10 Essentials

The Ten Essentials is a list of essential items hiking authorities promote as recommended for safe travel in the back country. Here they are:

 

1.  Map

2.  Compass (optionally supplemented with a GPS receiver)

3.  Sunglasses and sunscreen (a sunhat also helps in this department)

4.  Extra food and water

5.  Extra clothes

6.  Headlamp (outdoor)/flashlight

7.  First aid kit

8.  Fire starter

9.  Matches

10. Knife

 

Not every expedition will require the use of an essential item. Carrying these basic items improves the chances that one is prepared for an unexpected emergency in the outdoors. For instance, if a hiker experiences a sudden snow storm, fresh clothes and fire starter may be used to keep warm, or the map and compass and headlamp will allow them to exit the wilderness quickly; otherwise hypothermia becomes a prominent possibility, perhaps even death.

 

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