Re: Lost In the Woods
A Bic lighter is better than all the damp matches in the world. Works well even after you fell in the creek (swamp in Mark's case, GRIN). For what it is worth: Graywolf's minimal walking in the mountains kit (Assumes you are not more than a day from help--for some strange reason many such lists seem to think you are going to be stuck out in the Amazon Jungle a 100 miles from the nearest help). 1. Common sense. The first thing this will tell you is, if you do not know your way around in the woods, stay on the path. That includes camping in the middle of it if you are stuck out overnight. It is nice if someone looking for you, or maybe just someone who happens by, can just stumble over you. 2. Water bottle. I like the US Army canteen with the steel cup you can cook in. Yes you can go one day without water (unless you are in the desert somewhere), but it is not fun. 3. Bic lighter. If you have to overnight, you will find a fire comforting and it will help anyone looking for you notice your camp. Hum...? It would be good to learn how to build a small fire with damp tinder before you need to do it in a real situation. True woodsmen always use the smallest fire that will get the job done. You can cook a whole meal over a tiny fire maybe 5 inchs in diameter made with sticks no bigger than your little finger. Heat requires a bigger fire. Drying out, a big fire. However, remember that modern backpackers almost never need to build a fire even on a 2 week long trip, but they are properly equipped for it. REMEMBER, I would rather die of exposure than burn down 10,000 acres of forest, so be very careful with any fire you build. 4. Compass. Play with it a bit, read the instructions, so you will know how to use it, when and if. It will help you keep from going around in circles. I just replaced the one I bought in 1977, the fluid had started to leak out. Spend $10 bucks on a Silva Polaris and skip the $2 toys. 5. Pocket knife. Nice to have for many reasons. If you are buying one for this particular use I suggest one of the smaller Swiss Army Knifes. The tiny sissors are the most useful addition. All those other tools on the bigger models just add unwanted weight. I believe mine is called the Climber model. 6. Bandanna. Serves as a bandage, splint holder, sunshade, towel, and has 1000 other uses. 7. Windbreaker jacket. Nice if it is also weatherproof. Hypothermia is the most dangerous threat to someone lost in the mountains. 8. And for us old folks: Daily meds. If you are stuck out overnight, no reason to maybe die because your meds are back home in the medicine cabinet. 9. Foil packed disinfectant handi-wipes, a couple. (Just added this in because they are so nice to have with you. Use as TP, to clean wounds, etc.) Notice the lack of a flashlight. Two reasons: 1. If you need it to navigate by, you are far better off sitting out the night. 2. The batteries will not last long enough to do you much good. That said I have a Maglite Solitare on my key chain anyway. I also always have a couple of Bandaids in my wallet. Nice additions, a snack or two, and a couple of tea bags. (The British SAS Survival Manual says, the first thing to do when you find yourself lost is stop, and brew a cup of tea. I say it beats panicking by a long shot.) Except for the windbreaker, and the water bottle all the above will fit in my pockets. Interestingly enough, for an intended overnight, I only have to add a pack, tarp, sleeping bag, mini-stove, and food. -- Mark Cassino wrote: At 08:27 PM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Very basic survival gear include matches, water and compass. The matches should be waterproof (easy to do - buy a box of wooden strike anywhere matches and paint them with fingernail polish). In a pinch, the green ink in US currency has chlorophyll in it and paper matches will light if you zip the matches across the money just right. (In my survival training course the instructor called it legal tinder...). You can survive a long time if you have water and warmth. My days of having money to burn are long behind me... but fire would be handy. Why not use a zip-lock bag instead of the nail polish? The other thing you should always do when going out in the woods is to tell someone where you're going and when you'll be back. They'll know when you're actually missing and where they should start to look for you. Good point... I should of quizzed my wife to see if she paid any attention when I told her where I was going (probably not...) - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com - -- graywolf http://graywolfphoto.com/graywolf.html
Re: Lost In the Woods (and clarifying what I said)
