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Usually the advice is to stay where you are. This conserves energy and reduces the search area because most hikers leave for a specific destination known to fri

by donarb 8y ago

Usually the advice is to stay where you are. This conserves energy and reduces the search area because most hikers leave for a specific destination known to friends. If you get lost and try to find your way out, you increase the search space. Build a fire if you can, a smoky fire is better because it can be spotted from far away.

cstejerean 8y ago
That’s usually good advice but that also doesn’t always work. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/may/26/hiker-who-went-missing-on-appalachian-trail-survived-26-days-before-dying https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/us-news/201... She was 30 minutes away from a road and survived for 26 days but decided to stay put and wait for people to find her.
- bradknowles 8y ago
  There are always exceptions to every rule-of-thumb. In this case, sadly.
- ada1981 8y ago
  How sad this is.
- EdwardDiego 8y ago
  Yet according to her diary she'd been wandering for two days prior before deciding to stop. The trick is to stop as soon as you realise you're lost. In the first instance, it gives you time to overcome panic.
- jeremejevs 8y ago
  > Adam now knows that at least three K9 teams came to about 100 yards of the camp. :(
tzs 8y ago
Speaking of search space...I've wondered if it would make sense to establish a virtual grid in wilderness areas, based on GPS coordinates. Then establish a convention that lost hikers should move to one of the intersections on the virtual grid and wait there. An air search for an essentially a randomly placed point (the hiker) in a large area is very hit and miss. It is quite easy for even a trained observer to scan right over someone. It's much easier for an observer to search a fixed location. The searchers could first specifically look at the grid intersections in a given sector of the search before then doing the general area scan, and then perhaps do a second check of the grid intersections before moving on to the next sector. The idea is to have known places that will definitely be looked directly at by an attentive searcher during the search rather than just seen in passing in a sweep, that the lost person can find if they have a GPS (or if they have a map that has these places marked).
- plasticchris 8y ago
  But if they are lost how can they find these points? If they have GPS and know where they are then they can find their way out. This only makes sense if you know you will be in trouble shortly but are not yet, I.e. you are very low on water, but most people don't realize how deep they are, then panic.
- jschwartzi 8y ago
  Before you set out on a trip it's best practice to read the map for the area and identify some natural or man-made features that bound the area you're going in. Then if you're lost you can use your compass to navigate to one off these "hand rails" and from there you know that you're somewhere on that line.
sandworm101 8y ago
>> Build a fire if you can, a smoky fire is better because it can be spotted from far away. Car tires burn very well. Lots of black smoke. And there are parts enough in any car to start a fire (wires+battery etc).

by donarb 8y ago

cstejerean 8y ago

That’s usually good advice but that also doesn’t always work. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/may/26/hiker-who-went-missing-on-appalachian-trail-survived-26-days-before-dying https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/us-news/201... She was 30 minutes away from a road and survived for 26 days but decided to stay put and wait for people to find her.

bradknowles 8y ago
There are always exceptions to every rule-of-thumb. In this case, sadly.
ada1981 8y ago
How sad this is.
EdwardDiego 8y ago
Yet according to her diary she'd been wandering for two days prior before deciding to stop. The trick is to stop as soon as you realise you're lost. In the first instance, it gives you time to overcome panic.
jeremejevs 8y ago
> Adam now knows that at least three K9 teams came to about 100 yards of the camp. :(

tzs 8y ago

Speaking of search space...I've wondered if it would make sense to establish a virtual grid in wilderness areas, based on GPS coordinates. Then establish a convention that lost hikers should move to one of the intersections on the virtual grid and wait there. An air search for an essentially a randomly placed point (the hiker) in a large area is very hit and miss. It is quite easy for even a trained observer to scan right over someone. It's much easier for an observer to search a fixed location. The searchers could first specifically look at the grid intersections in a given sector of the search before then doing the general area scan, and then perhaps do a second check of the grid intersections before moving on to the next sector. The idea is to have known places that will definitely be looked directly at by an attentive searcher during the search rather than just seen in passing in a sweep, that the lost person can find if they have a GPS (or if they have a map that has these places marked).

plasticchris 8y ago
But if they are lost how can they find these points? If they have GPS and know where they are then they can find their way out. This only makes sense if you know you will be in trouble shortly but are not yet, I.e. you are very low on water, but most people don't realize how deep they are, then panic.
jschwartzi 8y ago
Before you set out on a trip it's best practice to read the map for the area and identify some natural or man-made features that bound the area you're going in. Then if you're lost you can use your compass to navigate to one off these "hand rails" and from there you know that you're somewhere on that line.

sandworm101 8y ago

>> Build a fire if you can, a smoky fire is better because it can be spotted from far away. Car tires burn very well. Lots of black smoke. And there are parts enough in any car to start a fire (wires+battery etc).