The rivers, streams, swamps, and lakes common in boreal and temper
ate forests open up the terrain and provide an excellent means of travel and
navigation, provided you have a boat and the skill to travel on water.
The greatest danger in traveling in the boreal forest is overestimat
ing how fast you’re moving. It is common to travel barely a mile and feel
like you have traveled several.
tracted and failsstroud’s Tip
When moving through the forest (and the jungle) in a
group, chances are the person in front of you will hold the
branches, to prevent them from whipping back into your
face. This may be a considerate gesture, but don’t rely on it. There
will invariably come a moment when the person in front gets dis
to hold the branch. If you’re not paying attention,
you’re going to get it in the eye, which can be serious. Always hold a
hand up for protection or stay well enough back.The Arctic and Polar Regions
Those who have not had the opportunity to travel in the world’s polar
regions are missing some of the greatest scenery on earth. The problem,
especially when ice fog sets in, is that you can feel like you’re traveling
inside a giant pingpong ball.
The pingpong ball effect can be extremely disorientating and make
it nearly impossible to tell the sky from the ground; everything is white. In
the Arctic, I once nearly walked off the edge of a 30foot (9m) snow cliff.
It was only at the last minute that I realized what I was about to do and
stopped. I had to get down on my hands and knees before I could actually
detect the difference in the landscape a few feet in front of me!
Generally, the wideopen vistas make traveling in the Arctic enjoy
able and the natural land features (if there’s no fog!) easy to distinguish.
But bear in mind that whenever you’re in a region with heavy snow cover,
you run the risk of snowblindness on bright, sunny days. Snowblindness
is a sunburn on your retina, and it’s a debilitating injury that can last for
several days.
(^246) | Survive!