I Got Lost Today on Hiking Trail -- Lessons Learned

[JudyJB]

I had a very exhausting and scary experience today I wanted to share with all of you. I am in Organ Pipes National Monument and temps were supposed to go to 88 today. There is no electric and generator time does not start until 4:00 pm, so after taking a morning tour and having a quick lunch, I headed off for a hiking trail to take some photos of cactus in bloom because I did not want to hang around my hot RV. One of the campers here had told me last night there were lots of things in bloom and the first part of the trail was easy, and the trail was about a mile long. So, even though it was about 84, I took off with a bottle of water, my sun hat, and camera at about 1:30 pm on my bike to the trailhead.

The trail was supposed to be about a mile long and relatively flat. After walking the flat part and then slightly uphill, the trail got narrower and at one point, at least to me, disappeared. I reached a point where I could go straight, left, or right. I took the left trail because it headed downhill, but then it petered out, and I started cutting across the area, but walking through plants and cactus. It was very rocky, and I almost fell several times. I ran out of water, and had to rest several times in a very small amount of shade. I was really exhausted and had trouble getting my breath because it was so strenuous, but I did not want to go all the way back the way I had come because I figured I was more than halfway to the end. Finally, another couple was coming towards me and helped me get back on the right path. (They would have offered me water but did not have any with them because they also thought it was short!)

Here is what I did right and wrong:
1) Good thing - I stopped at the campground kiosk and asked for a trail map, but they did not have one. In fact, there are no detailed trail maps of that trail. I thought I had enough water for an easy, short trail.
2) Bad decision - I should have taken my cell phone and walking stick. I probably also should have taken a small flashlight. I should also not have listened to a fellow camper. I should have gone to the visitor center and got more information. I also probably should not have tried hiking in the heat.

When I got off the trail, I rode my bike to the visitor center and asked to speak to the head ranger. He took my pulse and got me some water and found me a place to sit near the AC to cool off because I looked awful. First, it turns out the trail is 1.5 miles long and considered moderately difficult! Here is what I told him:

1) That trail starts out wide and has rocks marking the sides, but in the middle it looks like whoever maintained it just gave up. They should have rocks on the sides and/or red flags on bushes the entire length. Where there is an old trail or an animal trail branching off, they should put rocks or an arrow sign.
2) There were no detailed trail map signs at the beginning or end of the trail, which there should be. (People walk both directions.)
3) In addition, there should be markers with numbers or signs telling you how long the trail is both at the beginning and periodically along the way. There was nothing telling me how long or difficult the trail was. It's on the website, but that is not enough. I told him I did not expect the park staff to protect me from everything, but information would have been nice.

Anyway, I also wrote all of this on a satisfaction survey. Hope they do something about it!

[chalet05]

Glad it turned out okay! As Liz and I learned at Organ Pipe, always check at the Visitor Center! Granted our situation was for a different reason.

Curious as to which trail it was - did it have a name?

[Acadianmom]

I'm glad you are ok. I hope they take your advice on marking the trail better.

There are a lot of campgrounds we should carry flashlights in. We go off to visit and it gets dark and we have to find our way back to our site in the dark. I have been at rally's where someone has fallen in the dark. It's not just falling over something. Some places there are snakes you don't want to step on.

Martha

[JudyJB]

The trail was Desert View near the group camp. I looked in the park flyer last night and it said it was "relatively easy" which contradicts the ranger at the visitor center calling it "moderately difficult". Going to stop at visitor center before I leave and point that out. It was steep enough in a many places to have steps. I would expect relatively easy to be more flat.

Also the park flyer said there were benches along the trail. Not true.

Walmarts has in their camping area small led flashlights for $1 that come with the batteries. I buy a bunch of them for grandkids who use them and end up taking them home. I could easily have taken one of those and will in future in case I get stuck on trail and it gets dark.

[mtngal]

Judy, that must have been very scary! Thanks for sharing and lessons learned. (I would add, it's almost always a bad idea to leave trail to go cross country).

My best hiking (and walking in new city) tool (besides a paper map) is an app called Gaia. Spendy at 20$ but well worth it for piece of mind. It tracks my location via GPS and works without cell service IF the map has been previously down loaded.

[SoCalGalcas]

Good for you reporting this to the head ranger! Putting out a brochure with incorrect info is a horrible thing to do! Glad your hike turned out to be OK for you. I always carried the Sierra Clubs 10 essentials when hiking!!! Now, if you ask me what they are, I will have to look it up!!! My daughter and I got lost in the forest once many years ago...we finally got back to the camper at 12:30 AM. Both exhausted. Long story, however, we started out the hike with NO map. lyn

[MandysMom]

Sierra club lists:
All could fit in a small backpack.
To Carry With You On a Hike

Map
Compass
Flashlight (with spare batteries & bulb)
Extra food and water
Extra clothing
Pocket knife
Fire starter
Matches (in waterproof container)
Sunglasses and sunscreen
First aid kit
To Keep in the Car

Water, pack, boots
Spare motor oil and tools
Spare clothes and personal items
Extra car keys outside car
Jumper cables
Car jack
Tow cable and shovel
Maps
Alarm clock
Blanket or tarp to cover visible items.
[SOURCE: ANGELES CHAPTER Leadership Training Committee (LTC): LEADER'S REFERENCE BOOK]

[bluepinecones]

So glad you mad it safely out. Hope the ranger can get some better info available for future hikers too

[snowball]

it is so easy to get turned around in the desert very scary when you do..done it but not as badly ....knew where I was knew where I needed to go just
couldn't figure out the missing dot...turns out I was further than I thought..
phones come in handy...if you know where you are so glad you are ok
and that others came along...
miss information isn't good and only by letting someone know can they discover what is wrong
sheila

[JudyJB]

I knew I should not take off cross-country, but I was already off the trail when I realized I did not know where the trail was. There were a lot of animal trails and such, which all looked like the trail I had been on. A lady on my tour this morning said she had hiked that trail and there was a spot where the trail turned a sharp right, more than 90 degrees, and where they had spread gravel to enable water from a small wash to cross the trail. That might be where I got off the trail. In any case, if a trail takes a 90 degree turn, there should be an arrow or something to identify the turn, especially on a trail identified as easy.

The other thing is that I could see the campground in the distance and the road I had ridden into the trail head, and much of the time I could see the parking lot--just could not get to it because I could not find the trail!

I did find out there were two benches at the very top of the hill the trail goes up. I think "benches on trail" needed to be more specific because to me that sounds like places to sit and rest along the way. I did not stop at the visitor center on my way out today, but I am going to call that ranger tomorrow.

I like that list. A light jacket is hard to think of when it is hot outside, but it gets very cold at night.

[SoCalGalcas]

Thanks Velda for that list. Matches were useless when we were lost as the pupils become enlarged at night, and as soon as the match is struck, one is blind!!! Yes, flashlight for sure!!! lyn

[MandysMom]

Lyn, matches are for fire starting to keep warm. Remember this is a general all purpose list for hikes.
Flashlight for sure too.
Velda

[elkriverrats]

So glad it turned out alright. It can be easy to get off trail. I have tried to get in the habit of taking my pack with most of the items listed in an earlier post. Sometimes I feel silly thinking it's overkill for a short little hike, but after reading this post I will not feel that way again!