The National Outdoor Leadership School's Wilderness Guide: The Classic Wilderness Guide

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Since 1965, the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) has been teaching its students how to climb, kayak, and navigate; how to camp without leaving a trace; how to stay warm and dry in the wilderness; how to cope with a backcountry emergency; and how to effectively lead others through such experiences. There are many reasons for spending time in the remote outdoors. Awe-inspiring scenery, peacefulness, wildlife viewing, and exercise are all good reasons. Another is that such experiences build character: "The wildlands teach us to be smart, practical, resourceful, and observant. To hike ten hours through scabrous terrain, cross a brawny river, stay warm in a snowstorm, and navigate your way out of tangled woods tests and builds your best faculties." While no single book can prepare one for spending time in the wilderness--much less impart all the skills necessary to survive in the elements--the NOLS Guide is an eminently useful place to start. Chapters include primers on equipment (fitting boots and packs, choosing a tent, the "Five Commandments for Equipment Care"); appropriate dress for a variety of climates; and ways of traveling in the backcountry, from crossing scree fields to fording rivers. It's not a substitute for in-depth instruction in, say, snow camping, or reading a map and compass. But with a solid grounding in the basics, one can take that first boot-step into what Joseph Wood Krutch called "the great reservoir of energy, of confidence, of endless hope."


High Country News, October 25, 1999
This starting-from-scratch revision of The National Outdoor Leadership School's Wilderness Guide will tell you what to wear, how to navigate, and how to get across streams and scree fields in the backcountry. It will give you tips on whether to evacuate an injured person by helicopter, how to treat blisters, and how to look for lost members of your group. This is all useful and well written. But the book's major strength is its many discussions of the psychology and etiquette of being in the forests, deserts or high country. Mark Harvey shares many stories and anecdotes to drive home his points. The material on leading and being led is especially well done.


Review
Publishers Weekly Remarkably packed with information on everything from renting topographical maps to baking bread over a campfire...The only guide most backpackers will ever need.


Book Description
The classic backpacker's handbook -- revised and updated -- providing expert guidelines for anyone who loves the outdoors. The Wilderness Guide brings the savvy of the world's most famous and respected outdoor organization to everyone -- from the 16 million backpacking Americans to the more than 265 million people, tenderfeet and trail-hardened hikers, who visit our national parks annually. It covers: Selecting equipment -- including discussions of the advantages and disadvantages of products such as the internal frame pack, lighter-weight boots, and freestanding tents The latest "leave no trace" camping techniques Traveling safely and sensibly -- including vital information on maps, compasses, and tips on crossing difficult terrain Backcountry cooking, with tips on building fires and tricks for making gourmet meals Search-and-rescue techniques, including how to organize a self-sufficient search group and when to call in professional rescue teams Illustrated throughout with instructional drawings and photos and featuring lists of equipment, the Wilderness Guide is a must-have for anyone planning to explore the great outdoors.


About the Author
The National Outdoor Leadership School conducts outdoor adventure programs at eight branches throughout the world; its headquarters are in the foot-hills of Wind River Range in Lander, Wyoming.


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This starting-from-scratch revision of The National Outdoor Leadership School's Wilderness Guide will tell you what to wear, how to navigate, and how to get across streams and scree fields in the backcountry. It will give you tips on whether to evacuate an injured person by helicopter, how to treat blisters, and how to look for lost members of your group. This is all useful and well written. But the book's major strength is its many discussions of the psychology and etiquette of being in the forests, deserts or high country. Mark Harvey shares many stories and anecdotes to drive home his points. The material on leading and being led is especially well done.


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