Listen up kids! Don’t let your parents tell you there’s nothing educational on television…

Last week 9-year-old Grayson Wynne became separated from his parents on a hike in Northern Utah and spent survived 18 hours alone in the forest. Wynne credits tips he learned from watching Bear Grylls’ Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel with his survival.

The young outdoorsman tore up his yellow rain jacket and tied the pieces to trees as he hiked toward safety, hoping that rescuers could find his path. He also remembered Grylls’ advice to follow a stream down to a larger body of water where there is a greater chance of finding civilization. Ultimately searchers on horseback spotted the child in a meadow where he was rescued. Fortunately he didn’t have to resort to eating bugs or drinking swamp water like Grylls often does

Death Valley National Park photo courtesy NPS/US Department of the Interior

This week an Ohio man was found dead in Death Valley National Park on a day when the high temperature was 112 degrees. Authorities say the man may have been lost and it’s unclear if he had water with him but it’s a cautionary tale about knowing your limits at the beginning of the outdoor season. Whether you’re hiking, camping, mountain biking, canoeing, or all of the above this weekend, just remember to take it easy so you don’t injure yourself - there’s plenty of summer left to enjoy!

One of the biggest dangers many campers and boaters will face this weekend involves alcohol and it’s always important to know your limits.  If you’re heading out on the lake know your limits and always designate a driver. Even if you and your family aren’t drinking be on the lookout for those who are - it just might save your life!

I’ll be doing some hiking this weekend in Western NC and perhaps a little lake relaxin’ as well. Where are you headed for Memorial Day?

It seems like there have been a number of stories about lost or stranded hikers in the past month and I suppose as the weather warms up we’ll be seeing even more. Springtime, in particular, can be more dangerous than other times of the year for a few reasons:

• Weather changes quickly in the spring. I find it funny that almost everyone, no matter where they live, thinks their area has the craziest weather in the country. Yep, in the springtime you may have a hot day followed by a cool one or a sunny day followed by thunderstorms or even snow showers. That’s spring - the weather is changing.
• For many of us who skip camping and hiking trips in the cold winter months our outdoor skills tend to be dulled a little while after living indoors. The same goes for physical stamina as well - spring may not be the best time to attempt that summit you couldn’t quite reach at the end of last summer due to exhaustion. Get a few moderate hikes under your belt before you attempt the tough stuff this year.
• Trails and campgrounds may still be wet even if it hasn’t rained in days. Snow melt and general spring sogginess can happen well into June so be prepared.

That last tip is particularly applicable to the group of friends who found themselves stranded in a flooded Beegam Gorge near Platina, CA. After the guys realized they were stuck they did all the right things and a helicopter found them just one day after they failed to return from their trip.

My favorite part of the story comes at the end when the helicopter pilot offers the group a choice: be airlifted to safety but leave their dog behind OR take a GPS to help them navigate out of the gorge themselves. The dog’s owner decides they’ll take their chances with the GPS (bravo!) but in the end they are able to give the dog a sedative so he too can take the helicopter ride out.

Now that’s a happy ending

Two Appalachian Trail news items of interest this week:

Mike Caetano of Pensacola, FL is hoping to become the oldest person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail and he’s already on his way into the record books. The 86-year-old man started his hike this spring and hopes to complete the journey in November. Caetano is planning a “flip-flop” hike where he’ll skip some southern sections of the trail this summer and will return to them in the fall to complete the hike. This is not Caetano’s first time on the trail as he’s “section-hiked” the entire Appalachian trail in the past. The current record holder, 81-year-old Lee Barry, completed his thru-hike in 2004. We’ll try to keep you posted on Caetano’s progress as we hear more…

A legally blind hiker was rescued after becoming lost on the Appalachian Trail last week where he spent 6 days alone in Amherst County, VA. Ken Knight became separated from his group while hiking on the trail and it took rescuers three days of searching to locate the man (he wasn’t reported missing until three days after he disappeared). After lighting a signal fire that turned into a 2-acre brush fire, Knight was found by rescuers mostly unharmed.

Knight says he’ll consider hiking with a satellite beacon or a cell phone next time but points out that the most important things hikers should bring along are survival skills. Technology can fail he says and survival skills may be the only thing that keep you alive until help arrives. Amen to that.

As an engineering student I was always taught that failure is much more instructive than success and I think the same is true in the outdoors. When a hiker gets lost that’s really a navigation failure and it’s a great time to reflect on outdoor knowledge and awareness. I wrote about my experience being lost and how it taught me about my own stubborness but also confirmed some things I learned as a Boy Scout like following a stream to safety.

Anyway, this week a teenager in New Hampshire got lost while hiking alone on Mt. Washington. The teen did a lot of things right (he is, after all, an Eagle Scout) but he also made some critical mistakes we can all learn from.

1. Never hike alone. This is probably the biggest lesson this teen learned but I’m still not sure he gets it (after his rescue he said “I would never hike alone again in snow conditions“). I suggest not hiking alone in any conditions because you never know what might happen (weather, injuries, etc.).
2. Head down to safety. After a couple days on the mountain the teenager decided to hike up the mountain to get help but the rescuers were looking for him at lower elevations. Following water downstream is a good strategy as is getting out of cold/windy conditions at higher elevations.
3. Don’t take shortcuts. This is where I got into trouble during my own “lost experience” and it’s a pretty easy trap to fall into. Stay on the trail because it makes it easier for rescuers to find you plus the conditions on the trail are generally better than off trail.

