How and why people get lost when hiking

Avoid getting lost by being proactive when on the trail.

And how to not make their errors

Among the greatest dangers of hiking is getting lost. Panic often sets in when this happens, which in turn results in bad decision-making that can lead to getting further lost, an injury, and even death. One way to keep from getting lost is to think about how people end up in that situation. You can take preemptive steps to avoid making the same mistake.

The main reason people get lost is that they turn onto the wrong trail. This happens in a couple of ways. First, they simply aren’t paying close attention and so go onto the wrong trail. Secondly, they take a false trail, such as misinterpreting an animal trail for a human one. To avoid either error, always familiarize yourself with the trail via maps and satellite photos before setting out on the hike. Then bring a topo map and compass with you. Lastly, constantly consult your map and compass while on the trail, so that you know where you are and what’s the next waypoint; especially do this before making any turns onto another trail.

Another common reason people get lost is because they leave the trail. There may be an obstacle such as a fallen tree they must walk around. Or perhaps they take a break to swim. Or maybe they want to see some rock formation or waterfall that is just off the trail. Before leaving the trail, always consult your map and compass to know where you’re at. Chart as straight of a course as you can to where you want to go. When you get to your destination (the swimming hole, waterfall, etc.), look back and see how you came from the trail to where you’re standing. Use the exact same route when returning to the main trail.

A variant of this is when people take a shortcut. Even if you have a map, cutting across a woods or around a hill to save you time typically results in a longer hike, both in time and distance. Usually trails weren’t built where the “shortcut” is because that way wasn’t easy to pass through, meaning it’s likely swampy and probably won’t be a straight shot. Without a trail on a map to help you determine where you’re at, you easily can get turned around and end up disoriented. Instead, always stay on the trail.

One more reason hikers get lost is night falls before they’ve reached their destination, so the trail is too dark to see. The quick solution is to determine how long you will need to reach a destination before setting out. Most hikers can cover a couple of miles per hour. So if the trail is four miles long, plan a two-hour trip one-way. Before going on the hike, check to see when sunset is. If it’s at 8:30 p.m., then leaving anytime after 6 p.m. is a risk just to go one-way. Instead, shorten the hike to two miles or simply wait until another day. Lastly, always carry a flashlight in your backpack, just in case.

A less common way people get lost is they must cross rocks or a creek in which there are no bootprints to follow. There’s a certain comfort in seeing fresh treadmarks on a trail; you know that at least others have gone that way recently. When those treadmarks are gone, you may feel like you’re guessing which way to go. Before crossing rocks or a creek, instead try to visually identify where you are to come out on the other side and keep you eyes locked that point as you cross. Barring that, always consult your map and chart a course. Also, look for cairns which can guide you to your destination.

Another reason people get lost is a sudden change in the weather. Rain and particularly snow can obscure points on the horizon that you need for keeping track of your course; they also can make the trail confusing to follow. Always check a weather report in advance of setting out on a trail, especially if in the mountains. At the first sign of inclement weather, turn back and avoid making cardinal errors of taking a shortcut or skipping a map reading just to save you time.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Quick precautions before hiking with kids

Once you select a trail for you and your child to day hike, there are a few simple safety precautions to take before ever making that first step on the trail. The chances of something going wrong are slim, but an ounce of preparedness will do much to reduce the burden when you're facing a pound of trouble.

First, map out your route. Using a light, transparent highlighter that won’t obscure details, trace the trail on your map. This will make navigating the path easier once in the field and prevent you from getting lost. Make sure you pack extra maps with your gear.

Next, tell someone where you are going and when you plan to return. In case you are injured or lost, this can prove to be valuable information so search and rescue teams can find you sooner.

You also should learn where the nearest hospital or walk-in clinic is located. If an injury occurs, you may need to bring your children there for medical help.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Reinforce in kids what to do when lost

If lost, hug a tree. Photo courtesy of George Hodan.

