How many of you have actually needed to survive?

[Westcliffe01]

My wife and I generally make an annual trip to the UP and stay at the Muskalongue state park. For years there was an outfitter operation near the mouth of the Two Hearted river called Rainbow Lodge. It used to be that if you took any logging trail anywhere you would sooner or later find a Rainbow Lodge sign which would provide directions back to the state road, which way to the Lodge (and distances) or to the state park etc.

A bit more than a year ago, one of the many brush fires in the area ran right through the lodge area and it was totally destroyed. I assume it was not insured for fire and has not been rebuilt. What I did not know, and "discovered" was that "someone" had removed every Rainbow lodge sign from the entire area. Essentially, this removed about 99% of signs except for ATV trail route markers.

Having explored the area extensively over years, we decided to see what had happened to Rainbow Lodge and possibly take some sunset pictures on the beach at the Two hearted river. We must have left at about 5pm, and thought we had plenty of time before sunset at about 9:30pm.... First of many assumptions.. Long story short, we could not find our way to the lodge site, since all the signs were gone. The only signposted item was the Crisp Point lighthouse, so after hours of searching we headed there. It is a very remote location down a very bad road.. Got there just before sunset, took some pictures and then decided to head back. BUT, unlike times past, there was no sign whatsoever directing traffic back to the county road. I had set a waypoint for the intersection we had turned off the county road, so I just had the GPS navigate back to that waypoint., What I did NOT realize was that my expensive Garmin was treating ATV trails as equal to roads and even displayed them the same. To see the minor roads you needed to be zoomed all the way in, which then gave you no situational awareness. If you zoomed out, zou could see no roads/trails whatsoever. Anyway, we realized that we were in trouble when the "road" we were on suddenly narrowed to about 6ft wide and the truck mirrors were wider than the trail markers.

So we figured that all we had to do was head south and sooner or later we would hit the county road (there is only one). The problem was that we had managed to get on the "wrong" side of the 2 hearted river gorge so every southern track petered out before you would find yourself plunging down into the river washout. Finally we figured that out so we had to head east to try to find a way across the river. The trails ran through thick sand, side slopes and I was afraid that if this was combined with some woods that we would get truly stuck. I was driving a 4wd F250, not made for ATV trails. Finally by a total fluke we crossed a road that we knew and was able to follow it south to get back to our original waypoint. We got back to camp just before midnight with just a few gal of fuel remaining in the tanks. The area we had been in had no cell phone service and does have black bear, wolves and coyotes. I did have my 1911, but my wife and grand daughter were not up for walking ATV trails at night with critters on the fringes.

This happened in mid summer, but I could see how if this had been Nov/Dec and add some snow, it could quickly have become a life threatening situation. In times past, with the logistical support of the lodge (fuel, food etc) we would have been discovered by ATV trail riders the next day, but now that fuel is a few hours away, who knows when someone would have passed by ?

In August I went exploring in Colorado and I made sure to take along an old aviation GPS which has a "track" function. The "roads" that I used are not to be found on any road type GPS and were not even on the topo map that I had with me, so by carefully using the track function, I was able to document the roads that were there and could follow them back (back tracking) to get back to where my truck was parked. I was using a Kubota RTV 500 and it was perfect for the terrain (steep, rocky, loose surface). I had no issues that trip.

[Trickrick]

Several years ago a buddy and I were out scouting for deer when we went off in a very unexpected direction.
When we thought that we were about to come up on the road we came in on we topped the hill to nowhere!
A storm was coming in and took away our sun and for awhile I was "miss placed" neither of us we prepared to spend the night in the woods especially with the weather getting colder by the hour.
after what seemed like hours(a couple) we were able to get ourselves out to a road only to find out that we were about 5 miles from where we went in.
Since that day I am ALWAYS prepared to to "survive" and or find my way out.
Neither my buddy or myself ever admitted to being scared that day, but I know that I was.
be prepared gentlemen, and hope that you never face it.

[soutthpaw]

Highly recommend a portable solar charger when heading out to the back country. Also printing off some topo maps and carrying a good ol compass is always a fine idea. (oh yeah, learn how to use a map a compass too)

[tufrthnails]

Spent the night in Green Swamp here in Florida. Not really parimount survival, but sucked nonetheless. Made it out the next morning. Not real happy with my buddy who just figured I was late getting out of stand and left. GPS died and I had left my compass in the truck. not sure how much swamp time you guys have but a TOPO is useless here in FL. Trail map and a good compass is required, GPS is nice but batteries die and such.

[Elgin]

I got stuck out in a blizzard for 16 hours back in Feb 2011. Of course, I was in my car and new right where I was (9 miles from home, and stuck out with about a dozen other drivers). Worst part was that my car wasn't actually stuck, we just couldn't get around a few cars that were, and there was no way to turnaround.

