Food Primitive Style

The 7th of November we went of to the forests of Kaupanger for a five day trip focusing on general and primitive survival in the nature. No watches, cellphones or gas stoves allowed, only pure fire to boil water, cook food and get heat in the evening after sunset. Instead of a tent we got a tarp as shelter. This was going to be a new experience.

Group prepping dinner around the fire at second camp.

Methods of Making Food in the Wild

You don't always need your gas stove, there is lots of good food that can be made in the wild using these two methods and just a regular fire.


"Sjusteinsovn"
It is a stove constructed by seven rocks making it possible to fry pizza, bread, buns and a lot more, only the imagination can stop you. However, the most important of the rocks, the one to fry on, has to be flat and around 4 centimetres. It can not be to thin, but it is hard to make enough heat when it is to thick. Ideally the other six rocks has to be flat, only thicker and the construction has to be airtight to keep a hot frying room (Mytting & Bischoff, 2008). By experience the rock wall at the back tends to burst up when the heat gets to intense. Sprinkle some flour before frying the buns and other bakeries to reduce chances of sticking and burning onto the rock.

Got the fire heating those rocks up

"Kokegrop"
Is another way of making good food in the wild just by digging a hole, toss in some rocks and warm it up with a fire. The hole has to be large enough to fit the meal and filled with rounded rocks so it does not poke holes through the foil. After covering up the bottom and the walls with rocks, light up a big fire in the hole to heat it all up. When the fire is burnt down and the stones are hot, dig out the embers and lay the foil coated dinner onto the hot rocks, a pillow case could also be used. After doing that, carefully place the rest of the rocks over it, pour on the soil and cover it up with the peat (Mytting & Bischoff, 2008). The cooking time depends on the heat, but last time we used 2 hours and 30 minutes on a 2.5 kilograms lamb thigh.

Enjoy!



References:
Mytting, I. & Bischoff A. (2008). Friluftsliv, 2. utgave. Gyldendal, Oslo. P. 96-97

Before, marinating the thigh with garlic feds, butter and thyme

After, everyone are hungry and ready to feast.

Guide's trip

On the way up to Austerdal glacier. Photo: Mathilde Andersson

The past few days from the 12th to the 14th Eirik and Sara third years, Mathilde and I second years and five first year students drove up to Veitastrond for a short glacier trip. We were walking on Austerdal glacier with the view of the beautiful Odin, Thor and Loke glacier when I figured out I wanted to write a post about snow.


Formation and Growth of Snow Crystals in the Atmosphere
The atmospheric clouds compounded of supersaturated water vapor droplets, are the mother of all snow crystals. Droplets are formed by water building up on small particles of salt, dust or soil in the air called condensation nuclei. The droplet will grow when the air is supersaturated and water vapor condensate on the surface. Snow can be formed by tiny ice crystals when the air temperature is below zero degrees however, small water droplets will persist in a supercooled state. Freezing ice crystals are only formed when foreign particles are being crystallized. The freezing nuclei are less common compared to the condensation nuclei. Their special structure promote freezing individually by the temperature gradient and they increase in numbers when the temperature decreases. Droplets will freeze without assistant from the freezing nuclei at minus 40 degrees (Clung & Schaerer, 2006;43).

Crystallographic axes of a snow crystal
(Wergin & Rango, 2002).

The ice crystals will fall when they gain enough weight. On the way down they will become larger by colliding with other supercooled droplets that would freeze onto them, this process is called riming. When the branches on the crystal are entirely filled in by an extended riming process, it becomes a rounded crystal called graupel. Hail is formed by graupel alternating in a freeze and thaw cycle (Clung & Schaerer, 2006;45).

Basically the growth of a snow crystal occurs in two directions, the a-axis that form plate like crystals and the c-axis that form needle like crystals. On vapor growing crystals there will always be six sides due to the basal plane of the crystal. The temperature is the most important of all the complicated variables that form the crystals both on the way down and on the earth after the snowfall. The growth direction switches from a-axes to c-axes when the temperature changes. The crystals that have fallen through cold air are generally smaller than those falling through warm air due to its ability to hold more moister (Clung & Schaerer, 2006;46).