We’ve all heard the advice that if lost the best thing to do is to stay put and let someone find you. Not staying put means using up much needed energy, food and water, and risks moving farther away from where search crews would look.

While lost adult hikers with excellent navigation skills might be able to find their way back to civilization, children won’t be able to do so. One effective way to reinforce the rule of “If lost, stay put” with a group of young children is through a simple game that can be played at the park or during a rest break on the hike.

Have the kids play tag. They are “safe” (and remain so), however, if they touch a tree. They may touch a tree as long as they like to remain safe.

To add a little competition to the game, limit to one the number of children that can touch any given tree. In addition, have all the kids start at the center of a group of trees that they must run to.
After the game, link and reinforce the message that if lost the best thing to do is to stay put by touching a trailside tree.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Prepare day hiking kids for the possibility of getting lost

Lost children should stay away from water. Photo courtesy of Photoree.

Every parents’ nightmare is a lost child, and on a hiking trail the possibility of that occurring is great. In the woods, children easily can slip out of sight, and the dangers of an injury from a fall or of drowning rise. While such instances are rare, they can occur.

Arming our children with the knowledge they need to ensure they can be more quickly found is thus paramount before setting out on a hike.

Knowledge is power
Children should know basic information about themselves that will help authorities reunite them with their parents. Among that info is:
g Their first and last name
g How to spell their last name
g Their parents’ names
g Their telephone number
g The name of the place they are staying, such as the campground or hotel
As a two-year-old likely can do little better than remember his first and last name (which he may not pronounce correctly) and because panic can seize up an older child’s memory, also have children carry an emergency information card that contains the above information. That card should include their full address, blood type, and allergies.

What to do if lost
Teaching a child what to do once he realizes he’s lost is paramount. First, he ought to stay put. The more he walks, the more likely he is to wander farther away from the trail and so will be more difficult to find. Going near water or climbing rocks also can lead to injuries, so a lost child should refrain from those activities. Secondly, have him blow on his safety whistle rather than shout for help. Shouting will cause him to lose his voice much more quickly than blowing on a whistle will cause him to lose his breath. Worse, if he’s hoarse, he may not be able to respond loudly enough to rescuers calling his name. The sound of a safety whistle also can be heard from farther away than a kid’s shout.

Ask for help
When another hiker crosses paths, the child should ask for help. The odds are against a fellow hiker being a dangerous person. The child should explain he is lost, that he needs help, and ask the adult to escort him to safety. Teach a child to present his emergency information card to an adult.

Supply your child
If a child is old enough, have him wear a daypack with a few sundries in it. Among the items would be an extra emergency information card, a snack or two, a bottle of water, a sweatshirt and hat, a map with your trail marked on it, an extra safety whistle, and a small flashlight. If your child is a teenager, include a first-aid kit that he knows how to use. These items can help a child get by for a few hours until rescuers find him.

Practice makes perfect
In addition to going over all of this with a child, practice it. The safety of the backyard makes a perfect spot to “practice” what to do if lost. A child who has simulated this experience and knows that people are looking for him is less likely to panic should he actually become lost. In addition, each time you head out to the trail, review the background information he needs to provide to adults and what to do if lost.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

How to best maximize heat from a campfire

If forced to stay a night in the wilds because you got lost on a day hike, you’ll probably need to build a campfire. While comforting for its warmth and the light that keeps animals at bay, a particularly cold night may leave even the best-built fire wanting.

That’s because most of the heat from a campfire escapes straight up rather than warms those sitting around it. In addition, it only heats one side of those who are seated, leaving the back (the side not facing the flames) to remain cold.

The solution comes in selecting where to build the campfire and then in using a little technical know-how.

Specifically, you want to build a fire between two reflective surfaces. This way more of the heat radiated from the campfire is trapped.

Start by finding a rock wall for one of the reflective surfaces. The campfire should be built about six to eight feet away from it. Make sure there are no overhanging branches that the campfire might soar into and burn.