Between being a scout, and having my Mom constantly reminding me to be prepared, I always keep a bag with supplies, extra clothes, blankets and such in my trunk, so I was toasty warm all night. Just had to get out and keep the snow from blocking the tailpipe every now and then. Only used about an eighth of a tank of gas for the night (cycled between running and not). Couple buddies came out on snowmobiles and picked me up the next morning. My car was stuck out there for another day and a half.

[yobuck]

where i hunt in pa is the most remote area in the state. that said it would be hard to be more than
a half mile or so from a road or some type of a power or pipeline. using a compass and plotting a coarse
is a requirment in obtaining a charter captains licence and a reason many fail. or at least used to fail
when the test was only given by the u s coast guard. knowledge is the answer to most questions.
i had a very good friend who by his hard work was able to take an alaskan hunt in the early 70s.
it was a guided hunt with 2 hunters and 2 guides who worked for a well known outfitter. they were dropped off by float plane
on the shore of a lake where they made their main camp. bottom line of a long story is my friend never made it home from the hunt and was never seen again. he left a wife and 3 sons.

[BobT]

I have never been lost, have been turned around a few times in the dark when I was a kid following my hounds. In those instances I would kick up a pile of leaves, dig in and wait 'till morning. I did get myself in a pretty bad fix one time while turkey hunting. I was a couple miles in from the truck on a high knob listening for birds and blew out a knee. This was way before cell phones and nobody knew my exact location and all I could do was crawl. I got my pocket knife out and cut a couple of splints from a nearby sumac patch and tied them on with strips cut from my shirt. Once I got my knee pretty well stabilized I unloaded my shotgun and used it for a cane and was able to hobble my way back to the truck in a couple of hours. Driving home was an experience with only one foot for the gas, brake and clutch.

[ShowMeShooter]

I got lost coon hunting one night, but as soon as the sun started coming up I found the truck.
Only harm done was a sick day used at work. I was a bit touchy and hungry my morning though.

[Duff]

never actually had to survive myself. that being said I'm an eagle scout and have taught the wilderness survival merit badge at summer camps for a few years before becoming a guide for the trek program. I have done a few "survival" expeditions. i go out for usually no more than a week with the 10 essentials and a mix of other survival gear i carry when backpacking or camping. a really good way to help "hone" your skills for whenever the need really does come up. always make sure to have 4 levels of finding my way back if i actually do get lost somehow (i stay on marked trails that aren't well known and commonly used but well worn and cut enough to easily make it back) 1 is memory 2 is map and compass 3 is gps and if all else fails 4 is back to basics using sun stars etc.

sort of qualifies as a survival story: While out hunting a few seasons back i came across an older couple (older to me anyways maybe late 30s early 40s) who decided to go camping well off the beaten path even though neither of them had much experience at all, most of their gear including a tent stove and cook kit apparently still had tags on it when they left judging by the packaging strewn about. turns out they didn't tell anyone where they were going or when they would be back and we were well out of cell service by then. their car wouldn't start and left them to go another night without food and barely had a half gallon of water left. neither of them knew how to start a fire and if you have ever been in the tops tops mountains of southern california you know it gets pretty darn hot during the day but down right frigid at night. i hiked back about 2 or 3 miles to my truck and made my way back up to them and ended up getting their car going after a jump start. helped them pack up and lead them back down the mountain. needless to say they were a bit shook up and tired but hopefully learned a lesson. never did fill my tag that year.

[bflee]

In the swamp behind my house you better have a compass or gps. It looks the same for miles. The canopy is so dense its really only daylight for a few hours while the sun is directly overhead.
Its an easy place to get turned around.

[Otony]

Went with a buddy to visit another friend in Arizona many years ago, when I was young and dumb as the saying goes. Our Arizonan friend took us out into the desert to do some shooting. At some point he decided to walk over one of the many hills to "do his duty". Not to insult the man, but he was a bit absent minded, and instead of returning immediately he was mediating on the sights.

We waited a bit, and decided to head back to the truck. Yeah, right, all that sand and scrub looked pretty much identical. After about ten minutes of walking, our friend popped up over a hill, shouting for us. He had started looking for us, which was a darn good thing as we were heading, you guessed it, in the wrong direction. Hadn't a clue either.

Since then I've become a member of the local county sheriff's SAR (search and rescue) team. Our training with compass and GPS has been extensive, as has skill sets in tracking, fire-making, radio comm, impromptu bush camps, and other survival methods.

Unfortunately, all too often, Search and Rescue is actually Search and Recovery. I can only try to impress folks on the importance of taking appropriate gear, and even more valuable, letting people know where you are going. It is amazing how many hikers, hunters, and fishermen strike out into the wild without advising anyone of their plans. Even more mystifying are the number of people who head out woefully unprepared, improper clothing, no water, no food, no compass, etc.

