Lost in the Big Woods

[K22]

This is an adjunct to the thread "Fire Starter.... When I was much younger, foolish and bolder, I got lost in the "big woods of central PA while hunting deer.

I always hunted until the end of legal shooting hours and hiked out of the mountains at night since there was trail you could safely exit the area in the dark. Also I would go deep into the mountains off the beaten path despite the long drag out if I got one. I was always looking for that elusive big buck convinced he was where no one else dared go. Never found him - I think this big buck thing was just something I invented in my mind to justify going deep into the mountains and testing myself.

I knew the area well I was hunting, so I thought. How I got lost was I end up going east instead of north getting disoriented on a long "dog leg" ridge and not paying attention to the direction I was heading. If you go north or south you can't get lost because you either hit a logging road or a paved road. Just follow either road and while you may have a long walk back to the camp you won't be lost. If you're lucky you'll catch another hunter in a truck and he'll give you a lift. However if you go east it several miles before you hit another road and if you west you'll hit another mountain line - then you got a problem or a much longer walk out. I was lucky - my mistake turned me east. So where I was at I knew if I turned south I'd hit the road which lead back around the mountain to the cabin.

The other big mistake I made was I wasn't carrying a compass. If I had I would have figured it out right away. Also it was heavy overcast so I wasn't paying any attention to the sun which wasn't visible anyway. By the time I realize my mistake I faced a long walk out in pitch dark conditions. Dad taught me to never panic, sit down, figure out a plan and stay calm.

The biggest threat I felt I faced was trying to walk out at night and possibly breaking an ankle so I decided to stay the night. Hell, it was an adventure since I was confident I could find my way back in the morning having discovered my orientation mistake. I was only carrying a mini mag lite, Bic Lighter, and as someone mentioned in the referenced thread, a container of cotton balls laced with vaseline for fire starter. I had a few Snicker's Bars and a half canteen of water. So I settled in for the night, built a nice fire making sure I cleared a wide area to prevent starting a forest fire. Never forget the serenity I felt that night. I was lucky, no rain or snow. I know this sounds crazy, but it was almost worth getting lost to have such an adventure. God I love the mountains.

The next morning at day break I changed directions and hunted my way south to the road. When I hit the road I had about a 10 mile walk back to the cabin but I made it. From that point on I always carried a topo map and compass. Never got lost again and had many more adventures but none like this one. Didn't get a buck either on that hunting trip.

Anyone else ever get lost?

 

[rebel]

I've never been lost. Been confused for a day or so , but never lost.

 

[mikeinct]

Both Me & my good Partridge hunting buddy Phil got lost off the same logging road up in the great north woods of NH. I was to the west of our parking spot, he was to the east. Cloudy days both times, putting along w our dogs. I got back in about two long hours. Phil took a moose trail back [diff year, same place, almost] He ended up on the big road east of us & caught a ride back to the parking spot. I was glad I didn't have to spend the night out there. It was raining the day I got lost chasing birds. It was great being young & stupid. mikeinct

 

[Mulligan]

Someone thought I was lost once...... They even called Search and Rescue...... I wasn't lost at all.

My son and I were hunting elk on the Uncompahgre Plateau in SW Colorado. On the third day of the season I shot a good.....not great but a good 6 pt bull. We were up on a ledge and had to go a half mile or so down canyon to get to where a small stream cut through the ledge. As we approach the stream and big bear was right across the canyon... a mere 325 yards. Sam ranged him and I threaded one through the scrub and hit the motor as he rested on a big rock. He jumped about 8' in the air and off the ledge he went. We found him pilled up fairly quickly and got him dressed and hung up by a small spring in the timber.
We scrambled down the stream to the main creek and headed back up-stream to get the bull. He was also pilled up and by the time we got him dressed and hung up it was dark. With the backstraps and tenderloins from both critters in my pack we headed for the vehicle. My map showed a trail that would be easier walking than busting trail like we did on our way in so we headed that way. The main trail by the creek was easy to find in the dark (we had headlamps) and we continued on, when we got to the fork in the creek the map showed a trail heading north up a steep ridge..... I could not find it! It was spitting snow, so I pulled the plug on walking out and we started gathering wood for a fire. With the fire lit and space blankets stretched out to protect form wind and snow, we were good. Plenty of food left in our packs, plenty of water and a warm fire. Come morning we hiked out....... bushwacking up the hill, several miles and about 1500 vertical we arrived at my truck. When I arrived, a couple of fellas from ILL who were camped nearby said they called search and rescue and reported us missing. We got all that shut down and spend the next three days packing out the meat.
Ya gotta love the wilderness.
CW

Edit,
the bear, boned out and quartered weighed a little over 300 at the butcher shop and the bull was about 25 lbs heavier. The bull was a good mature bull, the bear was a beast. The hide measured 7.5 ft x 7.5 ft.and was the heaviest pack-out I have ever made. Hide and skull on that bear was HEAVY!
CW

Second edit to add photos.... took me a while to find them.

 

[Bill Norris]

I never been lost in the woods but with having that much fun it would be worth it no doubt.

 

[std7mag]

I've gotten turned around several times hunting unfamiliar teritory in the mountains in Central, North Central PA.
As K22 says, trying to get away from the sea of orange that is our rifle season.

I now carry a compass along with my OnX Hunt.
Along with space blanket, water, fire starter, colapsable cup, Folgers coffee bags (like tea bags), granola bars, small first aid kit, and a few "rescue me, i'm here" flares.

I also let my wife know the area i'm hunting, (instead of saying the 250,000+ acres of Moshannon State Forest) and a time that she should hear from me by.

