SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/scout-whistle-three

Lost and waiting for help, how should you use a whistle?

Three blasts, a break, then three more.

  1. One long blast every hour
  2. Three blasts, rest, then three again ✔
  3. Ten quick blasts as fast as you can

Why: Three of anything is the universal distress call. A whistle carries farther than your voice and saves energy you'd waste yelling.

Huh, didn't know that: Scout Life notes three shouts also signal distress.

The dad joke
Why do referees make good hikers? They always know when to blow the whistle.
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Sources

  1. National Park Service: Outdoor Emergency Plan https://www.nps.gov/subjects/healthandsafety/upload/NPS-Outdoor-Emergency-Plan-508c.pdf
  2. Scout Life (Scouting America): Lost in the Woods! Now What? https://scoutlife.org/outdoors/1200/trail-tips-lost-in-the-woods/

Test yourself in the game

Outdoors & CampingYou're lost on a hiking trail. What do you do?Outdoors & CampingHow do you flash SOS with a flashlight?Outdoors & CampingOn a clear day, about how far away can a signal mirror flash be seen?

That's stuff everyone should know.