Lost!

Getting lost in the wilderness is bad news - what started off as a rolled ankle could quickly turn into a horror story if you’re miles (or hours from help). That’s one of the reasons we started this page, to teach self-reliance in the outdoors, to arm you with the knowledge and skills to prevent accidents from happening in the first place, and to help yourself get out of trouble if one does happen. If, despite your best efforts, you do need to rely on our amazing volunteer Search and Rescue teams, here are a few tips to help you (and them).

BEFORE YOU GO:

* Leave your plans with someone responsible. How many in the group? Your objectives? How long will you be gone? Decide a time to call 911 if you haven’t made contact with your responsible person.

* Make sure your cell phone is fully charged and carry a charger and cable with you in a Ziploc bag.

* Know where you’re going and carry a map. Learn how to identify your location. Mentally check-off landmarks as you pass them.

* Make sure you are fit and healthy enough for your plans. Be humble. You can always work on your fitness and do it in a month or two instead.

* Photograph your boot print and email or text it to your responsible person. This can be forwarded to 911 if anything happens.

* Always carry a whistle (SOL or Acme are the best). You’ll soon lose your voice shouting, but a whistle can be heard miles away.

* Always carry some form of shelter, such as a survival bag. These also double as a reflective signal.

* Always carry more water than you think you’ll need. Confusion and bad decision making come with dehydration.

* Download and practice using Gaia GPS. It’s free and honestly amazing. You can plot your routes into your phone, hit “Record” on the day and it will show you exactly where you are on your route.

ON THE TRAIL:

* Be observant on the trail. If you can’t give your exact location as a map reference, be as descriptive as you can of the terrain, flowers, water features etc. How long were you hiking? A normal healthy person on flat terrain covers a mile in about 20 minutes. Add on a few minutes if you were going uphill, carrying a heavy load, injured etc. Telling 911 how long you were walking on the trail can help a lot.

GETTING HELP:

* Tell the 911 dispatcher what you’re wearing.

* Leave sign. Top sign is things that look out of place around head height: surveyor’s tape tied around a low-hanging branch. Bottom sign is stuff on the ground: your boot print, or an arrow of small rocks pointing to your location just off the trail.

* Bang a pebble on the bottom of your mess tin or water bottle in a rhythm. If it looks or sounds out of place, it will help you to be found more easily.

* Be visible. Use a sweater as a flag and wave it on your walking pole. Glow sticks or a flashlight at night can give your position away very quickly. A signal mirror flashing can be seen for miles.

* Remember the 7 S’s of camouflage and use them in your favor: Shape, Shine, Sound, Silhouette, Shade, Smoke, Smell, although we’re in a drought so PLEASE don’t start a fire and burn rubber tires just to get yourself seen…..!

Finally, brace yourself for the long haul. SAR teams are run by volunteers with day jobs and families, and they’re not at the trailhead waiting for you to fall. It will be an hour before the team assembles, several hours before they find you, more time to assess, treat and package you, and then another few hours back down to the trailhead. Anything you can do to make their job easier will help a lot!