The Perfect Flake
Snowflakes form in warm and moist air with calm to light wind speed. When the cloud cover is high, the fall time for the snow crystal is long and the temperatures are a few degrees below zero with relatively dry air, we got the perfect powder light snow skiers are looking for (Clung & Schaerer, 2006;47, Landrø, 2007;35).


References:

Mc Clung, D & Schaerer, P.(2006). The Avalanche Handbook 3rd Edition, The Mountaineers Book, USA.

Landrø, M.(2007). Skredfare - En håndbok om skred for fjellskiløpere, klatrere og løssnøkjørere, Fri flyt, Oslo.

Wergin, P. W; Rango A; Foster, J; Erbe, F. E; Pooley, C.(2002).Retrieved from: http://modis-snow-ice.gsfc.nasa.gov/uploads/pap_R_irreg02.pdf, 21.10.2011.

Glacier Course

After last weeks glacier course from the 18th to the 23rd of september at Jostedalen, I grew interest in the high frequency climate changes that have been occurring in the quaternary period of our time scale. At about 5.000 years ago the climate started cooling down and developed new glaciers after a warm period. The maximum of the "little ice age" was year 1750, since that time they have generally been withdrawing. There are several theories however none are quite sure why these phenomenon appears (Haslene, 2008 & Nesje, 1995). Three of them are described briefly in the text bellow.

The Three Theories

Sunspots

The solar radiation increase with a growing number of sunspots. The climatic effect is barley measurable in a 11 year cycle, but there have been three  periods with notably low activity during the last 1000 years; 1280-1350, 1416-1534 and 1654-1714 which is the high of the last ice age(Nesje, 1995).

The Tufte Glacier, Jostedalen

Volcanic Eruptions

Explosive eruptions can cover the stratosphere with silica particles and gases that absorbs the shortwave radiation. The stratospheric winds diverge the particles over the entire planet and they can last to at least 2 years. This can lower the yearly temperature by 1 degree.  There have been several incident like the year with no summer in 1816 related to the Mt.Tambora eruption(Rampino & Self, 1982).

Greenhouse Gasses

50% of the suns radiation absorbs in the atmosphere, while the rest break through and heats up the earth. The average temperature is around 15 degrees and will alternate if the balance of the gases in the atmosphere changes. Analysis 160.000 years back of the Arctic shows the temperature variations corresponding to the carbon and methane gases in the atmosphere(Karl, Knight & Plummer, 1995 & Nesje, 1995).

New Ice Age

I am not a scientist, and there are a lot of different theories. However, looking at the oncoming eruptions from Iceland and our ever increasing needs for more fossil fuels and waste on the earth and in the atmosphere I am not sure if there is an future ice age approaching, but everything seams to lead that way.

References:

Nesje, A.(1995). Brelære. Høyskoleforlaget, Kristiansand.

Haslene, S.(2008). Breboka - Håndbok i brevandring. DNT fjellsport, Oslo.

Rampino, M. R. & Self, S.(1982). Retrieved from:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0033589482900655(20.00, 30.09.11)

Karl, T. R, Knight, R. W. & Plummer, N.(1995). Retrieved from: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v377/n6546/abs/377217a0.html(16.28, 26.09.11)

7 day Backpacking Trip

Nyastøla, Grindsdalen. Photo: Tale Ivarhus

The Alpine Zones in Norway

We were tossed into a 7-day backpacking trip in the area above Leikanger and Sogndal the 5th of September. Pre trip we had to present our goals, frames and leadership for the trip, route plan and hazard management. My personal goals were recognizing plants, learning their names and fun-facts about them for future clients entertainment.  

Low alpine zone

It starts where the forest ends and lasts until the common Bilberry vanishes which usually extends to 400meters of elevation. The elevations of the zones differ from south to north of Norway due to the climate (Kristoffersen, 2007;16). Shrubs dominate the zone, but three interesting plants that can be found here are:

Common Polypody

Recognized by it's thick, stiff and light green leafs, which does not grow all the way down its trunk. You can find them on rocks, cracks, and old trees. In the spring the root tastes like liquorice, but late summer it's more like bitter. Back in the days they used Polypody as candy, it is 500 times sweeter then sugar, and if you heat milk and add the root, you got a tea that can cure a cold (Compendium, 2011).