In the end we’re glad the teen made it back safely - hopefully his story can teach us a few lessons about staying safe on the trail.

A harmless (?) snake at Buffalo Creek trail in Colorado.

The Capistrano Dispatch says San Juan Capistrano officials have alerted the public to recent rattlesnake sightings on area hiking trails and the article I read offers some tips for what to do if you encounter a snake on the trail. The best tip of all is also the simplest: if you see a snake on the trail, LEAVE IT ALONE. Seems simple enough…

The article also mentions it’s a good idea to carry a walking stick but doesn’t mention what the stick is for. I recommend NOT using the stick to poke the snake - this usually makes them more upset and more likely to strike.

I’ve encountered snakes many times hiking and mountain biking and I can tell you it’s always a startling experience but usually that’s about it. On a backpacking trip on the Appalachian Trail my dad and I encountered a rattlesnake sunning right in the middle of the trail. We tossed rocks at the snake to get it to move (bad idea, I know) and obviously this upset the snake because it started rattling viciously. Clearly the snake wasn’t going to move so we took a wide berth off trail and around the snake and were on our way.

On a hike at West Monument Creek Trail in Colorado Springs my wife and I encountered a rattlesnake sunning on the pavement outside the Tesla power plant. It was easy enough for us to walk around the snake except this time we had our dog Jackson with us and he didn’t know what to make of the rattling, slithering thing. I yelled as loud as I could to get him away from the snake (he was off leash) and eventually Jackson got the picture. Good thing too - we were at least a mile or two from the car and I didn’t feel like carrying our 95 pound dog.

Yep, dealing with snakes on a hike is just part of the outdoor experience - leave them alone and they’ll do the same to you.

A hiking and biking trail skirts the cliff edge at Palmer Park in Colorado Springs, CO.

On Sunday a group of 5 children accidentally fell 75 feet while hiking the Rachael Carson Trail in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Some of the children remained in the hospital on Tuesday while undergoing treatment for their injuries.

According to officials the cliff where the children fell is located at least 15 feet away from the main trail and it appears the kids slipped on some leaves while getting too close to the edge. Asked whether it would be a good idea to install a fence at the bluff one official said “I don’t think we are going to put a fence up. There is a lot of liability connected with that, and it would spoil the view.”

View from the Broad Mountain Loop near Jim Thorpe, PA.

Hiking can certainly be dangerous at times and we’ve profiled some of the world’s most dangerous hiking trails here on the blog in the past. It’s not unusual for hiking trails to approach cliff edges and steep drops - that is, after all, where the best views are usually found. As a hiker it’s important to make sure your footing is steady as you approach vistas like the ones pictured above. Sometimes I like to use the “3-points of contact” approach, making sure that I have at least 3 parts of my body in contact with the ground as I move across a ledge. Sure, sometimes that means getting down on all fours but you can never be too careful!

Last week I read a story on a forum thread about a guy who had his backpack stolen while camping out on the trail one night. Apparently the pack wasn’t *technically* stolen - it was just traded. When the unsuspecting camper awoke in the morning his backpack containing all his food and cooking gear was gone, replaced with a worn and broken backpack containing just a poncho and a can of Dinty Moore stew. Nice. The camper turned the trip into an ultralight / survival mission and fortunately made it out ok after a few more days on the trail.

Most of us (myself included) give little thought to what we do with our backpacks when we camp on the trail but this story got me thinking. It’s always a good idea to place backpacks containing food off the ground to make it tougher for critters to get at your stuff and if rain is in the forecast I usually try to fit my pack inside the tent with me. But what if the real threat to your stuff isn’t animal or precipitation but rather other hikers?

I suppose we could all start carrying bike locks with us on the trail to lock our packs to trees but if you’ve ever used a bike lock you know those suckers are heavy. Even then, most of us use internal frame packs with few solid surfaces to lock to - nylon straps are pretty easy to cut after all.

Fortunately in the case of the ripped-off backpacker the thief didn’t get away with two big ticket camping items - his sleeping bag and tent. Perhaps the best way to keep your backpack safe is to empty it out and use it as a pillow inside your tent

A woman missing in the Pisgah National Forest since Sunday walked out of the forest safely on her own after about 24 hours in the wild. The UNC-Asheville student had been hiking alone Sunday afternoon and when she didn’t return that evening her roommate alerted authorities who mounted a seach and rescue effort. In so many of these cases we hear about the things hikers do wrong when they get lost in the woods but it turns out Lindsey Pfundstein actually made the right choices:

• She left a note with a roommate saying where she went and when she’d return. Lindsey ended up changing her plans a bit but rescuers were still able to find her vehicle quickly and were searching in the general area where she was lost.
• Lindsey brought along water and food. Many hikers skip the water and food, especially if they’re only planning on a short trek but in an emergency this can be a lifesaver.
• At night Lindsey found shelter and stopped moving around. Nighttime can be disorienting and oftentimes lost hikers will become even more lost trying to navigate at night. Lindsey also found an Adirondack (3-sided) shelter and covered herself with leaves to stay warm. Bear Grylls would have been proud
• She didn’t panic - at least that’s the feeling I got from reading the article. When Lindsey walked out of the woods she spoke with a reporter who asked, “Are you searching?” she replied “No, I I think I’m the one they’re looking for.” Such a calm response is pretty amazing considering what she went through. A positive mental attitude is probably the most important thing to bring to the outdoors.

We’re glad this story had such a happy ending. Hopefully others will take this as a lesson on hiking safety and what to do when lost outdoors…