At 11:16 PM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Mark Cassino wrote: LOL - I hadn't read it that closely... but that would be sorta mystical IMO - Put these tabs on you film rolls and you won't get lost! - MCC Yeah well I always did like Van Morrison ;) annsan But those tabs went under the tongue... :-0 - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
Great story, Mark - Glad you found your way back here :) Hiking at Bryce back in the 80's, we decided to hike into the Peekaboo trail from the more or less flat trail that enters/exits near the town of Tropic.. about an 8 mile round trip. IT was apparent pretty quickly that a lot of the trail markers were going to be hard to find so when they were hard to see one of us would hang back until the other found the next marker. Once we actually got close to the hoodoos and such, it was easy, but the wooded area could be confusing. So I stuck brightly colored signal dots that I carried to mark and number film rolls along the way - dayglow colors. I've never gone hiking without them since. on the return, we removed them as we went. The were especially helpful when it was getting dusky and we were quite tired. I don't think we saw another soul on that trail back then - everone else was descending from the rim and making a more taxing circle back up to the rim. annsan
Re: Lost In the Woods (and clarifying what I said)
Ann Sanfedele wrote: Great story, Mark - Glad you found your way back here :) quoting myself Once we actually got close to the hoodoos and such, it was easy, but the wooded area could be confusing. So I stuck brightly colored signal dots that I carried to mark and number film rolls along the way - dayglow colors. I've never gone hiking without them since. on the return, we removed them as we went. The were especially helpful when it was getting dusky and we were quite tired. annsan answers herself: Sound funny? Yeah, well,I MEANT To write that I stuck the signal dots on TREES or rocks or deadwood Sticking them on the rolls of film didn't help keep us from getting lost one bit! annsan :) just call me Ms. NESMUCK (if you get that reference you are at least my age or older)
Re: Lost In the Woods
At 08:27 PM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Very basic survival gear include matches, water and compass. The matches should be waterproof (easy to do - buy a box of wooden strike anywhere matches and paint them with fingernail polish). In a pinch, the green ink in US currency has chlorophyll in it and paper matches will light if you zip the matches across the money just right. (In my survival training course the instructor called it legal tinder...). You can survive a long time if you have water and warmth. My days of having money to burn are long behind me... but fire would be handy. Why not use a zip-lock bag instead of the nail polish? The other thing you should always do when going out in the woods is to tell someone where you're going and when you'll be back. They'll know when you're actually missing and where they should start to look for you. Good point... I should of quizzed my wife to see if she paid any attention when I told her where I was going (probably not...) - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
At 11:19 AM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Great story, Mark - Glad you found your way back here :) Thanks Ann - imagine, if the cold hadn't killed me, list withdrawal surely would of done me in! Once we actually got close to the hoodoos and such, it was easy, but the wooded area could be confusing. So I stuck brightly colored signal dots that I carried to mark and number film rolls along the way - dayglow colors. I've never gone hiking without them since. I was tempted to started shredding Reala boxes along the path - just to make sure I wasn't doubling back on myself! I don't think we saw another soul on that trail back then - everone else was descending from the rim and making a more taxing circle back up to the rim. I did not see a soul out there - but at one point I heard this distinctive sound that sounded vaguely familiar... Only hours later did I realize it was the Peter Pan Rooster call. That was kinda weird. - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods (and clarifying what I said)
LOL - I hadn't read it that closely... but that would be sorta mystical IMO - Put these tabs on you film rolls and you won't get lost! - MCC At 08:33 PM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Ann Sanfedele wrote: annsan answers herself: Sound funny? Yeah, well,I MEANT To write that I stuck the signal dots on TREES or rocks or deadwood Sticking them on the rolls of film didn't help keep us from getting lost one bit! annsan :) just call me Ms. NESMUCK (if you get that reference you are at least my age or older) - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods (and clarifying what I said)