 

[Oso]

I got lost once at night while hunting pigs in new location that I was unfamiliar with. Everything hat could go wrong did. My quick run to check on feeder turned into a 6 hour hike carrying a HomeDepot bucket while wading through 2'-3' deep flood water and down meandering county roads. I kept a hold of the bucket so that no landowner would think I was a poacher or thief... no one with mischief in mind would bring a bright orange bucket. It was too late to safely approach any of the scattered farm houses. I must have been a sad sight to see and hear... the water had turned my rubber boots into a set of whoopy cushions with every step for better part of 8-10 miles that woke up and set off every dog in the county.

The orange bucket is what caught the Game Warden's attention as he passed me walking down the highway at 1am. I gladly took the ride offered back to my truck. I was too tired for pride or shame. Lessons learned.

 

[msinc]

Oh yeah.....coon hunting was always my first love and when I was a teenager I got lost in the woods. It wasn't hard to do, following the hounds to a tree, not paying any attention or even giving it a second thought about where I was or how to get back out.
Got to the tree, shot the coon out, leashed the dogs and realized I was lost...so, I just started walking in one direction figuring I would eventually come out to something. I did...several hours later and in the exact opposite direction I needed to go. Several more hours later I got back to my truck. Cold, wet and tired.
You can believe one thing, I bought a compass the next day and didn't go coon hunting again until I fully understood exactly how to use it. That was 40 some odd years ago, haven't been lost since!!!

 

[mikeinct]

yep, funny thing about experience. it will either kill you or smarten your dumb azz up.. mikeinct

 

[msinc]

yep, funny thing about experience. it will either kill you or smarten your dumb azz up.. mikeinct

Haha!!! Yes sir and in my case it has come a whole lot closer to killing me more times than it ever smartened me up!!! Funny thing about compasses and building a fire...some people just don't have the capacity to ever get either. I guess some folks just got no business in the woods.

 

[1lnbrdg]

I always figured being lost was not being able to find my way home. Never been lost. Been a few places I didn't know where I was a time or two though.

Drives my wife crazy, times I'm driving down an interstate and hit bad traffic. I'll just jump off and find a road headed the direction I should be proceeding. Never failed to find where I was headed and have never failed to get home.

Night fishing on the bayou by the house when I was a kid, I always had a secrete waypoint to work from, there is a TV tower west of the bayou that was almost always visible. Times I was out with others and they would think we were lost, I'd let them think that and just paddle up thru the woods till we got back to the landing. Some of them never figured out how I did that .

 

[steve123]

When I was in my early 20's I twisted up on "Horseshoe Mountain", think about the shape of that one for minute. Fog also helped with the confusion.

Wasn't till late in the day when l I got back to camp and man was I tired of walking!

 

[K22]

yep, funny thing about experience. it will either kill you or smarten your dumb azz up.. mikeinct

The problem was, at least for me, when I was young I thought I was invincible. I was in terrific physical condition - strong as an Ox, a skilled marksman with both a pistol and rifle, and I liked to push the envelope.

For example, when wifey and I were vacationing in Utah I hiked up to the Delicate Arch in Arches National Park in 100 degree temperature weather without water. Dumb and Dumber! On the way back I was really hurting from dehydration. Fortunately an older couple befriended me, gave me a bottle of water. Gave the wifey some gray hairs that day.

I never got smarter, I still have "a push the envelope" mentality but my old body has given out preventing me from doing crazy things anymore.

I'm lucky I made it this far, will be 73 next month.

 

[Bugs]

The wilds of North Central Penna can do strange things to you.. . . like dragging a deer the wrong direction for about 2 1/2 hours and getting out of the woods at an ungodly hour, tired, cold and hungry.

 

[rebel]

Any of y'all ever been in a Appalachian rhododendron thicket? Holy crap, get sucked into one of them tracking a deer or looking for a 2cd flush on a ruffed grouse, whew!
The one on a North facing ridge where I learned a lot of skills is 1/4 mile wide. Your only saving grace is you know which way is North, obviously, and down hill takes you to water - it's just the getting there. From a buddy that Elk hunted in Colorado this year - the high country oak scrub is just as bad, with less O2.

 

[1K6BRA]

Been detained briefly but never lost

 

[K22]

Any of y'all ever been in a Appalachian rhododendron thicket? Holy crap, get sucked into one of them tracking a deer or looking for a 2cd flush on a ruffed grouse, whew!
The one on a North facing ridge where I learned a lot of skills is 1/4 mile wide. Your only saving grace is you know which way is North, obviously, and down hill takes you to water - it's just the getting there. From a buddy that Elk hunted in Colorado this year - the high country oak scrub is just as bad, with less O2.

If you want a real challenge - hunt the mountains in Sinnentahoning, PA. I hunted bear there and it's roughest country I've ever hunted but excellent for bear, at least it use to be.

 

[rebel]

Same here K, great bear country. Your mountain bears are bigger, our swamp bears are bigger yet. But Appalachian rough country is steep, thick, and wild. We could go on all day on which state is rougher, but at the end of the day we ain't got the legs to prove it no more so let's meet up over a bottle of Eagle Rare and argue
Be a hell of of a meet up - Groundhogs INC.

 

[K22]

Same here K, great bear country. Your mountain bears are bigger, our swamp bears are bigger yet. But Appalachian rough country is steep, thick, and wild. We could go on all day on which state is rougher, but at the end of the day we ain't got the legs to prove it no more so let's meet up over a bottle of Eagle Rare and argue
Be a hell of of a meet up - Groundhogs INC.

Make it "Maker's Mark" bourbon and you got a date.

 

[rebel]

Makers it is sir.