke up just an hour or two later and swam out the bag because I'd sweated like a pig! I was stuffed for sleeping until I had an opportunity to get the bag dried.

As for weight, while instructing students it was necessary that I carried all those things I was teaching them that they should have but I found that using modern, lightweight items (and this was twenty years ago! ), the weight of an exped. sack could be minimised. How much more so now, with further advances in design and materials?

So, what we know is this (sorry, borrowed and paraphrased ) your method will work well for you and those others that it suits. Others will find their own methods and those, will work well for them.

After all - horses for courses...