Many places make you pay for rescue efforts, particularly if you place yourself at risk (and in some cases, place the rescuers at risk).
Hell, you get to pay for ambulances to take you to hospitals.
**
Just so long as they don't start charging you for Policemen to come in case of a crime, or a Firefighter in case your house/business catches fire, eh.
**Interesting double-standard, eh
OK, let's try this one on for size.
I enjoy hiking. I go every chance I get.
Before I leave my home, I take every precaution I can think of. I have standard supplies such as water and snack foods. I have a small first aid kit capable of addressing most minor injuries. I carry a knife capable of cutting down small saplings if needed for wood or even making splints, and it is sharp enough to gut small animals. I have a piece of rope and another longer piece of twine, again mainly for splints, but also handy for a dozen other uses. At least three people know when I am leaving, who is with me, where we are going, when we expect to reach the end of our hike, and how to get to both starting and ending points. When possible, I read the trail description numerous times to anticipate anything unusual such as rock croppings, narrow ledges, whatever.
Now. After all that, what if something does happen? Bears. A fall. Getting swept into a fast running stream (I cannot swim). Am I then liable?
SnP said:I submit that some drunk who wanders off into the woods and gets lost should be more culpable than a prepared hiker/mountain climber/whatever. Living where I do, I hear of lost hikers every summer. It's laughable really, because unless you are either a total idiot or a complete novice getting lost on a hiking trail is damn near impossible. Yet it happens. People panic I guess, after awhile dehydration sets in...who knows?
I'm probably oversensitive on the issue. I just detest seeing hikers get a bad rap as a whole because of a few morons who probably don't have any business being out there alone in the first place. So to answer the question...let the idiots pay for being rescued, let the prepared be helped when needed.
What about ice climbing in good weather...but the weather changes on you?
Bish said:Shit happens...all the time.
Bish said:I canoe-camp when i can. The last time, MrsBish and I did 5 days in Algonquin park. Canoe/portage from one camp-site to another taking everything on our backs. It was beautiful and i enjoyed it immensely, but the water-table was low that season, and we ended up having to climb over a beaver dam, and on several occasions, had to leave the river and portage around blockages and low-water through 'unprepared' trails using map/compass alone to get to the next passable river.
I could easily have punctured my leg on a sharp branch whilst going over that damn dam, or twisted an ankle while portaging (limited vision, eh)...and that would've meant MrsBish going back alone to get help. *The reverse was also true*
MrsBish did twist her ankle lightly on our last day in...we kept on with me doing double-load. We have, in the past, been caught up in storms that weren't supposed to come..including one which turned us back because of high waves on the lake and a good risk of capsizing.
Now - I would've been charged for a rescue...and paid it gladly. It's part of my budget under 'shit happens'. The 'shit happens' money goes towards a nice dinner somewhere after the trip is over to help celebrate the trip AND avoiding the shit.
Life's dangerous.
Not quite the same as ice climbing in bad weather, but, yes, you should assume any risk when engaging in risky activities. This is niether a slam on you, nor on your hiking skills, but why should the local community shell out $6,000 per hour to rescue you if you get into a bad spot? What makes you, personally, worth $6,000 per hour to society in general?
BTW....
1. Bears generally do not attack humans unless the human is interfering with the bear, or the cubs. There are exceptions, but those are rare.
2. An experienced hiker doe not generally fall. Something about checking your footing before you proceed, or watching where you're going come to mind.
3. If you know you must ford a stream, and most hikers plan their routes, rather than wandering aimlessly through the woods, shouldn't swimming be a part of your survival skill-set?
I do believe you are being a bit oversensitive, but...knowing the risks involved, would you climb Mt Hood in the middle of winter as those folks did?
As a side note...PETA is upset with those folks because they risked the life of the dog
I guess for the same reason they shell out like money to rescue anyone else.
For the record, I have long held that should the need arise, I would gladly reimburse the cost of my rescue. It's morally right.
SnP said:3. I don't hike trails that call for precarious stream fords. Because I know I can't swim. Should I learn? Probably. You do everything you know you should do? Didn't think so.
SnP said:I hike in the winter. I don't mountain climb. Big difference.
SnP said:PETA can blow me.
Yoohoo. Never said bad weather. I said middle of winter. Mt Hood has ice near the summit all year round.
Which is why you should prepare for the worst or stay out of the activity. Most folks do just that. Others just go for the 'thrill'.
No doubt. But the alternative is worse...
you said:Not quite the same as ice climbing in bad weather, but, yes, you should assume any risk when engaging in risky activities.
The differnce between a nature walk thru the local woods & climbing a mountain in mid-winter is immense.
You don't have to give up on the thrill because you go prepared...and you can't prepare for everything. No plan, no matter how well laid out, survives first contact with the enemy (in this case, Mother nature).
You seriously can't pack for everything....you can pack trying to keep 80-90% of the baddies at bay, but everything?
Bish said:I don't carry a fire extinguisher (just in case there's a forest fire). I don't have a snake-bite kit (no poisonous snakes around - even with global warming )
etc etc...
If you want protection vs. everything nature has/can throw at you...stay home.