No, no, no you sink it into nitric acid first then do something ...
Emergency signalling
- Thread starter Longstrider
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I'd also go for a day/night flare if they're available to me. Good kit.
In my experience though, Miniflares can be blown sideways or into the ground, if there's a strong breeze, quite soon after being launched.
A radio link to a chopper pilot is great but one needs to be very confident of describing the incident/recovery location clearly (especially at night), when the rescuer's viewpoint may look different from yours. If a leader needs to be rescued, have others in the team been trained to use the radio and describe the terrain for a helicopter approach?
I always carry lightweight coloured marker panels or, cheaper and more versatile, an orange plastic survival bag (6' by 3') to indicate position. Illuminated inside with a torch or candle, they show up pretty well at night.
Redland laser flares are good for penetrating forest canopy gaps and the beam goes up thousands of feet with a wide spread the higher it goes. Good kit but somewhat pricey.
Some EPIRBS have a strobelight on them (ACR) and a strobelight reflected off a space blanket also does a good job.
Heliographs also still have a place in signalling, especially on a sunny UK mountainside.
My son travels to and from work by train, he brings me in the Metro.
There's an article on an enormous hillside fire caused by a flare. A salutary lesson methinks.
metro.co.uk
There's an article on an enormous hillside fire caused by a flare. A salutary lesson methinks.
Sailor's SOS flare set fire to a quarter of an island that is still burning
The 67-year-old was trapped on Santa Rosa Island in Channel Islands National Park
metro.co.uk
If you went for a pyrotechnic signal, I would opt for a 'day/night' one. It is a double-ended stick, one end is a flare and the other a smoke signal, both hand-held. Much better option for those long winter nights. They are quite small and you can easily keep two. Marine chandlers sell them.
While sailing/kayaking, I carry two plus a mini EPIRB on my buoyancy aid, which I think also has a strobe on it. Probably on the heavy side if you are walking, but a good solution in a group or if you don't need to carry them on foot.
Regarding the all-green and blending-in kind of clothing, a rucksack cover with one side in hunter orange and the other green. As soon as you turn it to the orange side, you'll be seen from miles away.
While sailing/kayaking, I carry two plus a mini EPIRB on my buoyancy aid, which I think also has a strobe on it. Probably on the heavy side if you are walking, but a good solution in a group or if you don't need to carry them on foot.
Regarding the all-green and blending-in kind of clothing, a rucksack cover with one side in hunter orange and the other green. As soon as you turn it to the orange side, you'll be seen from miles away.
The other colour I carry out in the green to be able to drag out when needed is hunter orangeI hope this is in the correct section .....
I recently had a chat with a helicopter pilot who used to fly an Air Ambulance. He and I are both shooting men and conversation tripped towards the fact they we (and many if not all good bushcrafters) often find ourselves in the absolute middle of nowhere wearing drab khaki clothing or cammo gear making us hard to see.
He told me that if called to a remote spot of countryside the pilots greatest friend would be a smoke grenade as it offers both a locator and an indication of wind speed and direction on the ground. There's a reason the military use them for such
I have since found that red smoke grenades can be bought very cheaply from no-end of fireworks retailers who operate all year round (Google itapparently LARPers use them etc ) and have added one to my own kit. I have vacuum-packed mine to keep it dry even if submerged. At about 60g in weight you will barely ever notice it's there, but if you ever need it you may well be glad you spent a fiver or so on it. Getting quicker help for you or a badly injured friend ... priceless.
But perhaps not a lot of use in the usual cloudy but have always carried a heliograph... of which I have used as a portable mirror and of course there is the head torch where mines ' SOS ' mode does flash an SOS pattern and there is always whistles about my personage.
My military surplus rucksack came with a big fluorescent yellow Velcro hook-side patch on the inside & the external top lid flap has an equally velcro receiving patch on it. Presumably used to identify "friendlies" and/or monitoring staffg from air and ground (incl road vehicles) in troop practices/marching.
These are good, if I am not missing the point of the thread. Its the one people generally carry here. Like an electronic flare. They (or something similar) are required for access to some areas. You can send a text message along with your position.
