You're solo and you die or something major

[Vagabond_Keith]

For you solo people out there....

What do you have in place in case something majorly goes wrong while you are on the road? That is the single biggest worry I have.

I'm going to have a envelope with my emergency numbers and stuff in it so people will know what to do.

You are out hiking. You leave a note in the van telling where and when you went. You fall down a small cliff and break your leg. Do you have a flare with you? Whistle?

Shoot me what you do for preparing for that and other things.

Thanks!! K

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Personal Locator Beacon

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Personal-Locator-Beacon

 

[Thirsty Boots Nomad]

Ditto

 

[John61CT]

When it's time, it's time.

 

[Blanch]

I always send the gps coordinates of my camp to my oldest son. So someone always knows where my camp is. Other than that, I don't do anything.


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[lenny flank]

I'm sure after a few days everyone nearby will know I'm in there..........

 

[John61CT]

And if no one's nearby wildlife will make the necessary arrangements.

I've always loved the Parsi and Tibetan tradition of putting their loved ones' bodies out on the cliffs and letting the vultures pick the bones clean.

 

[MrNoodly]

I'm weird. I'm 65, divorced, childless and not very close to my siblings or their families. I have a handful of friends. No one depends upon me. When I die (which I hope is when I'm out living a life I love) there's no one that particularly needs to know I'm gone—except to keep them from wondering whatever happened or from wasting time and resources trying to find me. I don't care one bit what happens to my body after I die. Leave me to rot in the van out in the boonies. Let the wild animals eat me. Whatever. I don't want anyone making the funeral business richer.

I'm weird because I think longevity is overrated. If I were to die as I'm typing this, my last thoughts might be, "Eh, now's as good a time to go as any." I wouldn't be pissed off my life wasn't longer. In fact I might be glad I didn't spend years in slow, painful decline. So if something were to happen to me that would kill me unless I received immediate medical care, I might think, "Eh, now's as good a time to go as any." In fact, if I were in extreme pain, and I could reach my pistol, I'd probably expedite things.

I'd be content dying at any time because I'm enjoying my current life. Part of enjoying my life is not wasting any time worrying about the end of it. Having something like a locator beacon would mean spending part of my remaining life worrying about death. Is the beacon on? Is it working? Are its batteries charged? When should I take it with me? Always? Everywhere? I don't want to do that.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

When it's time, it's time.

If I fall and break a leg in the middle of nowhere, it's only time if I have no way to call for help.

 

[ArmorAbby]

I have an app called Life360. I invited my mother and two sisters to follow me. It works with a map system with little red lines where Ive been or am. Its free and pretty much is just a tracking system, keeps my routes up to 30 days, and has a paid option foru parents to monitor things like texting while driving. If for some reason I havent moved in a while, my sister will do a push notification to my phone asking me to check in. Ill check in to that location and all is well. There is a sort of panic button there too but I never ventured there because my phone sends texts to designated contacts with my location as a panic if I hit my power button three times.
other than that... I dont have anything.. so if my battery dies or I lose my phone.. well... dunno how the authorities would notify next of kin if my addresd is still an old address that I had before Vandwelling and no family lives there now...

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[ArmorAbby]

Screen shot with addresses removed. Theres other options I dont pay for... that can be seen here.. I use the free option. I can invite any of my contacts to view my whereabouts.

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[Spaceman Spiff]

What do you have in place in case something majorly goes wrong while you are on the road?

+2 on personal emergency beacon.  I have the inReach SE.  I send a text (via inReach) to a number of people giving a Google map of my location and a message that I am OK every night and I talk via cell phone every day I have signal (most of the time) to a housebound friend and sometimes with family.

I have ICE numbers with my cell phone, I keep laminated cards with my emergency info on it in all my packs and wallet.

The inReach is almost always on me when I am away from my camper in the boonies; it is only off me at night or when driving (its charging).  I do not leave messages in my vehicle about my plans unless required by authorities as this will tell thieves how long they have before I return.

When hiking I also carry a small boat horn which can direct rescuers to my location.

My biggest worry is what happens to my pup if I croak way back in the boondocks.  With my routine it shouldn't be more than 48 hours before my family starts talking to SAR.  But you must be very rigorous about checking in EVERY night for this to work.

 -- Spiff

 

[Almost There]

I have ICE on my phone.

