by Chris Ryan
1. PREPARATION IS THE FIRST ESSENTIAL
If you are heading off into mountain regions, make sure you tell the relevant authorities - like the police or mountain rescue - where you are going and how long you plan to be gone. If there is a disaster, rescue attempts will be made sooner and it will be easier for them to find you. Certain basic equipment is also advisable:
MY BASIC SURVIVAL KIT CONTAINS
- ropes
- a small shovel or other digging equipment
- a sleeping bag or poncho or large waterproof sheet for shelter if necessary
- a knife
- waterproof matches
- medical equipment including: painkillers (broken limbs are possible in mountainous conditions), plasters or butterfly sutures for wounds, antiseptic
- sun goggles if going into a snowy area, to protect your eyes
- tea bags and stock cubes to make hot drinks
- mini-flares for signalling
- vitamin pills
- thermal and waterproof clothing
2. STAY CALM AND STAY PUT
If you have told the authorities where you plan to be going, it’s a good idea to stay close to your planned route to help any rescue efforts, finding the best nearby place to shelter. You can then use your energy for survival until rescue, rather than just heading off blindly into what could be a worse situation.
The higher you go, the thinner the air is too, so you will probably find yourself getting tired more easily and suffering the first signs of altitude sickness: breathlessness, a fast pulse, headaches and dizziness. Conserve your energy, don’t panic and try and work out what your best course of action is to be.
If you must move . . .
3. PUT SAFETY BEFORE SPEED
Mountain slopes can be very slippery — especially slopes covered with scree, or loose rocks, and you don’t want to risk a fall. Snow can cover up deep crevasses, so move very carefully, testing the ground ahead of you with a stick before taking a step. If going downhill, go backwards, using your heels and a stick as a brake. If going uphill, climb in a zig-zag, using a stick for extra support. Believe me, tobogganing down a snowy mountain without a toboggan is not a good idea! Once, when I first joined the regiment, we were climbing in the Alps and two good friends fell to their deaths because they lost their footing, so it is important to take your time when descending from a mountain.
If you’re in a group, and the ground is very treacherous, try roping yourselves together with about 10 metres between each of you and move very slowly indeed. Travel only in daylight when you can see where you are going.
4. FIND SHELTER
This is essential in any cold conditions to maintain body temperature. If you start feeling confused or shivery, stumble more than you should and find it hard to get your body to do what you want, you could be showing the first signs of what is known as hypothermia - when your body temperature drops faster than your body can generate heat. Hypothermia can kill you! If you’ve ever got soaked on a cold, wet day, you’ll know how miserable you can feel and, believe me, it only gets worse if you are out in these conditions for a long period of time. Hypothermia, which is no joke, is something I have suffered from and watched two friends die from it. Remember, though, that if you lose heat slowly, you also need to warm up bit by bit, rather than all at once. Try to get out of the wind and into shelter, create a source of heat, eat or drink something warm and replace wet clothes with dry (one piece at a time - don’t strip everything off at once). Huddling together can also help: it’s amazing how much heat another body can provide.
A small cave would make an ideal shelter (as long as nothing’s living in it already!), or you could shelter underneath an overhanging rock. If there are trees around, the branches can be pulled down to create a windbreak and in deep snowy conditions, you can dig underneath the branches of trees to create a hollow protected by the tree.
If there is nothing but snow in sight, pile up snow to make a windbreak or dig out a trench, piling the snow up the windiest side. Remember, though, that if you make something out of snow, keep any digging tools with you inside in case you have to dig yourself out again! Also, do think about ventilation. In Norway, I remember being in a snow hole, the hole was blocked and we started to fall asleep. Luckily, one of the team woke, realized we were suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning and kicked a hole in the roof to get fresh air in.
5. LIGHT A FIRE
A fire will provide heat - and it will cheer you up! You can also heat up food and drink and dry your clothes by it. If you have found shelter in a cave, build the fire as high as possible at the back so that the hot air rises. If you build it at the front, it might fill the cave with smoke so you can’t breathe.
6. WATER
Water is always a survival essential. Look for a fresh water supply - at the bottom of a valley is a good place - or leave containers to catch rainwater. In snowy conditions, use a fire to melt ice (ice melts quicker than snow). If you’re on the move or don’t have a fire, you will still need to replace fluids somehow. Don’t eat snow - it will just settle in your stomach as a cold lump and make you colder from the inside out. In an emergency, form the snow into snowballs and hold one in your mouth, allowing it to melt slowly.
