Overcoming water obstacles
libre 18
A hiker will have to overcome water obstacles many times during a hike or walk. Crossing is one of the most treacherous obstacles, requiring not only knowledge, but also some skill.
Overcoming water obstacles - types of crossings
In populated areas water obstacles are overcome by bridges. In other cases, you have to make the crossing by yourself. Depending on the conditions of crossing:
- wading,
- by masonry,
- by rope (so called overhead crossing).
Place for ford
The place for fording is chosen at the widest and shallowest part of the river or where it splits into branches - here, as a rule, the current is weaker. A path or road going into the water and appearing on the other bank can be a sign of a ford.
Depending on the nature of the river and the speed of the current, the crossing is organized either alone with the support on a pole (with the pole resting upstream) or with a "wall". For this purpose participants (3-4 people) stand in a line, put their hands on each other's shoulders and cross the river, holding tightly to the straps of their comrades' backpacks.
Crossing streams and rivers
To cross fast-flowing streams with steep banks by rope you need special preparation and equipment. The rope with an anchor is thrown to the opposite bank, so that the anchor is securely hooked to a tree.
Having stretched the rope, the other end of it is tied with a special knot behind a tree or a stone and start crossing.
Creeks and narrow channels with fast currents and stony bottoms are crossed by masonry, using a handrail made of a stretched rope or a light pole for safety. Rivers are usually crossed by logs. With appropriate insurance it is the fastest and safest way.
To set up such a crossing, one of the tourists, having tied himself with a rope beforehand, crosses the log to the opposite bank of the river. Then the rope is stretched and fixed at chest height above the log. The rest of the hikers cross one by one, holding on to the rope railing. The last of them unties the rope.
If there is no confidence in the safety of this method, you should organize an overhanging crossing over water obstacles, but it is much more complicated and requires a lot of experience and efforts of the whole group.