When I'm travelling I send a LocSMS message to both my sons from my cell phone each night of where I'm spending the night along with a short note of where I'm headed the next day or if I'm staying at that spot.

Out in the bush I always carry an emergency kit and have recently added both an air horn and a bear banger kit that includes flares.

Unless the area is well known to me I carry compass and hand held GPS and am diligent about making sure that I 'mark where I park'. That alone has kept me out of trouble once where a friend tried to tell me we were going in the wrong direction to get back to the  truck!

 

[highdesertranger]

what is ICE when I do a search I get Immigration and Customs Enforcement? highdesertranger

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

In Case of Emergency

 -- Spiff

 

[TrainChaser]

The most important thing is to be careful, esp when you’re alone. Don’t stand on the edges of cliffs. Don’t walk the beach during bad storms. Don’t take photos of lightning strikes while standing under an awning. Don't annoy animals. If you can’t recognize danger when you see it, this is not the life for you.

Put your emergency contact numbers in your phone – it will be the first place the emergency responders will look. If you keep in contact with your friends or family, call one of them (not the family idiot) and let them know where you are and where you’re going – if you fail to call them that you’re back in camp, tell them to call the local law enforcement. Tell them to Write It Down.

If you’re into rock or ice climbing or other dangerous endeavors, don’t do it alone. Depending on dumb luck is like poking Karma with a pointy stick. A lot of bodies have never been found… by humans, anyway. Wear or carry some ID in metal form. Bears, wolves, cougars and coyotes don’t like metal chains because they get stuck in their teeth.

If you’re not carrying a cell phone and an emergency whistle (and know what a distress signal is), you shouldn’t be wandering out of camp.

Distress signals: a) 3 distinct blasts on a whistle or from a gun or from a car horn, followed by one minute of silence; repeat. b) 3 fires in a triangle about 50-75 feet apart (fire at night, smoky fire during the day) or 3 fires in a line if you don’t have room for a triangle; if you’re off a path, try to build 3 piles of rocks in the path with an arrow made of stones pointing to your location. c) Carry a signal mirror and learn how to use it. d) Carry a decent first aid kit and emergency kit.

If you are lost, STOP MOVING! STOP MOVING! STOP MOVING! If you think you know the way back, don’t try to take a shortcut. Go back the way you came. Also carry a roll of bright surveyor's tape with you to mark your way (collect it going back).

 

[MrNoodly]

a) 3 distinct blasts on a whistle or from a gun or from a car horn, followed by one minute of silence; repeat.  

This reminds me of the old joke about hunter who got lost in the forest. But he remembered that firing three shots was a distress signal. So he did and he waited. Then he fired three more shot and waited. Then fired three more shot and waited. He started to worry because it was getting dark and he only had two arrows left.

 

[Lotsahorses]

I and others have written about SPOT.  Do a search using that term.    Can reach others even when cell service is unavailable.    Sends your GPS position roughly every 15 minutes and has two buttons for help.  One that says help needed like a mechanical breakdown and the other for SOS situations.  It's what I use even on car trips for letting others know where I am  and always use it on motorcycle trips and camping.  I think it would bring you and others concerned about you relief.  Cheers.

 

[Kathleen]

And if no one's nearby wildlife will make the necessary arrangements.

I've always loved the Parsi and Tibetan tradition of putting their loved ones' bodies out on the cliffs and letting the vultures pick the bones clean.

I wish someone would put me on a platform in a tree, wrapped in a Pendleton, with a few of my most cherished objects, feathers and stones.

 

[Kathleen]

Distress signals:  a) 3 distinct blasts on a whistle or from a gun or from a car horn, followed by one minute of silence; repeat.  b) 3 fires in a triangle about 50-75 feet apart (fire at night, smoky fire during the day) or 3 fires in a line if you don’t have room for a triangle; if you’re off a path, try to build 3 piles of rocks in the path with an arrow made of stones pointing to your location. c) Carry a signal mirror and learn how to use it.   d) Carry a decent first aid kit and emergency kit.

All good info. I learned one more thing: If you do get lost and SAR is out looking for you it's safest if you carry 2 signal mirrors. A rescue plane flying to the north will not be able to see your mirror because from that direction it will not reflect sunlight. Take two. Use one to reflect sunlight back on to the other one, first one will flash to the north.

I always try to remember survival tricks when I learn them.