…Recently I watched “Heritage,” a short documentary about one of the early professional skateboarders, Steve Caballero. At some point in the viewing, I realized more time was being spent on Steve’s mountain biking skills and passion for motorcross than on his skateboarding career, and I had to wonder why.  If you’ve been a whitewater paddler,…

…Bleary eyed from a scarcity of shuteye, you shimmy out of your sleeping bag, stick your head out your tent flap, and observe your campsite. It’s not a pretty picture. In fact, it looks like you woke up in the middle of a yard sale. Or the tail end of a party turned bad. There’s…

…When wilderness medicine practitioners gather ’round a campfire, one favorite topic of discussion involves which animals are the most dangerous. Barring the obvious winner, we humans, leading candidates typically include the gorilla, shark, lion, tiger, and bear.  The unassuming mosquito and deadly microscopic organisms are often overlooked, but most likely lay absolute claim to the…

…You’ve no doubt seen the symbol below painted on the side of an ambulance, embroidered on the uniforms of emergency medical technicians (EMTs), or stuck to emergency medical equipment. Maybe you even wondered whether it had any meaning. What’s with the snake coiled around the staff? What’s the significance of the six-pointed star? The Origin…

…By definition, an expedition is quite a big deal. Typically, it involves a crew of people, covers a lot of territory, and lasts for weeks, sometimes months. Several examples come to mind. There’s Columbus’ first voyage to discover a western passage to China in 1492, Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery Expedition from 1804 to…

…Backcountry travel and wilderness recreation means traveling light while having everything we need to survive. A small problem like a deep cut or a sudden change in weather can quickly become an emergency when civilization is miles away. That’s why wilderness medicine starts long before anything goes wrong. It starts with what you carry. Everyday…