Handy Bushwalking Information

Bushwalking is a great activity for children – exploring the natural world while burning energy, cheap and enjoyable for grown-ups too. This article offers practical advice for planning a great walk, including how to choose a child-friendly walk, equipment to consider (including baby back packs), and tips for introducing kids to the bush. You’ll also find ideas for keeping kids motivated, and helping to share the wonder of nature with a new generation. Read more about Walking with Kids.

Ever looked back on your photo’s and thought, hum where was that? Geotagging is a simple process that lets your digital photo remeber where it was taken. This means that even years down the track you will be able to quickly place your photos on a map and say Ahh that’s where that campsite was. Read on to learn how to do this with your digital camera…

Magnetic declination, sometimes called magnetic variation, is the angle between magnetic north and true north. Declination is considered positive east of true north and negative when west. This article contains more information about magnetic declination and some maps to see the variation in your area or interest.

The wind chill is the effect of the wind on people and animals. The wind chill temperature is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin caused by wind and cold and is to give you an approximation of how cold the air feels on your body. As the wind increases, it removes heat from the body, driving down skin temperature and eventually the internal body temperature. Therefore, the wind makes it FEEL much colder. If the temperature is -11°C and the wind is blowing at 30km/h , the wind chill temperature is -20°C. At this level, exposed skin can freeze in just a few minutes.

You have heard it said that "It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity" Well, actually it’s both. Our bodies dissipate heat by varying the rate and depth of blood circulation, by losing water through the skin and sweat glands, and, as the last extremity is reached, by panting. As the body heats up, the heart begins to pump more blood, blood vessels to accommodate the increased flow, and the tiny capillaries in the upper layers of skin are put into operation.

Naismith’s rule was developed by a William Naismith in 1892 as a basic rule of thumb that can be used to calculate the time it will take to walk from point a to b. The formula has been adapted a little since then and considers the distance to walk, the altitude changed and the speed that you will walk at.

A topographical map can just look like a bunch of squiggly lines at first, but once you get used to the key or legend it becomes a simple way to find out an enormous amount of information. This article has the key for the main components of the new NSW topographical map series.

Fuel stoves have become and essential piece of equipment for your pack on any over night expedition. The stoves generally safer and much lower impact on the environment than the traditional campfire. The debate rages as to which is the best kind of stove on the market. The answer is easy – mine! But since you don’t believe me, I have put together a chart that compares different aspects of different stoves so that you can pick one for you.

An Australian standard for bush track was developed in 2001 in consultation with a number of out door bodies and organisations. These Standards are used to describe the condition of the track and the terrain and give a feel for the level of experience required by people using them.

There are 4 basic directional indicators used; North South East and West. I assume this is not news to you. A compass uses the same principles and breaks directions down even further to allow more accurate descriptions. When needing to be very accurate you will talk in degrees when general is ok then you will talk in cardinal directions (eg when describing wind direction or the general direction of a track.)

The Beaufort scale is a standard scale to communicate wind force. The scale starts at traditionally ranges from 0 to 12, with zero been no wind and 12 been a hurricane force wind of over 120km/h. The scale has since grown to 17, to describe more severe hurricane winds. For the sake of this article I have just included the 0-12. The scale include descriptions of the what to expect to see from such a force.

This article lists the channel, use and frequency table for the 470 MHz FM CB radio for Australia. These radios are becoming very common in the outdoors. Cheap handed held radios that operate over 1-2km are available for less than 0 at many electronic shops. These types of CB radios give access to a large network of freely accessible repeaters throughout Australia. The use of these repeaters can extend the range of communications up 50km. Includes links to lists of all UHF CB repeaters in Australia

Not much use in day to day life, but some people are curious. The Phonetic alphabet does have a real use when using a two way radio and the signal is not very clear. In an emergency just one number or letter out may make a big difference, so this is worth knowing.

Australia has two main types of CB or Citizen Band radio. This articles lists the channels and frequencies used by the AM or 27MHz type. This is the cheapest type of CB available and used for long distance communications.