Mountain rescuers give tips for hiking tours: beginners and families should pay attention to this

Mountain hiking is a wonderful way to experience nature and at the same time become physically active. Climbing a mountain or even climbing a summit can be an unforgettable experience. But it also harbors dangers. A lack of equipment, surrounding weather or underestimated height differences can quickly make the adventure danger. Michael Renner is head of operations at the Ramsau mountain rescue service near Berchtesgaden. From April 14th at 8:15 p.m., he and his colleagues can be seen on BR television in the new documentary series “In the highest need”. The four episodes are already available in the ARD media library.

In an interview with the news agency Spot on News, Renner gives valuable tips for aspiring mountain hikers. He explains what is important in the equipment, where it is best to find out about the weather and what you should consider when hiking with children.

Michael Renner: For every beginning it is of course advisable to get information beforehand. Alpine clubs and mountain schools are certainly good points of contact here. There are also mountain hikers – the preliminary stage of a mountain guide. With that you could do the first bigger tour, maybe a hut tour for a weekend in the mountains. But that can also be a person from the personal circle of friends who are affin and a little more experienced. At the beginning it does not have to be an adult mountain. A hill is often enough where you are traveling a little longer and get a feeling for hiking in the mountains.

Renner: Regardless of whether you go into the mountains, it doesn’t hurt to deal with first aid from time to time. Otherwise, the most important thing is that you know yourself and your skills. Of course, this will be better with the experience you collect. You should rather start small and slowly work on larger goals. The better you can assess yourself, the easier it is to project your own skills onto planned tours. With courses it depends on the direction in which you develop. As soon as it goes towards glacier, I would definitely recommend a course at the Alpine Club or in a mountain school. Basically, I can recommend looking at the offer there.

Renner: Of course, group dynamics play a role. But in terms of security, the more, the better. In any case, I would recommend not to do a tour in the mountains alone. At least one should be in pairs. In the event that something actually happens. Then a second person can provide first aid or go somewhere with two intact feet where you have cell phone network to make an emergency call.

Renner: What many actually underestimate when it comes to mountaineering is the height difference. After a few hundred meters of altitude, you are simply no longer at the usual height, where you stay all year round, but much higher. It gets cold much faster. The weather is completely different, turns much faster and stronger than you are used to. That is why it is important to always have something warm with you, even in summer. So a warm sweater or a rain jacket, depending on what is predicted in the weather forecast. Hats and gloves are definitely important. Depending on where you are and how high you rise, this can also be an issue in midsummer. If you approach the 3,000 meters, it is a must.

Renner: The motto is: “Too little is bad and too much is bad.” We always have to deal with people who simply have no chance of ever arriving where they would like to arrive because they would like to arrive because they just get too much. Despite the weight of the backpack, you still have to feel comfortable and be able to move well.

Renner: A little more emotional about the right shoes. Of course, you should have a high shaft so that you don’t bend, and also a reasonably stable sole. It is particularly important that you have a good grip, feel comfortable and don’t blow yourself straight away.

Renner: I like to read the mountain weather at the Alpine Club. This is in text form and with a few pictograms it is explained relatively well what awaits you. In contrast to many weather apps, the mountain weather is not hourly. So that you know, at eleven o’clock it starts to rain or thunderstorms and then you plan to be at your destination half an hour beforehand. In this small section you shouldn’t actually plan a mountain tour. If you don’t get ahead or go wrong, then you are already sitting right in the middle of it.

Renner: I can actually tell from my own experience. For children it doesn’t matter what the mountain or the summit is called. You quickly lose your desire. That is why you should plan more time with children. It may also need a bit of educational creativity and then motivate them to continue. This can be a snack or a little break. There are also very nice hiking trails with gnome paths. But if you are traveling with children, the parents’ ambition just has to be left behind. The path is the goal and at some point you may arrive or not. As I said, the children don’t care.

Renner: This is often more difficult in the mountains because you often have little network. Then only the emergency function on the cell phone goes. Here with us in the Berchtesgadener Land we have it very often. To make matters worse, it is often not the German, but the Austrian network and that one comes out at the Austrian control center. Basically, this does not change the procedure. Everyone should know the famous W questions. Above all, where is important. We very often have the topic that people don’t even know where exactly they are on the road. Then it will be difficult. That’s why it is best for us to simply locate the cell phone. Modern cell phones can automatically transmit the location.

If you have enough network and get through the 112, all questions of the dispatcher must be answered and only to invest when he says that you can hang up. They often keep the people on the line and ask them for targeted inquiries. When the conversation is over, the battery should be saved and no further calls should be made. The line should also remain free so that we can call back – set the case, it not only works the emergency call anyway.