Trail Tales of the Lost

Being lost on a trail is no joke. I bet there are many hikers out there that have their own lost on trail tales, or many of us that can share our own experiences and stories of being lost. Thank goodness, we lived to tell the tale. However, unfortunately, there are some that could not. Now, some of the day hikers like me, when I say lived to tell the tale, I say that half-jokingly. Reason being, I've been lost for a few minutes at most on a well hiked trail at a local state park and even at that short of a time, it seemed like an eternity. Panic and anxiety start to creep in when you think for a minute you have no idea where you are. Soon you realize however, it's no big deal and you'd eventually find your way. However, even so, it can be a bit worrisome if you start running low on water, then the "no big deal" can easily turn into a 911. On a bigger scale, even avid hikers hiking big national state parks get lost. Most, live to tell the tale, thank God. However, there are some that either veered off trail or got confused with coordinates and are still missing today. After reading Andrea Lankford's book, Trail of the Lost, about the relentless search to bring home the missing hikers of the PCT, it gave me a greater respect for nature and understanding of the unpredictability for all hikers and all trails no matter how, avid or not you are, short, easy or vast and treacherous a trail is, we can all experience a lost trail tale. The point is no matter who you are or how experienced you may be on the trail, nature is nature, respect and preparation for its unpredictability is important to have a greater chance for happy tales on the trail.