Family Gets Lost Cutting Christmas Tree in Buffalo Creek

Just think of the Christmas memories.


Remember when we got lost,,,

I have always found it beneficial to pay attention to where you are going and where you came from, when walking in the woods. Grady’s hint for not getting lost: every once in a while turn around and look at where you just walked, even well marked trails look different going in the opposite direction.

Come on Grady, using common sense. What kinda advice is that.

On top of that... know which direction you are going, and where you came from... there are these weird devices called compasses.... might be worth the investment for some!

On top of that... location of the sun relative to time of day... general ground slope (not the hills but up and down, etc,.)... I'm going up on the 10th to cut a tree in the same area, have been since I was little enough that I dont' remember it, but I have the pictures to prove I was there and with the family as we cut down the tree.

There are some pretty basic things you can do to know where you are and where you came from... don't discount them!

But you have to learn how to read and use a compass, why bother when you have a cell phone, and some guy in a bear suit will come find you when you call in. :bash :bash

Bring a dog too. They know which way back to the truck.

Photo-fish wrote: Bring a dog too. They know which way back to the truck.

Years ago I took a little mutt we had on an overnight hiking/fishing trip. He wasn’t even a very outdoor dog. In the morning making my way back to my truck, it didn’t take very long before I realized he was following our exact path we had taken the day before.

Grady wrote: I have always found it beneficial to pay attention to where you are going and where you came from, when walking in the woods. Grady’s hint for not getting lost: every once in a while turn around and look at where you just walked, even well marked trails look different going in the opposite direction.

Pretty good advice for life too!

As pointed out by others, would it be out of fashion to bring along a topographic map and and a decent compass? If you know where the sun is in the sky at specific times of the day, dead reckoning is pretty easy. Buffalo Creek is not a massive span of land, a few minutes of walking in almost any direction would have landed these folks on a road or a trail. Then there's the travel downhill and follow water idea, you don't need to know much to figure out that if you follow that strategy you'll eventually find a bridge, road, houses, and more. I guess that would mean you'd need to know how to use those tools and accumulate some knowledge for it to be useful...

Most of the younger folks I encounter on the trails insist that their hand held GPS units are the best tool for the job. I say GPS is all well and good provided you can see enough of the sky, you batteries last, and you don't drop the unit or have a fall that results in blunt trauma to you and/or the GPS. Then there's water, so far my personal experience is that water and electronics are not best buddies.

I guess the prevailing attitude is that it is easier to dial 911 than walk a few miles and figure it out on your own.