Random backpacking tips - "Everyone gets a key"

One of the most important things pertaining to outdoor fun taught to me by my late friend John Stoddard was a simple maxim (he was good at generating those):

"Everyone gets a key."

He had a bowl full of duplicate keys for his truck at his house, and if you went out to do something in the wilds with him you got a key out of the bowl, and returned it when you were done. Why? So if the person whose vehicle was transportation for the trip falls off a cliff, the remaining person/people have a way to get out to civilization and get help or at least a body recovery team.

For this upcoming trip Mike gets four keys:

• Key to the truck
• Key to the camper shell
• Key to the padlock securing the gear box inside the shell
• Key to the cable lock securing the gear box inside the shell to the bed of the pickup

He only needs the truck key to go get help, but he needs all four if I am a dolt and lose mine. And thus is the trip not ruined.

It just makes good sense.

Always remember:

"Everyone gets a key."