On my recent overnight trip I was in a rush to cut firewood at dusk. As I was tossing firewood toward the bivouac site I caught the lanyard of my Bacho Laplander saw on a twig and the saw flipped away from me. I thought this was no big deal as I did not want to drop the armload of wood I was carrying and would recover the saw when I returned from stacking the firewood.

I knew exactly where I has been standing in the dry marsh but on my return I could not find the saw anywhere? This was a real problem because I needed that saw to process enough firewood for the night, especially for the larger diameter pieces that would burn for a long time.

I own two Laplander saws, an orange one like this but unfortunately I had brought my green/black one like this.

After about 5 minutes of frustrated searching I found the saw in the long grass at my feet, right where I had dropped it.

My father was involved in prospecting/claim staking in Northern Ontario and he spray painted all of his outdoor tools orange. This way he could find them in the bush and it identified them as his. Once when he was sleeping his joking partners found the can of paint and coloured a lot more of his equipment (boots, gloves, hat, sleeping bag ...) for him!

Most emergency servives equipment is a bright colour for good reason, but after a while I get tired of looking at glaring, fluorescent outdoor equipment/clothing and prefer a more natural tone.

I do wear lots of blaze orange during hunting season and agree that bright coloured clothing is easier to spot on a person who is lost or for keeping track of young children.

So what is your preference; bright or subdued colours for outdoor equipment and clothing?

Good question. Sometimes I take more of a "stealth" approach to overnights, so I keep most of my apparel and equipment in subdued colors. But I keep my camping tools bright so that I can find them more easily in the dark or if dropped.

BRIGHT Orange!!!!!!!

The brighter the better.

Sorry fellow nature-loving campers, but I even like orange tents and tarps - though mine are not so.

My outdoor equipment always has some type of high visibility marking on it whether it is the items coloration, an added reflective strip with day glo trim (which I prefer) or a glow strip.

From there the item can go into a pouch or pocket, which is a little more subdued. My packs and pouches are either camo or black, but the pack has the previously mentioned reflective strips with day glo trim on easily removed velcro straps. I do this just in case I don't want to be so visible.

I also carry orange marking tape in case I need to up my visibility... Or mark a trail...

2.75mm Sterling Glow Cord (http://www.ems.com/1/1/3477-sterling-2-75mm-glow-cord.html) make for fantastic lanyards that will glow when hit by a light.
I use it on my lanyarded items (knives, compass, survival kit, etc.) on tent fly ropes and as clothes line when camping.

I was using up my G.I. bill getting a AA in agriculture.
I got a job working in the citrus orchard. As a joke, I
painted some OD shirts and pants with orange circles when President Reagan came to speak. 2 Secret Service Agents walked in demanding everybody clear out. First my supervisor, who looked like the travelocity elf made them wait while he gathered all the geese and ducks into their safety pen ( this egyptian goose hen bit one agent.)I'm standing against a orange tree for the entire show and then walked out into the open, really upsetting the agents.

Orange is also a bad idea when our California poppies bloom en mass.

Besides those situations, I like bright colours.

I have marked all my outside use tools with reflective tape. There are several different brands of tape that are routinely available at the big box stores; Scotchlite and Reflexite, just to name a couple. The tape in addition to bright colored paint greatly increases visibility, especially if you have a moderate to high powered flashlight. Hint: if you know any graphics shop employees, they might give you their scraps, FREE. Thats where I get 99.5% of mine. YMMV.

On a camping trip a friend of mine found out why you should never buy a camouflage wallet. Sitting down he took it out and laid it down. It was within three feet of him but he couldn't find it.

Buying a camouflage wallet was stupid but the next thing he did was no smarter. He started to dig through the leaf litter and duff. I come back and he is on his hands and knees rooting around.

I placed a marker where he thought he was sitting, giving us a reference point, and as the sun set we set about slowly and gently searching. We spent the next 90 minutes on hands and knees covering the ground inch by inch. We found the wallet. It was about two feet from the estimated start point.

I realize camping and survival often has military or paramilitary overtones and lots of guys carry fantasies of sneaking around in the woods. But there are things that you don't want to lose. Anything smaller than your head needs to be a color and pattern that makes it visible.

Backpacks, tents, coats and rainwear can be a subdued color. These are typically large enough that they don't disappear in plain sight and there is no need to create visual pollution.

If you need to handle tools and small parts it often pays to spread out a drop cloth. I sometimes work in areas with what we call 'sugar sand'. It is very soft sand that flows easily. Any tools laid down tend to sink in and have sand drift over them. I have lost a fair number of tools this way.

IMHO flashlights, lighters, wallets and pocket knives should be a bright color if you intend to use them in the field without laying out a ground cloth or other working surface.

Good advice Art,

You reminded me of another "lost" adventure.

About 18 years ago I bought a Remington Model 7 rifle in .308, I changed the walnut stock over to a black Bell and Carlson Synthetic Stock.

One rainy dark day my partner and I were hunting deer about 2 miles in the bush. At lunch I set down my unloaded rifle, made a fire, toasted my sandwiches, boiled the tea pail, told some stories ... then spent we 15 minutes looking for my rifle!

It turned out to be a lot closer to where I was sitting than what I thought and I had missed it the first time I quickly checked the area.

An old guy I used to work with told me that people spend a large portion of there lives "looking for something", and I can believe this because I search for stuff all the time. I keep a running list of things I cannot find (currently my L.L. Bean boots, Altoid PSK, brass Silva Pin-on Compass, light axe head, trolling minnow bucket ...).

The same guy used the saying, "Look Once, Look Well", that way when you were done checking one spot you did not doubt youself and go back to check the same place again.

Yup, live and learn.

Mike

glow in the dark and reflective lanyards on everything and reflective tape on stuff that won't allow me to put a lanyard on. It's not the first i had to search for mine stuff...