I guess having had a taste, even if only momentarily, brought out my inner sissy, because I prepare ahead EVERY TIME nowadays. Having seen the dread results inflicted on others, it has only reinforced my determination to make it home.

[87predator]

I've never been lost, but came close to having to spend the night in the mountains while elk hunting . I just ended up getting further away from camp than I had planned and was not going to make it back before dark. I was close to two miles away, and was in the process of finding a place to set up for the night. Needless to say my hunting partners fired shots every 10 min and guided me into camp. I knew right where I was, but wasn't about to try to find it in dark. I always carry fire building supplies and space blanket etc.. When hunting just incase.

[Maztech89]

One time I knew exactly where I was, just didnt know where everybody else was or the darn campsite!

Im an Eagle Scout, and thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Boy Scouts taking all the great experiences in exchange for some of the more "boring" ones. The troop I was in has always been one of if the most active in PA. Well I was about 14 I would guess and we were hiking the Laurel Highlands trail which is 74 miles and we were aiming to do it in less than 4 days. The second or third day, I dont remember which, I was feeling a bit sick and wasnt the usual energetic "lead-the-pack" hiker I usually was and fell towards the back of the group. Our Scout Master was good in that he allowed us to set our own pace and as long as you stayed on the well beaten path, we would all meet up after a few miles for a quick head count and then back at it.

Probably 3-4 miles from the campsite we came to a beautiful mountain stream and I decided it was a good place to take a quick bath and help prevent the dreaded crotch rot that all hikers experience at some point regardless of heavy baby powder usage. Me and a couple other kids hopped in in our boxers, rinsed in that fridgid water, then set off, knowing that by the map we were just shown our campsite was between mile markers X and Y. I took my good old time drying off and then set off again dead last in the string of scouts. That cold rinse really took its toll and I started losing energy and feeling more sick rapidly and my pace suffered. I got to mile marker X and was hopeful it was less than a mile to the campsite. Might as well drink the rest of my water, I'll be filling up at camp from the well I figured. I hiked until I hit mile marker Y, contemplated how I could have missed the beaten path that leads to all the campsites along the way and turned back looking for it. I hit mile marker X again and was really getting dumbfounded, so I walked backwards a bit more to a dirt road we crossed and followed that out to the picnic grounds a bit down the road I was able to see in hopes of a map being posted.

No map and nobody around to ask, so I took the time to read the sign warning of recent black bear food theft and gulped hard, thinking of all the grub I carried and at that age, my fear of bears. I walked back down the road to where the hiking trail crossed and decided to build a fire, eat something, and pass out and find the guys in the morning as it was getting to be the gray light hours. I put my pack about 100 yards down the road for the bears to steal and went to sleep. At 2:00 AM I was awoken to people calling my name. Turns out the maps were wrong by 2 miles and after I hadnt showed up for dinner they gave me a bit of time (I was young but had proven myself and the guys figured I was off doing my own thing for a bit) and then set out looking for me. Went a couple miles the other way first, then the 2 fellas came my way. I put my fire out, grabbed by pack, drank all the water they had on them (learned a valuable lesson on this one!) then followed them to camp.

I never was lost, and to this day won't admit I was, but I got a good ribbing and the story was told at every scout banquet and my Eagle Scout ceremony since. As far as Im concerned I knew exactly where I was, on the Laurel Highlands trail between mile markers X and Y. I just didnt know where the rest of the guys or the campsite was!

[MacDR]

That famous explorer and woodsman Daniel Boone was once asked if he had been ever lost. He replied, "No, but I have occasionally been confused for a day or two."

As a scout and venturer leader I would take my group out in the coldest part of the winter and show them how to survive being stuck in the woods with no tent or sleeping bag overnight. This was practical training as most were avid snowmobilers. Every year people die from exposure because they do not have basic survival skills. If you hunt, fish, hike or pursue any activity which takes you into even the near wilderness then a couple of hours training can mean the difference between rescue or recovery. BTW I share Daniels experience of being confused but only for a few hours.

[Dragunov]

I was just thinking (which is usually a bad thing;)), I always hear reports that hunters are the highest risk group for getting lost and needing rescue. And hence, survive until that rescue, whether hours or days.

So, how many of you have gotten lost, injured, or whatever and either survived and found your way out or had to be rescued. It doesn't have to be some dramatic 2 week long survival story, I'm sure being lost for a couple hours in bad weather is more than enough to frighten most people.

As for me, I've been lucky and since I've always been like a Boy Scout and carry everything you can imagine, nothing too bad has cropped up yet.I have, but I'll wait a few more posts before I post about that one.