AY Honors/Backpacking/Answer Key
1. Discuss with your instructor the meaning of the motto: "Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints."
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Camping/Take pictures leave footprints
2. Know the essentials of proper clothing, shoes, and rain gear to use in backpacking.
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Camping/Clothing
Rain Gear Be ready for bad weather on your backpacking trip by bringing along a poncho and rain pants. In a pinch, you can use a garbage bag as a raincoat by cutting a hole in th bottom, turning it over, and poking your head through the hole. A slit along each seam on the side will make arm holes. It will not cover your head like that, but it will keep the rest of you dry.
3. Know the principles in selecting a good quality backpack. In an emergency, what might be used in place of a backpack?
4. Know the essential items to be taken on a backpack trip.
- Backpack
- Sleeping bag
- Sleeping pad
- Extra socks
- Good quality hiking boots
- Change of clothes
- Eating and cooking utensils
- Backpacking stove and fuel
- Firelighting equipment
- Food
- Water treatment equipment
- Water bottle
- Tent or tarp
- Knife
- Flashlight
- Toiletries (toothbrush, toiletpaper, soap, etc)
- Compact shovel
5. What kind of sleeping bag and pad are best for your camping area? Know at least three kinds of each that are available.
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Camping/Sleeping bags
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Camping/Sleeping pads
6. Know how to pack a pack properly.
7. What types of food are best for backpacking? Visit a grocery store and list the foods found there that are suitable for backpacking. With your instructor:
The best type of food to take backpacking is dehydrated food, as it is very lightweight, compact, and nutritious. You can buy food pre-packaged or you can dehydrate it yourself. For details on dehydrating your own food, see the Food Drying honor in the Household Arts section of this book.
Although you can buy prepared dehydrated foods for backpacking at an outdoor outfitter, getting your food this way can be fairly expensive. Instead, try getting dehydrated food at a regular grocery store. Here's a short list of possibilities:
- Instant mashed potatoes
- Instant oatmeal
- Quick-cooking rice
- Powdered milk
- Powdered eggs
- Pasta
- Nuts and peanuts
- Dry soup mixes
- Dry beans, lentils, peas
- Granola
- Dried fruits (apricots, apples, and banana chips)
- Flour, mixed with other dry ingredients to make pancakes or biscuits
b. Learn the techniques of measuring, packaging, and labeling backpack foods for your trip.
Once you've bought the food you plan to eat on your backpacking trip, the last thing you will want to do is toss it unthoughtfully into your backpack in its original packaging. Food packaging is designed to catch your eye at the grocery store, and to do this, it does not come in space-efficient sizes. Empty all of your food and repack it into sealable plastic bags (such as Ziplock bags). Make up a menu before you do this, and pack each meal into a separate bag. Then clearly label the bag with a permanent marker or a mailing label. The label should be legible even in dim light - you never know when you'll have to cook your food in the dark. This is a lot of trouble to go through, but it is well worth it during the trip.
If you wish to make pancakes, first determine how many pancake meals your party will eat, and mix it all up at once. It is a lot easier to accurately measure large amounts of flour, salt, and baking powder than it is to measure small amounts of the same. Mix it all together thoroughly, and when it is well mixed, scoop out enough to make one serving and place it in a baggie. Make as many single-serving baggies of pancake mix as you'll use. You can use the same technique for making soup mixes and other delectables. Just keep all the ingredients dry and be prepared to add water at the campsite.
c. Make a trail snack.
There are millions of recipes for trail mix, and every seasoned backpacker has a favorite. "Gorp" is a perennial favorite - the name tells its ingredients: Good old raisens and peanuts. Choose half a dozen (or more! or less!) of items such as these, mix them together, and put them in a baggie:
- Raisens
- Peanuts
- Chex cereal
- Frosted Flakes or other sweetened cereal
- Pretzels
- M & M's
- Chocolate chips
- Dried fruit
- Shelled sunfower seeds
Put the baggie in an easy to reach place in your pack so you can nibble on it while you hike. Don't worry about getting low-fat items. You'll be doing enough walking (and carrying a heavy pack) to burn a lot of calories - you'll need the fat.
8. Know the prevention and symptoms of, and the first aid for:
a. Sunburn
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Sunburn
b. Blisters
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Blisters
c. Frostbite
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Frostbite
d. Hypothermia
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Hypothermia
e. Heat stroke
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Heat stroke
f. Heat exhaustion
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Heat exhaustion
g. Snake bite
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Snake bite
h. Cramps
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Cramps
i. Dehydration
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/First aid/Dehydration
9. Have a first aid kit in your pack and know how to use it.
Compact, lightweight firsts aid kits are available at many retailers and outdoor outfitters. But don't just go out, buy one, and toss it in you pack without another thought. It is important for you to open it up and examine every item. Then review the answers for the First Aid honor, so that you know how to use each item.
10. According to your weight, what is the maximum number of pounds you should be allowed to carry?
11. Know three ways to find direction without a compass. Demonstrate at least two.
Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Camping/No compass
12. Show the proper way to put on and take off a backpack alone and with a partner.
13. Participate in a weekend backpack trip of at least five miles (8 km) to a site not accessible by a vehicle and cook your own meals.
Five miles is a good backpacking trip for a beginner. Find a trail near you by visiting your local outdoor outfitter. These stores are most often staffed by people who enjoy backpacking and can provide you with valuable advice on destinations. Once you've got a 5-mile trip under your belt, why not look at the Pioneering honor and make your next trip a 15-miler?
