in the chevron of the leaves of most banana trees. That’s all well and good,
but you may need someone to show you a banana tree, and teach you how
to distinguish it from similar-looking plants.
Ideally, anyone going on a backcountry wilderness trip should take
the time to train in that region with a local expert, one who can offer such
vital advice as which plants are edible and which ones will kill you. Take
the time to find an expert, and try to dedicate at least one day with him or
her on the land. The training and teaching may even be available in your
own area. The first survival courses I ever took (to prepare me for northern
Ontario) were offered in a city... Toronto.
Although local experts obviously know the best ways to build shelter,
make fire, gather food, and locate water, I often find that it’s not the big les-
sons they teach that ultimately help me the most but the little nuggets of
wisdom they throw out in passing. For example, when a native Costa Rican
taught me how to eat mussels, he shared a tip with me: if the water that
drips out of the mussel is green, it’s poisonous; if it’s clear, then it’s good
to eat. That information was nowhere to be found in any of the books on
the region, but it could have saved my life. On another occasion, a Kalahari
Bushman taught me how to catch small weaver birds by hand by walk-
ing up to their nests at night and simply plucking them out of their holes.
This is the kind of tip that you can’t find anywhere else, but that may prove
invaluable if you’re stranded... and starving.
I realize that spending time with a local expert takes time and money.
Most people have only one or two weeks off work and can’t dedicate time
for training or education while on vacation. But if you can, it will make you
more self-reliant, enhancing your trip in ways you never thought possible,
even if you never get caught in a survival situation.
Ask the Right Questions
Now that you’ve committed yourself to learning about the area, your next
question is this: What should I be looking for?
First, you should be intimate with your route and destination.
Outdoor adventurers can spend hours looking at maps. It’s kind of like,
well... map porn.
Carefully study your maps to get a feel for the land before you see it.
As you come to understand an area’s features, you will begin to visualize
Trip Planning and Preparation | 5