I got lost in the woods with my dad and 4 year old sister when I was 7. It was at a national park in the West. Not one of the famous ones. I can't remember the name.
We intentionally walked off the trail when we saw a grassy valley that looked gorgeous. My dad said we'd go out there and keep an eye on the patch of trees where our trail was. We probably walked half a mile before turning around. Well, suddenly nothing made sense. We obviously had walked back toward the wrong trees. No trail in site. No human beings in site. This was perhaps 3 PM in mid summer.
For hours we tried every tactic to find a way out. My dad did a great job of inventing little games to keep us mentally busy and so my sister wouldn't get scared. For a long time we followed strings that were tied from tree to tree. That seemed promising at first. But they would merely lead to a little white sign on the tree indicating when it had been inspected.
Now it was getting dense and approaching dark. There were fallen trees and my sister was often running into them or having a difficult time stepping over them. I fully expected we would be out there all night.
My dad said he would take his best shot and pick a direction. He asked my advice and we agreed. We walked at a brisk pace for what seemed like 90 minutes or more. Eureka. I'll never forget that emotion when we emerged over a small knoll and found a perimeter road. My dad was furious when the first few cars didn't stop when he tried to wave them down. One of them almost hit hit, veering away at the last second. It was now very dark. I didn't share my dad's distress because I was convinced we were now home free. Someone would stop.
A young guy in a pickup truck finally pulled over. He had heard the story about 3 tourists who were missing. He knew exactly where to take us, because he had heard a search party was being formed at the lodge.
But we were miles and likes from the lodge, and from where we thought we were. That was the shocking aspect. It's the reason I never doubt these stories of people getting lost and losing sense of direction.
It was perhaps a 15 minute drive to the lodge. Once we got inside the rangers were indeed having a meeting. They had moved many tables together and had maps laid out on top of them, discussing strategy. We found out they were making plans for a helicopter but didn't think they could get out before morning. My mom had reported us missing a couple of hours earlier. I guess the news spread rapidly. For whatever reason I was hesitant to talk to the rangers so I stayed back near the entrance as my dad went up to them and thanked everyone for everything they had done, while apologizing for our mistake and explaining what happened. I still retain all the mental images and I've always been a bit annoyed at myself for not going up there and adding my input.
My mom had very little emotion when we were finally reunited. That was an oddity and something we could never fully rationalize. But mom said she was never really worried, that she knew we would figure a way out of there. After all, we camped every year and went on hikes all the time.
Many times before he death I told mom that it was much more precarious out there than she ever realized. My 4 year old sister was just starting to cry and get scared when we happened to find that small perimeter road.
Anyway, I'm sure some of these things are fabrications but based on my own experience I never underestimate the chance to get turned around and wander miles away from where you think you are.