Mark Cassino wrote: LOL - I hadn't read it that closely... but that would be sorta mystical IMO - Put these tabs on you film rolls and you won't get lost! - MCC Yeah well I always did like Van Morrison ;) annsan At 08:33 PM 4/23/2004 -0400, you wrote: Ann Sanfedele wrote: annsan answers herself: Sound funny? Yeah, well,I MEANT To write that I stuck the signal dots on TREES or rocks or deadwood Sticking them on the rolls of film didn't help keep us from getting lost one bit! annsan :) just call me Ms. NESMUCK (if you get that reference you are at least my age or older) - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
Wonderful account, Mark.. Glad to see you figured it out eventually- though you should know that we were priming Jostein to be the replacement snowflake photographer! I'm just wondering, with the 6x7 gear and the heavyweight tripod, how you reached the hmm.. I think I'll take the SWAMP TRAIL.. decision! Cheers, Ryan - Original Message - From: Mark Cassino [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2004 11:49 PM Subject: Lost In the Woods Yesterday I went out to a fairly small 325 acre nature preserve, to shoot some scenics with wildflowers. About a mile into the woods, furthest point in, I consulted an old map that was posted and decided to take the Swamp Trail. About a half hour later the trail dwindled down to next to nothing, and ended in a dry stream bed. I took what I thought was the continuance of the trail only to find that it was just a little deer path that petered out a few hundred yards into thick swampy woods. Back at the dried stream bed, I was unable to relocate the original trail - which I later discovered was probably also just a little deer trail that I had stumbled onto. So, after about 15 minutes I realized I was hopelessly lost. After half an hour of wandering around searching for a trail - and almost getting stuck knee deep in the swamp muck - I finally found a really old marker sign for the trail. Unfortunately, there was absolutely no evidence of any trail near it, and I knew I was in trouble. (When I finally got out of the woods I discovered that the Swamp Trail no longer existed. But the really old map / sign in the heart of the woods was never updated.) Fortunately, I did have a compass with me. I ultimately had to just slog my way in a fixed direction through the woods by compass to get out. I knew that a river bordered the east side of the preserve and that the main trail intersected the river, so I just headed due east for about half an hour until I hit the river, and then hiked along the bank till I hit the main trail. All told, it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew, and was a pretty disconcerting experience. If I had not had the compass, I don't know if I ever would have gotten out - it was amazing (when using the compass) to see how poor my sense of direction really was - but it was a cloudy day, no sun or shadows for reference, and all those trees start to look alike after a while. So - I entered the woods at 9 a.m. and finally got back to my car at 3 PM, having carried my 6x7 gear and heavyweight tripod all the time. One the plus side - I think I got some good shots! I know that Marnie raised the question about emergency gear a while back. I have now resolved to always bring a compass (which I usually have done anyhow), to always bring a cell phone (mine was sitting in the car yesterday), always bring a flashlight (I realized yesterday that the compass would be pretty useless out in the dark) and always bring a pocket raincoat (it fortunately did not rain yesterday, but it looked like it was about to at any time.) A Snickers bar and bottle of water would of been handy as well - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
Mark! Compass? 325 acres? That's not very big. (Only about 0.73 of a mile square. Conversely it's about 0.50 of a square mile. A section, 1 mile by 1 mile, is 640 acres.) You must be from the city! :) Collin Sent via the WebMail system at mail.safe-t.net
Re: Lost In the Woods