Common Plantain

Recognized by it's oval leafs from 5-20cm long and 5-10cm wide. Native Americans called it "the white man's footprint" because it appeared wherever the white man went. It is also known as "soldiers herb" for its use in the battlefields as field dressing. If you squeeze the juice of the plant on an open wound it's supposed to have a healing effect, it also calms insect bites (Møller & Christensen;214).

Common Tormentil

Recognized by the yellow flowers on a tight grassy system of stems low on the ground. They can be found in Asia and northern Europe on meadows, sandy soil, dunes and clearings. The dried root prepared as a lotion works to stop bleedings and diarrhea (Kristoffersen, 2007;90). 

Mid alpine zone

This zone starts where the Bilberry vanishes. It is harder to differentiate where it ends and the high alpine proceeds, but the high alpine is dominated by snow, ice, boulder fields where the plants grow in isolated areas. There are a lot of plants from the low alpine zone except the ones that need the snow to melt early in the spring (Kristoffersen, 2007;18). Two interesting plants that could be found in the mid alpine zone are:

Dwarf Willow

Recognized by the small mouse ear looking leafs. They grow in clusters with a tight root system in the northern hemisphere including Europe, Greenland and the northern America. The Dwarf Willow can grow very old and is claimed to be smallest tree in the world. In the Alps it is found as high as 3300 meters above sea level (Kristoffersen, 2007;32). 

Bristly Clubmoss

Recognized by the long arms with stiff, pointy leafs and a long oval bud on the top. It can be found on nutrition-poor soil and moors in the entire northern hemisphere. It is found up to 1600 meters in Norway. If you dry and shake them in your hand, the seeds will crackle if thrown on a fire. In the old days they were used to clean the pots after cooking (Kristoffersen, 2007;21)

High alpine zone

Starts where the plants grow apart in individual clusters, not as one field. Common terrain is ice, rocks and boulder fields. The high alpine zone alternate as the mid alpine zone does throughout Norway. It starts at 1600 meters in southern Trondelag and drop as low as 800 meters in Finnmark up north (Kristoffersen, 2007;19). Two fascinating plants that can be found here are:

Glacier Buttercup

Recognized by the short trunk and often many flowers. It has five to six petals, which first are white and then later red and violet. The Glacier Buttercup can only be found in large amounts up in the mountains, hence the flower that symbolize the Nordic mountains strongest. The petals curve after the sunrays and it can take seven seasons before it flowers. It can be found nearby glaciers, saturated gravel and it has the European height record of the flowers with 4275 meters on Finsteraarhorn in the Alps (Kristoffersen, 2007;56).

Snow Buttercup

Shortly described as a yellow Glacier Buttercup. It likes chalk rich soil and can light up areas around the snow where there are lots together.  The plant prepare for flowering the autumn for the following spring and flower three days after melting. It grows at lower elevation compared to the Glacier Buttercup and are a typical northern hemisphere and Arctic plant (Kristoffersen, 2007;58).

References:

Kristoffersen, T. (2007). Det Blomstrende Fjellet. Vigmostad & Bjørke, Bergen.

Møller, K. B. & Christensen, K. I. (2011). Flora - Faktum Refereanse. Cappelen Damm, Oslo.

Compendium from Larsen, M. (2011).

Common Polypody. Photo:Private

Common Plantain. Photo: Tale Ivarhus

Common Tormentil. Photo: Tale Ivarhus

Dwarf Willow. Photo: Tale Ivarhus

Canoe Excursion

Carrying canoes down at Amla Bay. Photo:Private

The 23rd to the 25th of August we went out on a canoe excursion from Amla bay close to Kaupanger and out to Holm and the nearby area. We had a short brief on first aid and rescue before jumping in to the 16 degree ocean trying it out. I am going to introduce a tool to an organized response to any situation. This will help you find and describe the problems occurring and what to do with them. To remain order in a difficult and chaotic situation the system is based on a problem list and a plan. The tool consists of three important steps which are; gathering information, creating a problem list, and planning treatment and evacuation. The information can be organized in a format abbreviated as SOAP, Subjective, Objective, Assessment and Plan.