Next, on the fire’s other side, build a wall of stones or green logs, also keeping them about six to eight feet away. Ideally, this wall will be as high as the crown of the tallest person sitting around the fire.

Once the fire gets going, its heat will reflect off the rock and your artificial wall. Sit between either of these walls and the fire.

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

Lost hiking in a desert? Here’s how to find water to stay alive

El Mirage Recreation Area, Mojave Desert, Calif.

If lost when hiking in a desert, your most valuable asset – water – likely will soon be in short supply. Your priority then becomes finding a safe supply until you can be rescued. Other than air, water is the most important element you need to survive, and without it in a desert, you will dehydrate and potentially die within a day or two.

While an arid environment, water does exist in the desert. If not, none of the plants or animals around you could survive. The trick them is to find it in the same way that animals or plant roots do.

Here’s a few ways where you can find drinking water in a desert:
g Follow livestock – If you see cattle or sheep grazing on desert grass, follow them when they move. They need even more water than you do and likely will head to a pond or a trough provided by a rancher.
g Locate water pockets – Depressions atop boulders and beneath ledges all can hold water. Before drinking it, however, soak it up with a cloth and purify if possible. If you can’t reach the water, use a hollow reed or other straw to suck in the water and place it in your canteen.
g Dig a seep hole – If there’s no water in a depression but you notice that the ground is damp, dig a hole there. Gradually water will drain and collect in the hole. Patches of green are neon arrows pointing to where such depressions likely exist.
g Find a spring – The lowest levels of a canyon mark the best places to locate a spring. This will be at the mouth of a canyon. From there, work your way upstream, looking for water pockets and damp ground to dig seep holes.

You stand a good chance of becoming sick from drinking any unpurified water in a desert. That can prove even deadlier as any such illness will quickly dehydrate you. Still, sometimes you must gamble that you’ll be rescued before the illness sets in and can suffer through it in the safety of a hospital room.

One last note: Never drink water from a pool in which a dead animal is nearby. The water may have poisoned the animal or the animal before dying may have infected the water puddle.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

Garbage bags prove beneficial as extra item in backpack

Pack a small roll of garbage bags for
your day hike. Illustration courtesy of
King County, Washington.

One of the most useful items to bring on a long day hiking trip is a roll of garbage bags. No, we’re not talking about picking up litter along the trail (Though they can be used for that purpose, and it’s much appreciated, by the way!) but as a useful item in case you get lost and are forced to spend the night in the wilds.

Garbage bags can be cut up and used as makeshift tent walls or tarp to keep you dry or to keep the wind off you. The ends of long sticks can be used as tent poles inserted into tiny holes cut into the garbage bags; you probably have a small scissors in your first-aid kit or multi-purpose tool to cut the holes. The bags also can keep you off the wet, cold ground by acting as flooring in your shelter.

They also can provide a modicum of comfort. Partially fill the garbage bags with leaves and tie off the ends to create a mattress or pillow. You’ll probably need two or three bags to make a large enough mattress for an adult. Filling the mattress with leaves also can give children something constructive to do, helping take their minds of worrying about being lost.

Heavy duty garbage bags work best; the low-cost ones tend to be made of thin plastic that’ll easily rip in a heavy wind or driving rain. Bring a whole roll with you, as you’ll need several bags to construct tents, mattresses and pillows.

Find out about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

If lost on winter hike, build an emergency tree well shelter

The well at the bottom of a tree where no snow falls is
the perfect place to build an emergency shelter.
Photo courtesy of  Wikipedia.

If forced to stay out overnight in the wilds during winter, you’ll want to find shelter right away. This will keep you out of the wind and hopefully ensure you don’t have to lay on the snow, which can lead to hypothermia. Don’t worry if you can’t find a man-made shed or cabin, though – you can build your own shelter in a pinch. One of the easiest to construct is a tree well shelter.

As hiking past evergreen trees, note how there’s a depression of snow around the trunks. Each tree’s canopy of branches limited the amount snow from falling in this zone, which is called the tree well. It’s a perfect place to set up an emergency shelter.

