Reddit reviews Fieldbook: The BSA's Manual of Advanced Skills for Outdoor Travel, Adventure, and Caring for the Land

Buy the BSA:Fieldbook. Read the relavent sections. It gives a great overview of the things you should know. Check out /r/CampingandHiking , especially the wiki page where it gives you a wealth of good information and resources. You want to have an idea of how to handle situations that can easily occur out there. A lot of people make basic mistakes and get themselves in trouble, in my area the search and rescue costs have tripled in the last few years, mostly from simple mistakes like not enough water and not knowing how to navigate when if the GPS fails. A little planning and reading ahead will go a LONG way out there. It's not hard to learn and you don't have to get crazy technical and expensive with gear at all, but don't "just go for it," you're more likely to enjoy it and stay safe.

Whoops, it's actually the Fieldbook.