Hiking provides millions of people with tremendous pleasure and a sense of adventure each year and 99% of the time it is anything but hazardous. But, people do get lost and have accidents every now and a again and it can become a very hazardous activity very fast if you are not prepared.

Below are just 4 basic safety tips to make sure that your hiking trips don’t get you into trouble.

Safety Tip No1 – Think about taking a friend or partner along with you.

There’s really no need to worry about heading out alone if you are taking a short hike in a local area on easy terrain, however, if you are hiking through heavily wooded wilderness areas with winding trails and steep canyons then the likelihood of getting lost or sustaining injury becomes very real and you ought to consider carefully whether or not it is to head out on your own.

Having a friend along can have many advantages, particularly if that individual is an experienced hiker. After all, ‘two heads are always better than one’ and if you do become lost or get into difficulty you’re far less likely to panic if you have someone with you to help to solve the problem.

Safety Tip No 2 – Let someone know where you’re going.

If you are a novice hiker then you ought to certainly stick to well marked and well traveled routes and should not start to stray from these routes to explore until you have some experience and have learned map reading skills and know how to read a compass. But, it won’t be too long before you are ready to try some more adventurous hiking and the possibility of getting lost or injured will arise.

For this reason, you should always tell somebody where you’re going and when you plan to return so that they can send out a search party if you do not return as expected.

Safety Tip No 3 – Take some basic equipment along.

It’s essential that you have a basic survival kit with you and the local hiking club will be able to give you advice on the sort of items which this should include, as well as providing you with advice on basic emergency first aid steps. Here we’re looking at things like matches and a lighter, a good knife, a first aid kit and a flashlight with fresh batteries.

It’s also a good idea to have a map and compass along together with a fully charged cell phone.

Safety Tip No 4 – Take some basic provisions along.

Water or other fluids such as sports drinks are clearly essential as you can lose fluid very fast even over an hour or two on a hot day. You should remember though that water is bulky, so take along sufficient but not too much. Don’t forget though that you ought not to drink from local streams as natural water sources may look inviting but they are often high in bacteria and might make you very sick very quickly.

Also take sufficient food to last you. It is no fun to be hungry out on the trail but do not forget that you can last a good deal longer without food than you can without water.