When trekking through tropical jungles, to prevent bites from mosquitoes, leeches, venomous snakes, and other hazards, it is recommended to wear long-sleeved shirts and pants, as well as high-top hiking boots from KingCamp. Tuck your pants into your socks, secure your cuffs, and wear gloves.
I have personally organized eight different route treks into the pristine forests of Shennongjia, Hubei, for seven consecutive years. Even after tucking my pants into my high-top boots, wearing long socks over them, adding gaiters on top, and layering on liquor with an alcohol content above 48 degrees along with salt powder and essential oils like Wind Oil to repel leeches, I still couldn’t fully prevent those “kisses” from leeches. Here’s a little tip for everyone: if you’re bitten by a leech, it’s best to burn it off with a cigarette lighter until it lets go, then apply cigarette ash or salt powder directly to the wound. This will stop the bleeding without causing inflammation or leaving scars. Using adhesive bandages on the wound can easily lead to infection. This is hard-earned experience from years of jungle trekking.
Jungle movement is risky due to the cold, damp environment, slippery terrain, and higher presence of leeches, venomous snakes, insects, and thorny plants, which significantly increases the chance of injury. When entering forested areas, to avoid unexpected encounters with large animals, make noise periodically while moving to alert wildlife and prevent accidents. Additionally, pay attention to the following points:
1. Choose to walk on main forest trails or paths. Before entering, determine your bearing and identify the next relatively tall tree or landmark as a target, advancing section by section. The lead team can use a small red or brightly colored flag to guide the direction for the rest of the group to avoid getting lost.
2. When walking through dense thickets, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants in advance, along with a round jungle hat and gloves, to avoid or reduce potential injuries from leeches, thorny branches, and other flora and fauna. It is recommended that the person at the front of the group uses a trekking pole to “sweep” the path ahead to startle snakes. Use the correct lacing method for jungle boots to secure your shoes, preventing long laces from snagging on branches and hindering progress.
3. For denser thickets, it’s best to go around them. Avoid using a machete to clear a path unless absolutely necessary — instead, push aside obstructing branches to move quickly through. At the same time, loudly warn teammates behind you to prevent branches from snapping back and hitting them. In dense bamboo or forest areas where visibility near the ground is poor, watch your step carefully to avoid tripping over tree stumps or vines, falling into hidden pits, twisting your ankle, and promptly and clearly warn those behind you.
4. Try to proceed in a “single-file line.” In many regions, local villagers have the custom of setting animal traps while hunting in the mountains and forests. A single-file formation greatly reduces the risk of such accidents. When encountering a fork in the trail, it is advisable to leave someone behind to wait for the rear group. In heavy fog or when the terrain is complex and visibility is poor, assign each person a number and call out numbers as needed to confirm the location and status of every team member.
5. The basic principles for jungle walking are: “If there’s a path, don’t bushwhack over hills; if there’s a road, don’t take a path; if there’s a path, don’t take an animal trail; if there’s an animal trail, don’t blaze a new one; stick to higher ground rather than lower.” Do not enter the forest after dark unless you are extremely familiar with the terrain. Do not enter valleys after dark, as venturing in blindly may trap you on cliffs. If you haven’t reached your intended destination by nightfall and the route is unclear, find shelter nearby and prepare to stay overnight to avoid wasting unnecessary energy.