SEQUIM — The most important thing to remember on your next outing, even if it’s just a day hike: Everything can change. In a flash.
So teaches Rich Johnson, a wilderness survival expert and former Army Special Forces soldier who lives in Sequim.
Rich and his wife, Becky, now share a comfortable home — a long way from the cave in southern Utah where they camped for a year.
This was 1975, and they had two children then: Sharlene, who was 3, and Eric, a 1-year-old in diapers.
During that year, the couple learned how to adapt and adjust to the twists and turns of time in the wilderness — and have since accumulated a set of simple tips for safe immersion.
In a recent interview the Johnsons, who are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary this summer, shared some insights about their differences.
Living in a cave
The couple had just bought their first house when Rich broached the idea of leaving it and going to live in a cave.
He wanted to hone his wilderness skills in the field and then open a survival school.
At the time, Rich was selling real estate, and “he was miserable,” Becky remembered.
When her husband first spoke of the cave plan, “I ran down the hall into the bedroom and slammed the door.”
This was not part of Becky’s vision of their lifelong hike together. But as Rich said, things can morph when you least expect them to.
It took Becky about six months to reach the point when she said to him: “‘You know, I know this is something you really want to do. And I support you in it.'”
So away they went, to live in the cave, then in a wikiup, a primitive shelter.
Writing about outdoors
Rich’s plans changed again after that year, and he became a journalist, writing for magazines including Outdoor Life and Camping Life, and publishing Rich Johnson’s Guide to Wilderness Survival.
He and his wife collaborated on another book, with Rich writing the text and Becky shooting the photographs for Rich Johnson’s Guide to Trailer Boat Sailing.
They also had two more children, Ryan and Shane; the couple now have 10 grandchildren.
And this being 2010, Rich writes a blog, titled “Getting Out Alive,” at http://tinyurl.com/2fx2rnl.
When it comes to summertime hiking on the Olympic Peninsula — or anywhere — the Johnsons begin at the beginning: what to pack.
What to pack
Choose tools that multitask, Becky advises.
A Swiss Army knife, hand sanitizer that doubles as firestarter, all-purpose soap, pocket-size rain ponchos, a tiny water filtration straw, compact bivouac sacks to keep you warm — in bright colors to flag down rescuers — are lightweight items you shouldn’t leave without. A signal whistle, extra water and trail mix should also go into your pack.
Rich writes in his book about the “day hike mentality,” in which hikers try a new trail, just for a morning jaunt.
“You think it’s going to be good weather. You think you’re going to go out on a ‘little’ hike,” but much can go awry.
On his blog, Rich tells true stories of people who got into trouble due to any number of unexpected events: a fall, heat exhaustion, even bear attacks.
Tell them where you’ll be
The most important piece of preparation, he said, is letting friends or relatives know where you’re going and when you plan to be back. “Leave a flight plan,” he said. “That gives your rescuers a starting point.”
If you do get lost, rather than turn it into an endurance test, find a safe spot to stay in and use brightly colored fabric, a signal whistle and a signal mirror — or just a compact mirror — to get rescuers’ attention.
But you can avoid losing your way in the first place, Becky added, if you mark your trail with a stack of rocks or strategically placed branches.
“Turn and look back as you hike,” Rich added.
When it comes to the inner compass, however, the spouses diverge.
“I have absolutely no sense of direction,” Becky said.
“Fundamentally, we think differently,” Rich said. “I think north, south, east and west. She thinks right and left . . . we’ve had this discussion over and over again, and she’s gotten much better.”
“‘Better’ is relative,” Becky said, smiling.
In it together
Nonetheless, it’s obvious Becky, 61, and Rich, 62, still love going into the wild together.
“She is the most important thing in my life,” Rich said.
“If we’re not in it together, we’re not in it.”
He added that they kept separate journals when they lived in the cave; he didn’t read hers until later.
“It’s amazing how on any given day,” Rich said, “what she wrote was totally different from what I wrote about. She sacrificed so much more, worried so much more about the kids.
“That really touched my heart.”
The differing perspectives, Becky said, “give everything balance.”
She added that she’s grateful to live on the North Olympic Peninsula and can enjoy its natural splendor without having to travel far.
Becky hopes, too, that others aren’t deterred by her and Rich’s cautionary words. “Take some very basic things. Having something is better than having nothing,” she said. “I don’t want people to be so overwhelmed that they do nothing.”
“It’s not ‘if’ you’ll need this stuff,” Becky said.
“It’s ‘when,'” said Rich.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3550 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.