Low-down on hi-vis
QIs it better to wear brighter colours for safety in the hills? Tracy Nobel, Dumfries Graham says
There is little doubt, if you need rescuing, that a brightly coloured jacket will be much more visible than a dark one to anyone searching for you. In addition, jackets, overtrousers and rucksacks with reflective tape or piping splashed across them show up at night, really shining out when a headtorch catches them, or even just under moonlight.
It’s also easier to keep track of mates when walking in a group if everyone has some reflective patches on their gear; a brightly coloured jacket is much harder to lose than a darker one.
In an emergency it’s essential to have something bright to help others find you and a bright jacket with reflective piping would make this easier. However, when it comes to being easily found in an emergency it’s more important to have left a route card with someone responsible. You should also carry a mobile phone with spare battery power, a map (even if you have GPS receiver – as the batteries could fail and you can then still give a grid reference of your location), a headtorch with spare battery power, a whistle to call for help and a bright orange survival bag to provide shelter and stand out on the hillside. If you add a highly visible jacket – preferably with some reflective material – to this lot it may help you to be found even faster.