Begin by collecting other boughs that you can prop against the evergreen branches, with the branch’s woody, pole end going into the snow. This is the wall for your shelter. You may need to layer the boughs to minimize the wind coming through it and to ensure that if one bough falls down that there’s no hole in your shelter. Be sure to leave an opening for a doorway and setting aside boughs that can be used to close it.

Next, remove the snow from the tree well by gently pushing it against the boughs used to form the shelter’s walls. Then cover the tree well with boughs. This is the sleeping mat that will keep you off the cold ground.

Have everyone take a potty break at least a hundred feet downwind from the shelter. Finally, once everyone is inside, close up the doorway. Don’t start any fires within this makeshift shelter.

As snow is an excellent insulator, a properly built shelter combined with body heat can result in a pad that is up to 40 degrees warmer than the temperature outside.

Related articles:
g If lost, reassure kids by getting them involved in signaling for help
g Staying the night outdoors because you're lost? Set your priorities
g What to do when lost with children on a hike
g When you have no food but are lost overnight

Find out about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.

How to not get lost on a day hike with kids

Avoid having to stay overnight in the wilds by not getting lost.

“We’re not lost, we’re just misplaced.” – The Man with the Yellow Hat, “Curious George”

You can avoid getting lost simply by staying on the trail. Check your map frequently to make sure you’re on the right trail. Keep in mind specific landmarks that you will see, and upon coming to them, look at the map to note your location and progress. Always check your map when coming to forks or adjoining trails.

Don’t take shortcuts because they usually aren’t. The reason a trail seems to take the long way around is because the “short” way would go through a swamp or across a steep slope. If you take a shortcut, you’ll often have to take a detour, and that almost guarantees you’ll get lost.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

How to avoid a disaster when day hiking with kids

Upon the first sign of danger - such as bad weather
or a distant forest fire - immediately return to your
vehicle and leave the area. Photo courtesy of NPS.

The worst case scenario for a day hiker is getting stuck in the wilds for a night with no way out. This usually happens because the hiker is lost, injured or cut off by some natural calamity like a flashflood or forest fire.

Given this, the best way to avoid such a crisis is to ensure you navigate the trail correctly, that everyone plays it safe, and that you stay out of or leave the wilds on days when the weather turns bad. All of that is easier said than done, of course.

The good news is the chances of you ever having to stay a night or two in the wilds while awaiting rescue are extremely low.

As Marc S., of Lakeport, Calif., notes, “Despite years of going day hiking, including getting lost once and peakbagging a mountain on the day a devastating fire began in the same forest, I’ve never had to go into survival mode and spend a night wondering if it would be the last either my children or I were alive. By being safe and immediately returning to our vehicle when weather looked bad, we’ve always made it back home well in time for dinner.”

Marc S. is right: By playing it safe, you’ll almost always avoid an even more threatening situation. At the same time, strange events can conspire against you, leaving you stuck in the wilds despite your best efforts. In such instances, you’ll need to know how to survive until rescuers reach you.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

How to find drinkable water if lost in wilds

Avoid directly drinking water from a stream, pond or lake.

Use spring water; always boil, filter

If you’re lost or forced to stay a night in the wilds, avoid using local sources of drinking water. Still, sometimes you must take a calculated gamble or dehydration will set in.

The first challenge is to find a source of local water. Spring water is the best discovery, as it runs the lowest risk of being contaminated. Your next best bet is finding flowing water from a stream that is high in the mountains or hills, as it’s more likely than not to be clean as it is close to its source, which is melting snow. Flowing water at the bottom of a mountain or hill is your next best choice. Still water on low-lying land is your worst.

Finding water in a desert
If you’re not lost but simply stuck in the wilds for a night due to an injury, check your topo map. Well-known springs often are marked on them.

