Real, vaguely possible, forgettable dangers

My fellow members of the Professional Outdoor Media Association  and I semi-officially consider hunting and fishing to be the only traditional outdoor sports, but I am not about to break my favorite fly rod over the head of someone who thinks we should have included mushroom gathering or even nature photography.

Participating in any of these sports is safer on an accident-per-participant-per-hour basis than is engaging in just about any physical activity you’d care to name, including golf.

Relative safety is far too often accompanied by confusion regarding the comparative danger posed by situations or conditions an outdoorsman might encounter.

For the purposes of this discussion I’ve divided potential threats to summertime outdoor safety into three categories: real, vaguely possible and (almost) forgettable.

Hyperthermia is the medical term for what happens when the body is unable to regulate the upper limits of its internal temperature. It easily ranks first on the list of real dangers.

Hyperthermia is responsible for a sizable majority of all potentially life-threatening outdoor incidents during the hot weather months.

The classic symptoms of hyperthermia (which is also called heat stroke, heat exhaustion or heat prostration) include various combinations of excessive sweating followed by no sweating, fatigue, disorientation, inability to make simple decisions, and unconsciousness.

People with these symptons should seek medical attention immediately.

Heat-related disorders are easy to prevent. Avoid spending long periods of time outdoors during the middle part of the day, when the sun’s rays are their strongest and most direct.

Drink plenty of cool water, but limit consumption of beer and caffeinated soda. Wear long pants and long sleeved shirts except when actively engaged in water sports like swimming and skiing.

Mosquitos, ticks, chiggers, spiders and other assorted bugs have taken the fun out of countless outdoor experiences, and they can do a lot more.

Some species of mosquitos and ticks carry diseases, the effects of which on humans range from unpleasant to fatal.

Most problems with ticks, chiggers and mosquitos can be greatly reduced by wearing long pants with the cuffs duck taped to the top of 11-inch boots, which also eliminates the possibility of snake bite.

Add a long sleeved shirt tucked into the waistband of the pants. Wear a cap and add a bug proof head net — which doubles as the best face mask you’ll every use — if either the ticks or the mosquitos are especially pesky.
A good insect repellent fills the final chink in the outdoorsman’s anti-bug armor.

Missouri is home to copperheads, several species of rattlesnakes, and a few cottonmouth water moccasins, all of which are venomous.

Being bitten by a snake is firmly within the vaguely possible danger category.

With the debatable exception of the cottonmouth, Missouri’s poisonous snakes are shy creatures, which are as afraid of people as people are of them. Paying attention to where you put your hands and feet and using common sense if you  encounter a snake are all it takes to make you statistically slither-proof.

Healthy small mammals (raccoons, opossums, foxes, skunks, bats, etc.) are a vaguely possible threat to humans.

A mammal of any size or species can be extremely dangerous to people if the animal is infected with rabies or one of several other transmittable diseases.

If you encounter a wild animal that shows no fear of people, drools, staggers, is obviously sick, or is out and about at an unusual time or in an unusual place for that species, give it a wide berth.

Do not attempt to capture it or give it any type of assistance no matter how well intentioned. Contact a conservation agent and tell him or her exactly where and when you saw the animal.

A surprising number of Missourians are fearful of the state’s increasing numbers of mountain lions, black bears and coyotes.

There are documented fatal attacks on humans in other states by all three of those species.

People who venture into Missouri’s outdoors face a danger of being eaten by a large wild animal are so astronomically remote that it should be forgotten.

If you absolutely have to be worried about a large animal, keep an eye out for a bull in the pasture you’re sneaking across to get to some forbidden farm pond.