It can be disconcerting. I carry both a compass and a flashlight in my bag, and have been known to stuff a Columbia jacket in there as well. The most absolutely and irrevocably lost I have ever been, though, was in Granada, Spain. You wouldn't think so, it being all urban and everything, but oh my goodness I was lost. I had decided during the hot part of the day to go get a sketchbook and commit a few doodles to paper, and I had seen an art supply store not far from the hotel. The proprietors, of course, decided at the same time to shut down for the afternoon, and they pulled down the little gate, covering the store so I walked right past it. hmmm. I know it's right around here somewhere. Maybe down this street. No? Maybe this way. I was supposed to meet my wife back at the hotel for a little siesta, change of clothes and then a ride to a reception, and as it got closer to time for me to meet her, the farther away I got and the more convinced I became that I would soon find myself in Portugal. The time came and went, with me no closer than I had been. I saw much, much more of Granada than I had intended to on that day. And my wife, who is normally quite compassionate and worrisome, came back to the hotel, snoozed, changed clothes, and left my lost little ass behind. At long last, tired and angry and sweaty, something occurred to me that should have done hours earlier. I hailed a cab. (um, yeah...duh) Made it back to the hotel, ran upstairs and into my wife's loving ar--- hello? Anyone here? I know you were worried...hello? Oh, well. Changed shirts and got another cab, somehow managing to locate in the dark recesses of my brain the name of the place where we were supposed to attend the reception, (at the Alhambra, for you who are familiar), and surprised her by actually arriving where I was supposed to be. I'm glad you made it out okay, Mark. But you gotta love the mind of the photographer. Well, let's see, it's getting late in the day. I have no food or water or the foggiest idea where I am. I think I'll take some pictures. To drag this back in the neighborhood of being on-topic, this reminds me to recycle an old fave: http://www.alphoto.com/poodles/index.html At 09:49 AM 4/22/04, throwing caution to the wind, Mark Cassino wrote: tale of being lost
Re: Lost In the Woods
Yeah, I know - not big at all. The area is claimed to be one of the few patches of Michigan forest that was never logged - but the trees don;t look all that big. But even in a small area like that, it's easy to spend a lot of time wandering around if you don't have a compass for direction. - MCC At 10:46 AM 4/22/2004 -0400, you wrote: Mark! Compass? 325 acres? That's not very big. (Only about 0.73 of a mile square. Conversely it's about 0.50 of a square mile. A section, 1 mile by 1 mile, is 640 acres.) You must be from the city! :) Collin - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
Mark, I'm glad you were not lost to the wilderness for good. I would have felt the need to move back to the Great Lakes and take-up the lighthouse and nature mantle. Shortly after expressing this, I would have felt the smack of my wife's hand on the back of my head. So it's good you got out. Cory - Original Message - From: Mark Cassino [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2004 9:49 AM Subject: Lost In the Woods Yesterday I went out to a fairly small 325 acre nature preserve, to shoot some scenics with wildflowers. About a mile into the woods, furthest point in, I consulted an old map that was posted and decided to take the Swamp Trail. About a half hour later the trail dwindled down to next to nothing, and ended in a dry stream bed. I took what I thought was the continuance of the trail only to find that it was just a little deer path that petered out a few hundred yards into thick swampy woods. Back at the dried stream bed, I was unable to relocate the original trail - which I later discovered was probably also just a little deer trail that I had stumbled onto. So, after about 15 minutes I realized I was hopelessly lost. After half an hour of wandering around searching for a trail - and almost getting stuck knee deep in the swamp muck - I finally found a really old marker sign for the trail. Unfortunately, there was absolutely no evidence of any trail near it, and I knew I was in trouble. (When I finally got out of the woods I discovered that the Swamp Trail no longer existed. But the really old map / sign in the heart of the woods was never updated.) Fortunately, I did have a compass with me. I ultimately had to just slog my way in a fixed direction through the woods by compass to get out. I knew that a river bordered the east side of the preserve and that the main trail intersected the river, so I just headed due east for about half an hour until I hit the river, and then hiked along the bank till I hit the main trail. All told, it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew, and was a pretty disconcerting experience. If I had not had the compass, I don't know if I ever would have gotten out - it was amazing (when using the compass) to see how poor my sense of direction really was - but it was a cloudy day, no sun or shadows for reference, and all those trees start to look alike after a while. So - I entered the woods at 9 a.m. and finally got back to my car at 3 PM, having carried my 6x7 gear and heavyweight tripod all the time. One the plus side - I think I got some good shots! I know that Marnie raised the question about emergency gear a while back. I have now resolved to always bring a compass (which I usually have done anyhow), to always bring a cell phone (mine was sitting in the car yesterday), always bring a flashlight (I realized yesterday that the compass would be pretty useless out in the dark) and always bring a pocket raincoat (it fortunately did not rain yesterday, but it looked like it was about to at any time.) A Snickers bar and bottle of water would of been handy as well - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com - --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.661 / Virus Database: 424 - Release Date: 4/20/2004