In a desert, finding water at all can be nearly impossible, but it is out there if you know where to look. On seasonal waterways, the thicker and greener the vegetation the more likely the chance that you’ll find standing water nearby. A grove of cottonwoods and willows almost guarantees that ground water is nearby. If there isn’t any, dig in the cool sand under a willow, and you may find water only a few inches down. Puddles also may exist under large overhangs and in shaded rock crevices, particularly if they are on a hill’s north side.

To collect the water, simply use one of your canteens or water bottles. Don’t dump out good water that you’ve carried in, however, but combine it with water in another partially filled canteen. If the water source is too shallow for a canteen, spread your handkerchief across the water surface. When the handkerchief has absorbed the water, wring it out into your canteen.

Once you’ve collected water, you need to “clean” it before imbibing. There are three options: use water purification tablets, boil it, or use a water filter.

Boil at least 5 minutes
A variety of water purification tablets are available for sale, so follow the instructions on each packet for the best results. Generally, though, tablets have to sit in the water for at least 30 minutes – and if the water is cold, the tablets may need to mix in it overnight. Tablets always will leave a little aftertaste, ranging from iodine-like to a tart flavoring. Be aware that if you or your child has thyroid problems, water purification tablets may contain iodine and probably should not be used.

If boiling, do so for at least 5 minutes. This will kill Giardia and all but the hardiest microscopic bugs. Boiling won’t remove chemical contaminates, however. In addition, if water is cloudy and you can’t see any life such as fish or amphibians in it, boiling probably won’t make it safe. When boiling water, do not do it in your plastic canteen or water bottle. The plastic likely will melt, or you won’t be able to touch it when hot. Given this, you may want to add “cooking pot” to the list of items for your backpack, but I’d only do so if you’re planning a long hike into the backcountry.

A number of water filters exist, all using different filtration systems and coming in different sizes. Whichever one you choose, make sure the filter pores are smaller than 0.2 microns. Anything larger will allow nasty bacteria to get through and remain in the water.

What are the advantages of each filter over the other? One that lacks iodine won’t remove viruses, so you’ll need to use water purification tablets or iodine anyway. A carbon or charcoal filter will remove chemicals that purification tablets and boiling won’t get rid of. Reverse osmosis filters are best of all, removing almost everything bad and even desalinating sea water. Unfortunately, they’re bulky and expensive, and you probably aren’t going to carry one on a day hike let alone a camping trip.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

What to do if you're lost on a hike with kids

If lost, don't panic. Simply stop walking and see if you
can determine your location and how to get back
to your trail.

Q: How do you know you’re lost?

A: When you don’t know where you are and you don’t know which way to go.

The two are not mutually exclusive.

You could be hiking along a trail and not be able to pinpoint on a map exactly where you are yet still be confident that you’re heading in the right direction simply because no other trails have branched off yours and because key landmarks are easily identifiable on the horizon.

Stop walking
As soon as you’re uncertain where you are and whether or not you’re heading in the right direction, stop walking. It’s time to figure out where you are.

As when searching for someone lost, don’t panic. It’s the greatest danger to anyone who is lost. Just take a rest stop and pull out your maps. Check the topo map and see if you can spot any obvious landmarks. These could include prominent peaks, roads, water towers, power lines or waterways.

If you can’t locate an obvious landmark, consider tracing your way back to the last spot you checked your map and knew you were going in the right direction. From there, either head in the correct direction or return to your vehicle before you get lost again.

Should you see other hikers, don’t hesitate to tell them you’re lost. They’ll probably be able to help you find your bearings. At the very least, they can take you to a trailhead and then hopefully back to your vehicle.

Locate main trail
If lost, you’re probably not too far away from your trail. Experienced hikers know the odds are good that they can get back to the trail.

As Melissa F., of Moab, Utah, advises: “Estimate how much time has passed since you last knew where you were, then estimate how far you probably can walk in that amount of time. If you cover a mile every half hour, and 15 minutes have passed since you last saw a landmark that you knew was on your trail, at worse you’re only a half-mile off course. By knowing the compass direction of a landmark you can identify, you can estimate which direction the trail is.”

