For anyone who spends time in the backcountry, understanding not only what sorts of dangers you can run into out there but also exactly what those risks can do to you is part of being a smart, well informed outdoor traveler. The author breaks down the perils that can befall hikers, hunters, and other outdoor enthusiasts. There are animal encounters, weather events (lightning strikes), parasites (giardia), biting insects (bees/wasps), winter hazards (avalanches), natural disasters (forest fires), hypothermia, dehydration, disorientation, and much, much more to worry about. Although these risks are generally well known, what's less understood by many adventurers is what exactly happens to you when, say, you become malnourished in the backcountry. What does it feel like? How does the condition progress? How long do you generally have before the body shuts down? What helps or hurts when you're fighting for survival? Find the answers to these questions and many more by taking an inside look at more than two dozen outdoor hazards. Each one will include a narrative section that dramatizes the experience of a certain situation based on real-world events. From there, information from expert sources--medical doctors, first responders, wildlife experts, and others--will fill in the details around exactly how each scenario plays out on the ground, followed by suggestions on how to avoid or survive each risk factor, making this book is a vital resource for outdoor travelers. -- Publisher description.