Re: Lost In the Woods
The real lesson was, he didn't panic... He knew he was totally lost, and quite literally didn't know which way to turn. Instead, he kept his wits about him, and thought his way out of an otherwise frightening situation, proceeding with a solution that would surely get him out and home, albeit with a little delay. Well done, Mark. keith whaley Doug Brewer wrote: It can be disconcerting. I carry both a compass and a flashlight in my bag, and have been known to stuff a Columbia jacket in there as well. The most absolutely and irrevocably lost I have ever been, though, was in Granada, Spain. You wouldn't think so, it being all urban and everything, but oh my goodness I was lost. I had decided during the hot part of the day to go get a sketchbook and commit a few doodles to paper, and I had seen an art supply store not far from the hotel. The proprietors, of course, decided at the same time to shut down for the afternoon, and they pulled down the little gate, covering the store so I walked right past it. hmmm. I know it's right around here somewhere. Maybe down this street. No? Maybe this way. I was supposed to meet my wife back at the hotel for a little siesta, change of clothes and then a ride to a reception, and as it got closer to time for me to meet her, the farther away I got and the more convinced I became that I would soon find myself in Portugal. The time came and went, with me no closer than I had been. I saw much, much more of Granada than I had intended to on that day. And my wife, who is normally quite compassionate and worrisome, came back to the hotel, snoozed, changed clothes, and left my lost little ass behind. At long last, tired and angry and sweaty, something occurred to me that should have done hours earlier. I hailed a cab. (um, yeah...duh) Made it back to the hotel, ran upstairs and into my wife's loving ar--- hello? Anyone here? I know you were worried...hello? Oh, well. Changed shirts and got another cab, somehow managing to locate in the dark recesses of my brain the name of the place where we were supposed to attend the reception, (at the Alhambra, for you who are familiar), and surprised her by actually arriving where I was supposed to be. I'm glad you made it out okay, Mark. But you gotta love the mind of the photographer. Well, let's see, it's getting late in the day. I have no food or water or the foggiest idea where I am. I think I'll take some pictures. To drag this back in the neighborhood of being on-topic, this reminds me to recycle an old fave: http://www.alphoto.com/poodles/index.html At 09:49 AM 4/22/04, throwing caution to the wind, Mark Cassino wrote: tale of being lost
Re: Lost In the Woods
I always carry a compass with me when I'm shooting in the woods (or the mountains or the moors or...). Mostly it's for locating where sunset and sunrise are going to be but I occasionally put it to navigational uses the way you did :) I also keep a light Gore-Tex jacket bungeed to the side of my Lowe Pro backpack and have a Mylar space blanket packed away inside. -- Mark Roberts Photography and writing www.robertstech.com
Re: Lost In the Woods
At 12:29 AM 4/23/2004 +1000, Ryan Lee wrote: Wonderful account, Mark.. Glad to see you figured it out eventually- though you should know that we were priming Jostein to be the replacement snowflake photographer! LOL - I guess in addition to bringing a flashlight and cell phone, I should also get a will :-0 I'm just wondering, with the 6x7 gear and the heavyweight tripod, how you reached the hmm.. I think I'll take the SWAMP TRAIL.. decision! I hope to answer that with a PAW ... - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
On Thu, 22 Apr 2004 09:49:28 -0400, Mark Cassino wrote: it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew So _THAT'S_ what happened! :-) TTYL, DougF KG4LMZ
Re: Lost In the Woods
Mark Cassino revealed: ...snip So, after about 15 minutes I realized I was hopelessly lostvery entertaining adventure story snipped here/snip Thanks heaps for sharing that with us Mark, what a great story, can't wait to see the pics! tan.
