<p>In light of the events in Utah, here are some ideas that we have used when camping with our kids:</p>
<p>Give them a whistle. It can be one on a stretchy thing around the wrist. When scared and tired, its hare to yell or scream, but its a bit easier to blow into a whistle.</p>
<p>Cover some basic wilderness rules- don’t go off alone, tell someone where you are going, say when you will be back, get a “feel” for where you are, find some landmarks</p>
<p>Also, when lost, stop. Don’t keep moving. If lost, you could be walking further away from campsite, ahead of searchers</p>
<p>Learn general directions- north, west, east and south, and where campsight is</p>
<p>Learn how to stay warm at night- covering with leaves, etc.</p>
<p>Know which leaves are posionous</p>
<p>I am sure there are more that I have missed.</p>
<p>An air horn is good too. It needs to be something small and something they can carry without using their hands or something not dangerous, like nothing around the next.</p>
<p>I just heard on the news that the boy saw rescuers but hid from them because he was taught not to talk to strangers and he thought he would be kidnapped.He’s 11…wouldn’t you think he’s realize after 3-4 days he was truly lost and should ask for help,especially of people who are yelling out his name? I thought it was odd, more like a 4-5 year olds reaction.</p>
<p>yeah, it was odd, and he crossed a big hilly area, doing exactly the opposite of what one is supposed to do…that;'s why I thought this thread would be a good reminder</p>
<p>Enlighten a suburban resident: what’s wrong with crossing a hilly area? Does it make you harder to find? I would think that at least climbing to the top of the hill would allow you a better view of your surroundings.</p>
<p>He took very literally his parents instructions not to talk to strangers. Parents should also tell kids that it is all right to use common sense when necessary.</p>
<p>willow, as a relative flatlander, I can tell you what happens. I was 19 and in Yellowstone for a stop over. I went strolling along a stream by myself with nada. As a veteran of 100’s of miles of southeastern hiking (Appalachian Trail, Blue Ridge) I had zero fear and as it turns out zero sense. I walked several miles along the waterway when I noticed it was probably going to be dark before I could return to the fairly remote campground by restepping my original route. I decided based on direction (which was based upon the setting sun) that rather than walk back the way I came I would just go up and over “the ridge”. Imagine my surprise when I reached the apex and not only was the campgound not visible below but that there was ridge, after ridge, after ridge with no indication anywhere of civilization.:eek: With fading light I hurriedly but carefully retraced my steps down the ridge and back along the watercourse to safety. I can still taste the fear when I saw that vast wilderness and knew I had skee-rewed up. I stumbled in the dark along that stream for hours. My buddy at camp from New Mexico was amazed at my ignorance of the wilderness. I learned, and enjoyed hiking the Lower Rockies for most of the next decade.</p>
<p>The boy kept walking, when he should have stayed in one spot…going up and over a hilly area doesn’t really help. I am not sure of the terrain, but its hard to tell what is what from miles away. THe poor kid ended up about 5 miles out.</p>
<p>One rule of thumb when lost in the woods: follow the brook or river downstream. It will eventually come to some sort of civilization. The boy was going uphill, not down.</p>
<p>Moral of the story - if you have to get lost, get lost in Utah - there were over 3000 searchers within hours of the first call. CNN reported that the young man had difficulty explaining himself, and even hours later, he was unable to tell authorities everything about the ordeal. Apparently a bit more than a maturity problem - communication problem, as well. Perhaps if he has difficulty processing then he reacted in the only manner in which he was capable. Apparently, he heard and saw searchers, but evaded, afraid of being kidnapped. He did say he kept 2 rules in his head - stay to the path and don’t get kidnapped. He was found on a path. Apparently this child is very literal. Thank God he was found!!!</p>
<p>Something certainly “not right” there, from his behavior. I am amazed he survived without water for 4 days, and so completely clueless about how to get rescued. And first thing he does when found is get engrossed in someone’s telephone video game. Parents seem to be in protection mode talking about his great instincts. IMHO he was very lucky to be found in time.</p>
<p>Actually I’m surprised that kids getting lost doesn’t happen more often with lack of adult supervision in camps and outdoor activities. I suspect the organizations prefer not to report it when possible.</p>
<p>When the kids were little, I never told them not to talk to strangers, precisely because I wanted them to ask for help if they needed it. We had long conversations about what kind of people to ask: moms with children, waitresses, security guards. I also taught them to tell me if they left where they were. Not long after I’d done this, a friend’s child (who used the same rules) came to her mom and said: “Mom, that man wants me to help him look for his dog” and pointed to a man getting into his van and leaving the playground quite rapidly. (He was caught not long after when he tried the same trick at another playground.)</p>
<p>I think it’s quite silly to teach children not to talk to strangers; I think it’s way more important to teach them what kinds of conversations are acceptable and what kinds need to be reported immediately to an adult.</p>
<p>I still expect my children to let me know if they “change expectations.” (“Mom, I’ve changed my mind, and I’m going to Vicenza for the day instead of staying in Verona” was the latest of these messages.) I tell them I need to be able to tell the police where to start searching.</p>
<p>When you go hiking, (a cell phone if you are on the flat, but otherwise useless) a whistle, a mirror, water, a map, and a friend are essential. </p>
<p>Use common sense, sitting still preferably near a clearing and tooting on your whistle every ten minutes or so won’t take up too much wind. Reflected sunlight off a mirror can be seen for quite a distance and can attract aircraft. Air horns can echo and confuse, and are not convient for just tying on a string to a belt, but they would inform the world that you are in trouble and might scare off most animals. Most kids get lost fairly close to where they are supposed to be so a whistle is fine.</p>
<p>If you are only lost for a few minutes try to follow your path back if it is clearly your path and don’t cross any new streams or ridges on the way. </p>
<p>I am not going to try to analyze the kid, but what in the world is that scout camp thinking letting kids walk alone in the woods. The buddy system was invented the day the second person was born…it works well.</p>