This is from Australia...always let somebody know where you are going and when you expect to be back

[scootr]

It was a safer world when we were young. I hitch-hiked at night from NY to CT alone. Today that would net you a memorial.
Maybe it was because we had nothing of real value on us. Today every kid has $1k phone and $200 sneakers on em - lol

 

[dougtrr2]

When I retired in 2019 I started bicycling on the Wabash trace (a lot, over 4,000 miles this year) Since I leave early, I write a note with my departure time, distance planned, and what I am wearing. I just got my first iPhone and we thought the "find my phone" feature would work. Turns out that the cell coverage on the trail is pretty spotty, but it was an improvement over just the note.

I downloaded a free app called STRAVA. It has a feature where you can send a safety text to up to three people. Then they can track your location very accurately in real time. I don't know the official resolution, but based on the progress that shows on my phone, I think it is less than 10 feet. The app is kind of like facebook for jocks. You can post, follow, etc... You can also subscribe and get a lot of analytical information on activity. I don't subscribe and have mine locked down. It gives my wife and I both a little peace of mind.

I do realize that if the worst were to happen, say a cardiac event, by the time she would realize something is up, it is all over.

The only downside is, she can tell when I sidetrack 30 feet to the ice cream shop on my rides.

Doug in SW IA

 

[MossRoad]

Gotta have that ice cream.

 

[Jframe]

The Wall St. Journal today has a story about how the current version of the IPhone 14 brings with it a satellite texting function for emergencies. Unlike the Garmin and other devices people carry in the woods where I live the IPhone carries no monthly fee for having that satellite capability. It is only a device for emergencies however so far as that function.

 

[not2old]

I once rode a dirt bike 40 miles through the desert in Baja, alone at night. I'm still amazed at how easily I got separated from the other guys. You don't know whether to go back, stay where you are until they catch up, or keep going forward. This stays in my mind when I'm out on my snowmobile as I will only ride with guys that make a point of staying together. I also carry an Inreach.

 

[Jstpssng]

I once took my snowsled about 40 miles to my sister’s camp, including about 12 miles down the lake. The first 10 miles or so was fresh snow, and hadn’t been broken out all winter. I GPSed the spot where I got onto the lake, and headed to camp.

They tried to get me to spend the night but her boyfriend was a d-head and I could only handle him in small doses. I headed down the lake at about 10:30 at night and quickly realized that it wasn’t a straight shot to where I had entered it. I finally got back to my truck, loaded up… and my ignition switch was frozen. I messed with it for a while, heating the key with my lighter before unloading the sled and running it about 10 miles down plowed roads to get home. I have driven around a million miles in all sorts of weather yet that was the only time that I’ve experienced a frozen lock. The next day I walked back to the truck and it started right up. Yet that made me realize how foolish I’d been.

 

[ovrszd]

Great story of a tragic event. That man is a man. No sissy boy there. Wife and I watched the movie. Very well done.

The extraordinary story behind Danny Boyle's 127 Hours

Danny Boyle's new film, 127 Hours, tells how climber Aron Ralston found himself trapped alone in a canyon and had to perform DIY surgery to save his life. Patrick Barkham talks to him

www.theguardian.com

 

[newbury]

Talk about hitch hiking! Just after I got out of College I hitched from Vermont to Ny, Ny, then to LA, up to Santa Cruz, then back to Vermont. No security.
What a long strange trip it's been.

 

[Jstpssng]

Talk about hitch hiking! Just after I got out of College I hitched from Vermont to Ny, Ny, then to LA, up to Santa Cruz, then back to Vermont. No security.
What a long strange trip it's been.

You probably could do the same today, but would get a lot fewer rides.

 

[scaredychicken]

I'm of the view that ... it could happen to me

i have a physical disability, and my balance / falling is always an issue. I tend to be cautious with almost anything re physical work, especially if i am on my own. i have a cell phone in my pocket. I walk around the property with a shovel, so that I can pick myself up when i fall. I can do basic snowplowing, general chores, with the tractor when i am on my own. I manage, but i do plan a bit.