Re: Lost In the Woods
Maybe he didn't find his way out and this is all in his mind... Doug Franklin wrote: On Thu, 22 Apr 2004 09:49:28 -0400, Mark Cassino wrote: it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew So _THAT'S_ what happened! :-) TTYL, DougF KG4LMZ
RE: Lost In the Woods
Keith Whaley wrote: The real lesson was, he didn't panic... He knew he was totally lost, and quite literally didn't know which way to turn. Instead, he kept his wits about him, and thought his way out of an otherwise frightening situation, proceeding with a solution that would surely get him out and home, albeit with a little delay. Well done, Mark. Well said. Great to have a happy outcome to this trip and I look forward to seeing the PAW. It's also a useful reminder to us all to consider what you take with you on such a trip - even if you don't become disorientated (which is all too easily done) other things can happen. One of my friends broke his ankle badly in the forest, just a few minutes from a well used parking area. He'd left the 'phone in the car. Normally there would be no end of people out walking their dogs, but not of course on this occasion. He was there several hours before someone found him and called for an ambulance. Malcolm
RE: Lost In the Woods
I once spoke with a ranger who told me about a woman that got lost going off the Appalachian trail. She had a cell phone and a GPS unit, so she called the park service and told them her coordinates. This was the first time it had happened this way, and it wasn't easy for them to figure out where she was just using latitude and longitude. They are better prepared now (new maps with better L/L markings) since this is a more common combination of equipment. Steven Desjardins Department of Chemistry Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA 24450 (540) 458-8873 FAX: (540) 458-8878 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Lost In the Woods
At 01:09 AM 23/04/2004, you wrote: The real lesson was, he didn't panic... He knew he was totally lost, He wasn't lost lost, he was just temporarily disoriented. Once you get properly lost - YOU STOP and do not move (for a number of reasons) (*)o(*) Robert [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: Lost In the Woods
Hi Mark, Interesting story, one many of us have repeated over the years, particularly if we also enjoy hiking/backpacking. Most sites devoted to the latter describe the 10 Essentials. A compass is one of them, along with a small first aid kit, a space blanket, that sort of thing. You can buy one now, but it's cheaper and more fun to make one up of your own. Might be a good topic for discussion over lunch once we can get the Michigan PDML gathering to settle on a date. I'll look up what I have on the subject. You might also think about one of the Topo Map programs, that let's you print a topographic map of the area you're headed into. Bill Sawyer Detroit, MI -Original Message- From: Mark Cassino [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2004 9:49 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Lost In the Woods Yesterday I went out to a fairly small 325 acre nature preserve, to shoot some scenics with wildflowers. About a mile into the woods, furthest point in, I consulted an old map that was posted and decided to take the Swamp Trail. About a half hour later the trail dwindled down to next to nothing, and ended in a dry stream bed. I took what I thought was the continuance of the trail only to find that it was just a little deer path that petered out a few hundred yards into thick swampy woods. Back at the dried stream bed, I was unable to relocate the original trail - which I later discovered was probably also just a little deer trail that I had stumbled onto. So, after about 15 minutes I realized I was hopelessly lost. After half an hour of wandering around searching for a trail - and almost getting stuck knee deep in the swamp muck - I finally found a really old marker sign for the trail. Unfortunately, there was absolutely no evidence of any trail near it, and I knew I was in trouble. (When I finally got out of the woods I discovered that the Swamp Trail no longer existed. But the really old map / sign in the heart of the woods was never updated.) Fortunately, I did have a compass with me. I ultimately had to just slog my way in a fixed direction through the woods by compass to get out. I knew that a river bordered the east side of the preserve and that the main trail intersected the river, so I just headed due east for about half an hour until I hit the river, and then hiked along the bank till I hit the main trail. All told, it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew, and was a pretty disconcerting experience. If I had not had the compass, I don't know if I ever would have gotten out - it was amazing (when using the compass) to see how poor my sense of direction really was - but it was a cloudy day, no sun or shadows for reference, and all those trees start to look alike after a while. So - I entered the woods at 9 a.m. and finally got back to my car at 3 PM, having carried my 6x7 gear and heavyweight tripod all the time. One the plus side - I think I got some good shots! I know that Marnie raised the question about emergency gear a while back. I have now resolved to always bring a compass (which I usually have done anyhow), to always bring a cell phone (mine was sitting in the car yesterday), always bring a flashlight (I realized yesterday that the compass would be pretty useless out in the dark) and always bring a pocket raincoat (it fortunately did not rain yesterday, but it looked like it was about to at any time.) A Snickers bar and bottle of water would of been handy as well - MCC - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com -
Re: Lost In the Woods
