Red Cross Blogs

Map, compass…first aid skills

By Alix Miller
September 15, 2009 at 5:27 pm

I was reminded of my near total ignorance of first aid (yes, I know I work at the Red Cross – my own first aid course is booked) last weekend.

Of course I’m not alone in not having a clue how to help someone who is having a heart attack or choking, for instance.  Our own recent survey, picked up by the BBC last week, reveals only one in 13 people in the UK feel confident about carrying out first aid. However, when accidents do happen this invaluable skill can make all the difference between life and death, and help you tackle those less life-threatening mishaps.

So back to my weekend. I went walking in Snowdonia with my Mum. I don’t normally spend this much time with my Mum by the way. She has popped up in all my recent posts but I promise my next one won’t feature her.

However,  fundraising events such as the 3 Peaks Challenge by Rail, which we are doing this weekend, offer a great family bonding opportunity as well as chance to rev up your fitness and explore Britain.

We were in Wales for a spot of pre-challenge training. It was beautiful warm, sunny weather and we climbed Snowdon on day one in good time. On day two, we decided to tackle the tricky ‘Castle of the Winds’ walk in the Conwy valley. Here you must earn your stunning views across to Snowdon from the dizzy heights of the Glyders; the walk includes a steep, strenuous climb across a rocky wilderness.

We set off in sunshine and made good progress. We passed a lake and climbed through a picturesque mountain pass. Further along we saw Bristly Ridge ahead, one of the steepest ascents in the region.

We wondered how to tackle the climb up to the ridge’s fearsome buttresses. There weren’t any visible marked paths so we picked our way carefully up through loose, shattered rocks in a random direction. It was precarious and steep. If one of us had fallen it could easily have started an avalanche, and with quite a sheer drop below, certain injury..or worse.

However, we pressed on ahead and then realised when we reached the base of the buttress that we were in for a steep scramble and climb (rather than walk) to get to the top of it.  We put away our walking poles and edged up the rocks, which luckily had natural foot and handholds. At one point we had to pull ourselves up over an overhang and I was proud to see my Mum (pictured), aged 63, tackle this with her customary zeal.

When we emerged close to the top of the ridge, we were buzzing with the adrenaline and excitement of the climb. Then, all of a sudden, the weather closed in. It had gone from clear skies to a white-out in the matter of  minutes. Suddenly we were alone close to the top of a precarious narrow ridge, with the temperature plummeting.

“I think we should head down”, I suggested, trying not to betray my nerves. My Mum agreed, and luckily, from where we were, we could drop over the other side of where we had climbed. Neither of us fancied climbing back down the buttress.

We set off and then realised we could only see 100 metres ahead and had no idea where we were supposed to be heading. Worse still there was no path and, as we quickly realised, we were on a very steep slope consisting mainly of dangerous loose shards of rock – lethal and impossible to get a foothold on.

It took us more than an hour of very careful slipping and sliding to descend just a few metres so perilous was the terrain.  Every time we stopped we would find ourselves still in heavy cloud. It was then I started wondering what would happen if one of us lost our footing and got hurt. Although well-equipped with warm clothes, water and waterproofs, we hadn’t thought to pack that most essential of items – the humble first aid kit.

I think we were both having visions of having to sleep out on the mountain. Luckily though, through sheer guesswork we eventually got down to a place where the cloud had lifted, unscathed, and found our path.

I then promptly got sucked into a bog up to the knees…but that’s another story! Suffice to say, the first thing to go in my rucksack for our challenge this weekend is, you got it, a first aid kit.

---

Comments (8) »

---

Tags: events, First aid, fundraising

The Red Cross values comments both complimentary and critical. However, we will not tolerate the following: aggressive or personal criticism of the blogger, breach of copyright, obscene, defamatory, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive or likewise objectionable comments.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 15th, 2009 at 5:27 pm and is filed under First aid, Fundraising and events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

---