Surviving in the Alps

Bear remarked that the best piece of weather advice he had ever been given was that clouds often behave how they look. If they look menacing they are menacing. There were menacing clouds overhead. No time for tea. A snow storm was on its way. Bear had to find shelter. He made a small snow cave in the lee of a slope. He did not have a shovel but used what he had - the plastic backing of his parachute. He dug a small hole and made a snow shelf to sleep on. The cold air would sink into the cold well below the shelf.

You lose 70 % of your body heat through the ground, so try to lie on some clothes or anything else you have with you. Bear dozed a little and tried to keep his fingers and toes moving. We take so much for granted. A warm bed is readily available to nearly all of us. A few days in a survival situation might make us appreciate all the comforts and facilities which we barely notice. We complain about problems which would be magnified hugely if we had to fight for survival as well. Bear had to keep moving and find his bearings again because the snow fall overnight had disguised the landscape. To reach the tree line below he would have to cross a frozen lake.

http://eriecdp.org/the-lost-ways-review/

People die in frozen lakes every year. Bear jumped into a frozen lake to demonstrate how to survive. The first threat to survival is known as Gasp Shock. The cold water causes people to take huge gasps of air. But if they gasp in water they could well drown. At least one kayaker has been found dead hanging upside down from the kayak. I have been upside down in a kayak off the west coast of Scotland. I had trouble getting out of the narrow kayak and was starting to get concerned as I struggled to get out. Fortunately it was summer and the water was not that cold. I also realized that I could kick a hole in the kayak if I needed to.