A pocket GPS is of immense help. It shows your origin position and also allows you to back track your route. I use mine all the time when hunting or going into unfamiliar territory. Regards, Bob... A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on. - Winston Churchill From: Mark Cassino [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yesterday I went out to a fairly small 325 acre nature preserve, to shoot some scenics with wildflowers. About a mile into the woods, furthest point in, I consulted an old map that was posted and decided to take the Swamp Trail. About a half hour later the trail dwindled down to next to nothing, and ended in a dry stream bed. I took what I thought was the continuance of the trail only to find that it was just a little deer path that petered out a few hundred yards into thick swampy woods. Back at the dried stream bed, I was unable to relocate the original trail - which I later discovered was probably also just a little deer trail that I had stumbled onto. So, after about 15 minutes I realized I was hopelessly lost. After half an hour of wandering around searching for a trail - and almost getting stuck knee deep in the swamp muck - I finally found a really old marker sign for the trail. Unfortunately, there was absolutely no evidence of any trail near it, and I knew I was in trouble. (When I finally got out of the woods I discovered that the Swamp Trail no longer existed. But the really old map / sign in the heart of the woods was never updated.) Fortunately, I did have a compass with me. I ultimately had to just slog my way in a fixed direction through the woods by compass to get out. I knew that a river bordered the east side of the preserve and that the main trail intersected the river, so I just headed due east for about half an hour until I hit the river, and then hiked along the bank till I hit the main trail. All told, it toke about 2 hours before I was on a trail I knew, and was a pretty disconcerting experience. If I had not had the compass, I don't know if I ever would have gotten out - it was amazing (when using the compass) to see how poor my sense of direction really was - but it was a cloudy day, no sun or shadows for reference, and all those trees start to look alike after a while. So - I entered the woods at 9 a.m. and finally got back to my car at 3 PM, having carried my 6x7 gear and heavyweight tripod all the time. One the plus side - I think I got some good shots! I know that Marnie raised the question about emergency gear a while back. I have now resolved to always bring a compass (which I usually have done anyhow), to always bring a cell phone (mine was sitting in the car yesterday), always bring a flashlight (I realized yesterday that the compass would be pretty useless out in the dark) and always bring a pocket raincoat (it fortunately did not rain yesterday, but it looked like it was about to at any time.) A Snickers bar and bottle of water would of been handy as well
Re: Lost In the Woods
That's right. He merely misplaced himself for a short time. Regards, Bob... A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on. - Winston Churchill From: mapson [EMAIL PROTECTED] At 01:09 AM 23/04/2004, you wrote: The real lesson was, he didn't panic... He knew he was totally lost, He wasn't lost lost, he was just temporarily disoriented. Once you get properly lost - YOU STOP and do not move (for a number of reasons)
Re: Lost In the Woods
At 10:25 AM 23/04/2004, you wrote: A pocket GPS is of immense help. GPS is for softies! Real adventurers do it the way Mark did! ;-) (*)o(*) Robert [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Lost In the Woods
I missed the start of this thread, but it is very easy to get lost in a mature forest. Thousands of trees, all pretty much the same, little underbrush, the sky is not visible, no individual shadows. As I said, easy to get turned around and not have any idea which way is what. Not the same as the 50 year old woodlots most of us think of as forest nowadays. I thought Proud Lake State Park was the largest uncut tract in Michigan (maybe just North Woods type forest). That is only 65 acres. If the sun is out you can see the lighter area beyond the trees, if overcast you could almost get lost there (My buddy Pooh says it has to be a hundred acre wood before you can actually get lost). If there is no one else around making people noises, even that little tract can be rather eerie. Strangely quiet, very still. Yes, you could misplace yourself in a 1/4 section like that. By the way, your GPS wouldn't be worth a thing amongst those trees. -- Mark Cassino wrote: Yeah, I know - not big at all. The area is claimed to be one of the few patches of Michigan forest that was never logged - but the trees don;t look all that big. But even in a small area like that, it's easy to spend a lot of time wandering around if you don't have a compass for direction. - MCC At 10:46 AM 4/22/2004 -0400, you wrote: Mark! Compass? 325 acres? That's not very big. (Only about 0.73 of a mile square. Conversely it's about 0.50 of a square mile. A section, 1 mile by 1 mile, is 640 acres.) You must be from the city! :) Collin - Mark Cassino Photography Kalamazoo, MI http://www.markcassino.com - -- graywolf http://graywolfphoto.com/graywolf.html
Re: Lost In the Woods
I usually just as an indian. Fortunately I have never met two at a time in the woods, so I never have had to figure out which one was lying. -- Mark Roberts wrote: I always carry a compass with me when I'm shooting in the woods (or the mountains or the moors or...). Mostly it's for locating where sunset and sunrise are going to be but I occasionally put it to navigational uses the way you did :) I also keep a light Gore-Tex jacket bungeed to the side of my Lowe Pro backpack and have a Mylar space blanket packed away inside. -- graywolf http://graywolfphoto.com/graywolf.html
