AMC's Mountain Skills Manual The Essential Hiking and Backpacking Guide

by Bisson, Christian; Hannon, Jamie

• ISBN13: 9781628420258
• ISBN10: 1628420251
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2017-02-07
• Publisher: Appalachian Mountain Club Books

Summary

This comprehensive guide, from the nation's oldest outdoors club, covers the essential skills every hiker and backpacker needs to know. Novice and experienced outdoorspeople will appreciate this authoritative resource on trip planning, gear, food, navigation, and mountain safety, as well as ways to be an active steward of our trails and natural resources.

AMC's Mountain Skills Manual is rooted in the best practices taught in the Appalachian Mountain Club's outdoor leadership training programs. Between them, authors Christian Bisson and Jamie Hannon have nearly 50 years' experience leading and instructing groups in the North American backcountry. Trekking with friends, family, and students has given them experience in preparing hikers of all skill levels for the unknowns anyone may face on the trail. Bad weather, accidents, and a whole host of worst-case scenarios get their due in this manual, along with tried-and-true ways of avoiding them in the first place.

Whether readers want to map out a new adventure in the wilderness, perfect their pace and pack weight, or simply plan a weekend of car camping and day hikes, this guide will be an essential companion to enjoying every moment outdoors.

ALSO AVAILABLE

• AMC Guide to Outdoor Leadership, 2nd Edition (ISBN: 9781934028414)
• AMC Guide to Winter Hiking and Camping (ISBN: 9781934028124)
• AMC's Complete Guide to Trail Building & Maintenance, 4th Edition (ISBN: 9781934028162)

Author Biography

SHORT BIO:

Christian Bisson (Ed.D.) teaches Adventure Education at Plymouth State University. He has been a NOLS instructor since 1990, specializing in wilderness backpacking expeditions for outdoor educators. He lives in New Hampshire where he hikes with his wife and children.

Jamie Hannon has been involved with outdoor and adventure education since 1981, guiding and teaching for a range of organizations including NOLS, the Chewonki Foundation, and the University of Maine's MaineBound.

LONG BIO:

Christian Bisson (Ed.D.) teaches Adventure Education at Plymouth State University. He has taught backpacking in higher education for the past 20 years and instructed in the outdoors for the past 30 years. He has been a NOLS instructor since 1990–specializing in wilderness backpacking expeditions for outdoor educators. Personally, he has hiked all over the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Nepal. He lives in New Hampshire where he regularly hikes with his wife and children.

Jamie Hannon (Ed.D.) lives with his family in the Baker River valley of NH. An Associate Professor of Adventure Education at Plymouth State University, he teaches a range of practical skills and theory courses. He has been leading outdoor experiential programming since 1981, and loves to run, hike and ski throughout the mountains of the Northeast

Table of Contents

1. Why go to the mountains?
2. Before You Go
   1. Trip Planning
   2. Fitness
   3. Resources
3. Leave No Trace
   1. Backcountry Best Practices
   2. Above & Beyond
4. Gear
   1. To Wear
   2. To Carry
   3. To Cook With
   4. To Shelter Yourself
   5. To Sleep In and Sleep on
   6. To Keep You Safe
   7. To Keep You Comfortable
   8. Maintenance & Repair
5. Food
   1. Nutrition
   2. Planning
   3. Packaging
   4. Food suggestion
6. Navigation
   1. Map & Compass Skills
   2. GPS Skills
   3. Celestial Navigation
   4. If You're Lost
7. Safety
   1. Prevention
   2. Health/First-Aid
   3. Hygiene on the Trail
   4. Weather
   5. Wildlife
   6. Plants
   7. Water Collection/Treatment
   8. Miscellaneous
8. Building Blocks/You Never Know When You'll Need It
   1. Knot Tying
   2. Starting a Fire (especially in the rain)
9. Trail Skills & Etiquette
   1. Packing your pack
   2. Adjusting your pack for comfort and efficiency
   3. Conserving energy
   4. Pacing
   5. Trail Etiquette
10. When the Terrain Changes
    1. Heading off-trail
    2. Scrambling
    3. River Crossings
11. Camping Skills – making your home in the woods
    1. Finding a site
    2. Pitching a tent or tarp
    3. Sleeping comfortably, sleeping warm
    4. Setting up your kitchen for safety and efficiency
    5. Bear camping practices
    6. Getting yourself clean
    7. Disposing of human waste
    8. The advantages of Base camping
    9. Being a good neighbor – when you have to camp near others
12. Lightweight/Ultralight Backpacking, Fastpacking, Trail Running, Other Variations
    1. When and why to go fast and light – a personal choice
    2. Tactics for lightening up your gear and pack
    3. Trail running/adventure running
13. Winter Skills
    1. Why travel in winter?
    2. Gear each of the sub-sections below just modifies or adds to the previously presented gear chapter
    3. Food
    4. Shelter
    5. Snowshoeing and sleds
    6. Safety
14. Traveling with young children and families, (also a section on novice friends and pets?)
    1. Adjusting expectations
    2. Tips for gear for infants and young kids
    3. Safety and health for infants and children
    4. The payoff – connecting our children with nature for a lifetime
    5. Bringing a novice on the trail
    6. Bringing your canine companions
15. The dynamics of groups
    1. All groups have dynamics – expect them!
    2. The perils of a leaderless group
    3. Basic group stages
    4. Strategies for short trips
    5. Group development on the long haul
    6. Expedition behavior