Skip to Content

The Top Three Killers in the Wilderness

SHTFPreparedness may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page.

The backcountry is a beautiful place to play. From seeking out that great camping spot to enjoying the feeling of disconnect from our modern world, the backcountry is unique.

The backcountry is a beautiful place to play. From seeking out that great camping spot to enjoying the feeling of disconnect from our modern world, the backcountry is unique.

Its a difference kind of camping experience. When you commit to a night in the backcountry you are taking on some burdens for the return of rarely touched beauty that is far off the beaten path.

Of course, when you get that far out into the backcountry there are risks. You are further from help than you might have ever been. Its something that your mind will not be able to shake. Thoughts of bears or wolves might haunt you a bit.

The reality of death in the wilderness is that its hardly as exciting. No. We are much more prone to making mistakes or facing death because of our own doing and not at the gnashing teeth of animals. Here are the top three killers in the backcountry.

Falls

Owe it to many things from bad shoes to poor understanding of ones surroundings but, people fall to their death in the wild. Its the number one killer in the wild. Either falling from a height or dying instantly or falling and getting injured in such a way that you cannot get out or away from the elements.

Drowning

If you have spent your life wading moving water, you wont understand how a person can be swept downstream by a river or swept off their feet even in a small creek. If you hit your head on the way down, well drowning is almost inevitable. Its a serious thing to consider and is the second most common way people die in the back country.

Heart Attack

Sometimes we push the machine a little too far and suffer the consequences. Sometimes people suffer a heart attack in the backcountry from the hiking and swimming or whatever else they get into. While the wilderness is terrifying its often something like a heart attack that takes out most people.

The backcountry is a beautiful place to play. From seeking out that great camping spot to enjoying the feeling of disconnect from our modern world, the backcountry is unique.