First Aid in the wild(erness)

This morning I attended a wilderness first aid workshop conducted by Muggy/Bhaskar - the guy who first showed me the ropes of roped climbing. SIDENOTE- Muggy was trained in both Wilderness First Aid and Wilderness First Response and chose to conduct this workshop pro-bono. Another climber provided his amazing office space on a Sunday. This was my first time seeing what a software consultant’s life actually looks like.

The session covered the different kinds of injuries- scratches, strains, sprains, fractures, bites, and every random scenario one will probably never face out in the wild except when they do. Muggy made an extensive powerpoint presentation pro-bono - this gesture to help and create caring communities continues to drive me in my effective altruistic ways circa 2020s.

I learned how to apply bandages, create tourniquets, make makeshift stretchers out of ropes. We even did mock scenarios on one of our climbing buddies. It is recommended that weekend warrior wilderness folk (SIDENOTE- apparently that’s what semi-adventurous citydwellers are called these days) practice these scenarios very frequently to keep up with the minutiae of these chops. The last thing we want is to make a snake bite worse by restricting bloodflow in the wrong area or drop a fractured friend due to wrong ropework while carrying them back from the crag.

Takeaway- always carry a well-stocked wilderness first aid kit (SIDENOTE- here’s how it differs from a superficial first-aid kit), it saves lives!