Fair warning, though: It’s probably not a good idea to go back to the trail but best to stay where you are and take comfort in knowing that you’ll be fairly easy for rescuers to find. If you keep walking in the wrong direction, you likely will increase the time rescuers need to locate you.

Should you rescue yourself while a search operation is underway, be sure to let a park ranger or the authorities know. There’s no need to continue the search once you’re safe. Such operations are expensive and you may needlessly be draining manpower and resources away from another rescue.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.

Pack small tarpaulin in case of emergencies

If stuck out in the wilds, a tarp can be used to construct an
emergency shelter. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

When your kids are old enough that you’ve traded the baby carrier for a backpack, you may want to consider carrying a small tarpaulin with you.

These can be useful when building an emergency shelter. They also can provide a barrier between a child and the ground should first aid have to be given or if a bed must be made because an emergency forces you to stay the night.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Follow planning list when hiking with kids

Before leaving on any hike with children, plan out your trip. Here’s a useful planning checklist:
g Print a road map showing how to reach the parking lot near the trailhead. Outline the route with a transparent yellow highlighter and write out the directions.
g Print a satellite photo of the parking area and the trailhead. Mark the trailhead on the photo.
g Print a topo map of the trail. Outline the trail with the yellow highlighter. Note interesting features you want to see along the trail and the destination.
g If carrying GPS, program this information into your device.
g Make a timeline for your trip, listing: when you will leave home; when you will arrive at the trailhead; your turn-back time; when you will return for home in your vehicle; when you will arrive at home.
g Estimate how much water and food you will need to bring based on the amount of time you plan to spend on the trail and in your vehicle. You’ll need at least 2 pints of water per person for every hour on the trail.
g Fill out two copies of a hiker’s safety form. Leave one in your vehicle.
g Share all of this information with a responsible person remaining in civilization, leaving a hiker’s safety form with them. If they do not hear from you within an hour of when you plan to leave the trail in your vehicle, they should contact authorities to report you as possibly lost.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Consider bringing pocket mirror on hike

Should you need help when hiking, a pocket mirror can help
attract attention. Photo courtesy of eyeliam / Photoree.

When hiking with kids (or even when not!), a small 2x2 inch pocket mirror can be useful if lost.

By reflecting sunlight off it, you can signal aircraft and attract the attention of other hikers on distant trails should you need help.

Sometimes a first-aid kit comes with a reflective mirror or a space blanket can be folded to serve the same purpose, however.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Carry a flashlight on day hike into wilds

Always carry a flashlight on a day hike into wilderness areas when with kids. If lost and forced to stay the night in the wilds, a flashlight can come in handy. There’s no need to carry anything bulky, though. Micro flashlights with xenon bulbs have a battery life of about eight hours and are more than adequate. Make sure the flashlight is waterproof.

Related articles:
g Carry handy carbiners on next day hike with kids
g Do I need to carry rope on a day hike?

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Hiking children should carry whistle, ID card

Even those parents who keep a close eye on their children sometimes get distracted enough that their child wanders off and gets lost.

To ensure children can let parents know where they are upon becoming lost, have them wear a safety whistle, attached to a lanyard, around their neck. Tell the child in advance that should they become lost to simply blow on the whistle. The sound of a whistle will travel farther than a shout.

Consider including an ID card on the lanyard, especially if the child is a preschooler or of very young elementary school age. In case the lost child is injured but then found by others, the ID card can be useful in providing important medical information.

The ID card should include the child’s name and date of birth, the parents’ names and their contact information (especially a telephone number), blood type, and any allergies.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Search strategies for children lost on hike

If a child is lost, search nearby waterways. Kids often are drawn to water.

Use safety whistle
to help locate
one another

There perhaps is no greater fear among parents than not knowing where their child is. All of us have experienced moments when our child has wandered off when we had turned away only for a second, leaving us feeling totally helpless as we scanned the busy street or mall but couldn’t locate him or her.

