Refuge Notebook
Peninsula Clarion Article
Dated
13 August 1999
 Lost
in the Woods
by Robin West
Most years the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge
gets actively involved in search and rescue efforts to find someone who gets turned
around while out hiking or hunting. I say "turned around" because most of us don't
like to use the word "lost." Sometimes, however, folks just plain get lost. It
can happen to anyone. The condition in which we ultimately find these folks is
largely dependent upon how prepared they were physically and mentally before they
went into the woods.
Everyone who travels in the woods should carry a personal
survival kit and suitable outdoor clothing. I suggest the minimum survival items
should include dependable fire building supplies, something with which to build
a small shelter (such as a tinfoil space blanket), and some high-energy foods.
Clothing should include layers of warm material that will retain your body heat
even if wet (such as wool or polar fleece). Always tell someone where you are
going, when you expect to get back, and what to do if you don't make it back on
time. This can make a huge difference in having a short and successful search
and rescue effort versus a long and wide-ranging wild goose chase.
Many people
are carrying cell phones nowadays, and these have definitely helped locate some
lost souls. They are especially valuable if there is any possibility of a medical
emergency that might require a helicopter Medivac.
Keeping from getting lost
has been a life-long goal of mine (and someday I may achieve it). Having, and
knowing how to use, a good compass is the key. I say a good compass in remembering
a story my Dad once told me about the Tate's Compass Company. Supposedly the compasses
were so unreliable that a saying was formed: he who has a Tate's is lost. Seriously,
most compasses function adequately, but they can be adversely affected by being
in close proximity to metal (such as belt buckles, knives, gun barrels, or the
hood of a car). Also, regular readings should be taken with the compass at the
beginning of a trip. Pulling out the compass after you are already lost may be
of little value unless you have previous knowledge about the general lay of the
land. Finally, remember that magnetic north lies 24 degrees to the east of true
north on the Kenai Peninsula.
I find it extremely easy to get completely turned
around on Refuge forests. The sky is often cloudy, so the sun direction isn't
available. Our forests tend to be very homogeneous and look the same in every
direction on a cloudy day, and the trees are often tall and dense enough to block
the view of the mountains to the east. Road noise from the Sterling Highway is
helpful if you are within a few miles of the Highway. If you are in the Swanson
River Road area or further north, you can get oriented by noting that the larger
planes often fly on a northeast-southwest line between the Kenai and Anchorage
airports.
Nowadays backcountry travelers can use a GPS (global positioning
system) unit, which is a neat compact device that act as a receiver for location
information transmitted from satellites. If you plan on using one of these instruments,
be sure and practice with it before you get off the beaten path. They can be very
confusing when you are cold and wet, and don't know which button to push.
GPS
owners should know that some GPS units on and after August 22, 1999 might be affected
by the "end-of-week rollover." This is sort of a Y2K issue that has important
safety implications. The GPS end-of-week rollover happens every 1,024 weeks (about
every 20 years). When the GPS counter rolls back to zero weeks, any of the following
could happen: the unit will be unable to locate satellites, more time than usual
may be necessary to locate satellites, or, the unit may appear to be working correctly
but will display inaccurate information. You may wish to check with the manufacturer
to see if you should expect problems with your particular GPS unit after August
21.
I suspect that a few folks will be caught by surprise and get angry when
their GPS units don't perform up to their expectations in the near future. As
for me, I intend to blame my non-Y2K compliant GPS, as well as my Tate's compass,
if I happen to get turned around in the near future.
Robin West is a wildlife
biologist by training and is the refuge manager of the Kenai National Wildlife
Refuge.
Last updated: June 16, 2008
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