7. EAT SOMETHING
Food is another priority if you are likely to be stuck for a long period. Your body needs more food in low temperatures, too. In a group, ration any supplies so that it will last as long as possible.
Vegetation is usually pretty thin on the ground in mountain areas, but birds and their eggs can be a good source of food. Follow their droppings to see where they nest, but take care - a flock of angry gulls protecting their eggs can be vicious. Crawl as close as you can and try and take eggs only if the birds are not present. You might also be able to knock down a bird with stones or sticks, or make a trap to catch them. Once, in a survival situation, I caught some seagulls. These birds didn’t taste too good as they are scavengers and will eat anything!
8. WATCH THE WEATHER
Unless you like the idea of being buried under a heap of snow, watch out for the possibility of an avalanche. Try not to make your shelter under smooth, steep snow slopes - a more rugged landscape is less likely to suddenly come loose and land on your head and avoid shouting as this can set the snow off. Finally, if the worst does come to the worst and a heap of snow roars down towards you, try and ‘swim’ on top of it rather than fighting it. Before setting out, listen to the local radio station for any avalanche warnings. If there is a high risk of one, it would be advisable to wear an avalanche transmitter. If you happen to be buried, this sends out a signal so that the rescue team can then locate you.
9. TREAT ANY INJURIES
It’s easy to trip over a rock or put your foot down a hole and broken limbs are a definite possibility in any accident. Immobilise a broken or sprained limb with a splint made out of a straight stick and treat any cuts with antiseptic cream or powder. If you’re stuck without supplies, one tip is that you can use your urine to wash out a wound (don’t do this without telling the injured person first though - they might take it the wrong way!).
As well as hypothermia, there are several other different health problems that could affect you in cold, mountainous areas. Everyone knows that polar explorers suffer from frostbite but you don’t need arctic conditions to get it; vulnerable places like your face, nose, ears, hands and feet can get frostbite if exposed to temperatures of -1°C for long periods (and that can easily happen in cold, windy areas). Watch out for feelings of prickliness, then numb, waxy-looking patches. If you do get it, you will need to thaw out the affected skin slowly, using warm water rather than direct heat from a fire. You could also try the old trick of putting your feet on someone else’s stomach (tell them first!).
In snow, snow blindness can also be a problem as the glare of the sun reflects back off the snow. This can happen in as little as fifteen minutes. If you start blinking and squinting to see, then begin seeing everythin
g in a nice rosy glow, you’re in trouble. Cover your eyes - blindfold them if necessary — or you could risk being temporarily blinded. Wearing goggles protects your eyes from this risk and you could also try rubbing charcoal underneath your eyes to reduce the glare.
As the ultraviolet light of the sun reflects off snow, you can also get bad sunburn on any unprotected skin. This includes areas like the inside of your nose!
10. SIGNAL FOR RESCUE
This is going to be a big priority, especially if no-one knows where you are. A fire will produce smoke and attract attention but it’s also a good idea to lay out some ground-to-air signals. This can be as simple as laying out stones in a pattern to spell out SOS - or tramping snow down to make these letters. Make it as big as you can so it’s easily visible from the air.
If you spot a rescue helicopter or plane, there are some internationally recognized signals which all mountain rescue teams understand, using flares, a whistle or flashes of light from a torch. The most important to know is the one for SOS — a request for help.
SOS
Flare: red
Sound: three short blasts, three long, three short (repeat after a 1-minute interval)
Light: 6 flashes in quick succession (repeat after a 1-minute interval)
BE SAFE!
Random House Children’s Books and Chris Ryan would like to make it clear that these tips are for use in a serious situation only, where your life may be at risk. We cannot accept any liability for inappropriate usage in normal conditions.
About the Author
Chris Ryan joined the SAS in 1984 and has been involved in numerous operations with the regiment. During the Gulf War, he was the only member of an eight-man team to escape from Iraq, three colleagues being killed and four captured. It was the longest escape and evasion in the history of the SAS. For this he was awarded the Military Medal. He wrote about his remarkable escape in the adult bestseller The One That Got Away (1995), which was also adapted for screen.
He left the SAS in 1994 and is now the author of a number of bestselling thrillers for adults. His work in security takes him around the world and he has also appeared in a number of television series, most recently Hunting Chris Ryan, in which his escape and evasion skills were demonstrated to the max. The Alpha Force titles are his first books for young readers.