The Three Steps of the Patient Assessment System

Scene Size-Up

Keeps you alive and functioning while stabilizing the scene. Take a moment to identify hazards to yourself, partner, others and patient. As next step stabilize the scene by moving the danger or the patient from the danger. Evaluate the mechanism of injury and determine the number of injured peoples or at risk and rescuers (Isaac & Johnson, 2008;13-14).

Initial Assessment at Holm. Photo: Knut Myking

Initial Assessment

Quick-check the status of the Circulatory, Respiratory and Nervous systems. Stabilize in the order of most critical problem first. Look for sufficient respiration and clear airways. Check pulse and determine if it is fast, slow or normal. Execute a quick exam for severe bleeding while doing this keep the patients spine stable and assess the level of consciousness (Isaac & Johnson, 2008;14).

Focused History and Physical Exam

Complete then treat. First step is to perform a physical exam from where it makes sense to start and complete a head to toe check list. Then complete a survey with vital signs and a detailed physical exam to discover abnormalities as tenderness, discolouration, swelling and deformity. Vital signs are important to observe a decay or improvement in health. An complete list of vital signs include pulse. Reading for 15 seconds times 4 works well, write down rate and regular/irregular rhythm. Watch respiratory rate and speed; slow, normal or fast. If a blood pressure cuff is available, measure the systolic and diastolic pressure. Temperature of body core is most accurate in rectum, but oral temperatures is more convenient and readings are usually 1 degree lower. In field cool or warm is. Reduced skin perfusion may indicate compensation for loss of blood volume. Warm, dry and pink is normal. Cool and pale could be an injury or a response to cold weather. Dark skinned patients can be measured in palms and soles. Consciousness and mental status is a measure of brain function. We measure mental status by the words abbreviated to AVPU, Awake/alert, Verbal, Pain and Unresponsive. All vital signs should be measured at regular intervals to observe change (Isaac & Johnson, 2008;14-17).

SAMPLE History

The SAMPLE history can be gathered before or after, but not during the Physical exam to get correct information (Isaac & Johnson, 2008;17). SAMPLE is another shortening of words which are:

Symptoms: onset and progression, what makes it better or worse

Allergies: to medications, food, environmental allergens. Note type and severity of previous reactions

Medications: prescription, over-the-counter, homeopathic

Pertinent History: previous similar symptoms or problems, contributing factors

Last ins and outs: food, fluides:time and quantity, urine and bowel, normal or abnormal

Events: leading up to the accident or illness, consider mixed mechanisms

Creating the Problem List SOAP

CPR at Holm. Photo: Knut Myking

Subjective is the story, description of the scene, the mechanism of injury, symptoms patient is complaining about and relevant SAMPLE history.

Objective is the exam findings, what you see, hear, smell and feel during the examination and vital signs of the patient.
Assessment is the list of both objective and subjective problems, also anticipated(A') problems.

Plan is the treatment of existing problems, monitoring the anticipated problems and evaluate if a evacuation is necessary. When radioing for assistance the information needed is location, situation and scene, plan and assistance needed, patient and the problem list (Isaac & Johnson, 2008;17-20).

The SOAP format helps to paint the whole picture in the situation and keep you on track of whats need to be done right now and other problems which have to be dealt with in the near future. These rules need to be crammed and used in scenarios to make them stick when the shit hits the fan in a real situation. I like this approach because it gives you control of the entire situation, helps you solve the problems fronted step by step and it feels harder to miss problems that can be fatal later with this system. Radioing information about the situation to get an evacuation is easy using this approach too since the complete situation is written down in front of you.

References:

Isaac J.E & Johnson D.E. (2008). Wilderness and Rescue Medicine - A Practical Guide For the Basic and Advanced Practitioner. WMA, Scarborough USA.