I like the idea - or rather: The philosophy behind the idea, but I abstain.




Highly relevant, and a point well taken.

My reason for abstaining:
I mostly hike with people I know fairly well - essentially my friends and family. I won't exclude that some might have issues they haven't chosen to share with me, but I've got a fairly good overview.


Your two-part routine seems most suited for situations where you hike with someone you hardly know at all - at least don't know in a wilderness setting. It does make sense to get to know them better AND give them a rudimentary breakdown of your preparedness attitude. They might be on the same boat (great!) or not (in which case you've might pushed them in the right direction without being overly pushy - you're showing them YOUR gear, not being messianic about THEIR gear or lack thereof, right?)

While I think your reasons for your routines are sound and a good example I abstain mostly because I don't think it is nescesserary (at least in my situation). I don't think the benefit outweights the slight cumbersome routine of going through the pack. Except for the contact info/medical issues part - that is a very good idea.