When day hiking with children, the potential for a child to amble off and become lost are high. The wilds are full of intriguing sights that can grab a child’s attention while we’re fiddling with gear, trying to reload our backpack, or find ourselves enamored by some vista. Once lost, we know the child is at the mercy of the elements and faces any number of dangers from drowning in water to suffering an injury in a bad fall.

You can decrease the chances of a child becoming lost by taking some precautionary steps. Before heading onto the trail, discuss with your child the importance of always staying in sight of you and of always remaining on the trail. In addition, go over with them what to do if lost: He should stop walking, remain in that spot, and know that you’re looking for him. Finally, always have your child carry a safety whistle, which he should blow on upon realizing he’s lost.

Even then, your child may wander away during a day hike. So what should you do then?

First rule: Don't panic
The first rule is don’t panic. By keeping a cool head, you’ll be able to make the best decisions about finding your child. The odds favor him being very nearby, and if he stopped walking once he realized he was lost and blows on his safety whistle, you’ll find him very quickly.

Next, begin the search by blowing on your whistle to let the child know you’re nearby. The whistle’s sound will travel farther than your voice. Hopefully he will whistle back, and then you can go to him.

If the child does not respond, contact officials immediately, if at all possible, without leaving the area. Even though you may find your child shortly thereafter, he may be injured and need medical attention. With a rescue team on the way, your injured child will receive help sooner.

If there’s no response to the whistle, begin a circular search of the immediate area, walking in a spiral pattern from a central point, known as “home.” If there are others with you, always search in teams, and never send young children to conduct a search. Make sure some of the party stays at “home” so more of you don’t become lost. Have the party at home shout the lost child’s names, and if darkness falls, keep a light shining there.

Pay close attention to bodies of water such as streams and lakes. Children often are attracted to bodies of water and simply may have wandered off to take a look.

Keep child's shirt in vehicle
When rescuers arrive, work with them. Don’t withhold any information and do as they ask. They have a lot of experience at rescue work and really are using the best strategies to quickly find your children.

You also should know what your child was wearing so you can provide good descriptions of them to rescuers.

Also, always keep one of the child’s belongings, such as a recently worn shirt, in your vehicle. Search dogs can use this to get the child’s scent. Some parents even take pictures of the kids’ boot soles so they’ll be easier to locate during a search.

With a little luck, you’ll quickly find your child, and the experience won’t be traumatic. When researching my book Hikes with Tykes: A Practical Guide to Day Hiking with Children, many parents told me that they found their lost child within a minute or two, and that often their child couldn’t understand what all of the fuss was about – he was just over there looking at an interesting bug.

This blog entry originally appeared in the Jan. 18, 2012, edition of Seattle Backpackers Magazine.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

When to do when lost overnight with no food

If lost and forced to stay overnight in the wilds, you may have to forage
for food. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

You're lost and know you’ll need to stay the night in the wilds. Unfortunately, there’s only half of a snack bar and some trail mix crumbs for food. What should you do?

First, reassure your children that all will be all right. Rescue teams or fellow hikers likely will be along soon to help you.

Next, take action. Forage for local berries before darkness sets in so you can see what you’re picking. Some plants are poisonous, so familiarizing yourself with them before heading into the wilds is useful. Among common plants you should avoid are white berries and some varieties of fiddlehead. Stay away from mushrooms unless you are certain they are safe.

Related articles:
g If lost, reassure kids by getting them involved in signaling for help
g Staying the night outdoors because you're lost? Set your priorities
g What to do when lost with children on a hike

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Article by 'Hikes' author in Seattle B.M.

My article "Family Hiking Tips: Lost Kids and Search Strategies" appeared in Wednesday's Seattle Backpacker Magazine, an online magazine dedicated to backpacking. The article lists tips for preventing children from getting lost on hikes and what to do should they wander off and can't be found.

Read more about hiking navigation in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.