The Day I Forgot To Use My Skills

The following post has been provided by our friend and this month's highlighted YouTube Subject Matter Expert wall2rockclimber...Thanks!

Mike Dixon of Stonage Bushcraft

Name: Mike Dixon
YouTube ID: wall2rockclimber

Facebook: "Mike Dixon"

Twitter: "stoneagemike"

Occupation: Wilderness living skills, bushcraft and survival instructor

Website: http://www.stoneagebushcraft.com  also, check out Mike's new shop!

A while back now I decided to take a trip to a woodland I know very well, but I decided to do this via the train. This is something in which I haven’t done before going to this woodland. Now I knew there would be a “short” walk to the part of the woods I had arranged to meet a few friends, or so I thought.

I would say I am a very competent map and compass user and always check and double check the map before I make any decision on taking a turning in a road or a different track in the woods. This time I didn’t need my compass so once I orientated my map I placed it away in my pocket, not my mistake here though once I walked about 2km up the track and took all the right turnings I came to a junction that was not on the map and what was worse the small road off to the right has a small close with brand new housing there, this too was not on my map. I sat down on this junction and had something to eat and drunk a litre of water, my plan was to wait 25mins to see if anyone would drive down the road and if not to make a decision on which way to go, at the 25minute mark no-one had come anywhere near me so I decided that I was going to try and get signal to my smart phone and check up on Google maps where I was and what direction to take.

I walked around for about 20minutes looking like a lunatic waving and holding my phone up to the sky trying to get just a little signal for the GPS to work, this did not happen so I had to search the place manually something that I’m quite used to now so it didn’t take me long to find my whereabouts then take the turning off I needed to get there.

I planned on walking about an hour and a half with two planned stops along the way it should have took two hours, well I estimated I was actually another two hours away without the planned stops, not to worry though I could always stop in the woods and camp the night as I had planned a day in loo for myself to settle in. I had to walk down long dark lanes in the countryside which I had planned for so I brought two luminous orange bandanas to put on my rucksack, I still hated doing this though as it seemed all the cars disregarded me being on the road and went even faster past me.

What was worse on this trip was nothing that you have read by now, what is coming up really brought back the usefulness of making sure you note way points on the map. I managed to find a path that would considerably cut the next leg of my walk in half, this path was through a woodland using one of the many bridle paths to get there. Another two hours had passed and now my shoulders were really feeling the weight in my pack and I had no idea how much longer this walk would take. I made three mistakes from this point on;

1) I got to a sign that pointed to a place that was about 1km from the meeting point, it stated it was 3km up the track.

2) I did not check the map at this point to make sure I knew which direction to walk.

3) I thought I knew a short cut and tried cutting off a section of the path, which took me about 3km off where I needed to be.

So what did I do? Well I was lost and I knew it! Now I teach how not to get lost and I had to laugh to myself when this happened. I STOPPED, I SAT DOWN, I had a brew (Coffee) and I got my MAP out! I looked around and got my bearings, orientated the map and triangulated my whereabouts within a 500 metre range. I was sat in a saddle in the Surrey hills miles from a road and actually was so happy, I had got myself in the situation that we plan for, but I had all the kit I needed for a very comfortable week in the woods my only problem with this being that I had planned to meet 4 friends in the woods at a specific time and place.

I decided to climb up on side on the saddle to the top of this hill I thought there would be a good view of the surroundings. I was wrong again just dense woodland everywhere I looked, again I laughed to myself I took a deep breath and just listened to the sounds of the woods. Then within a few seconds I heard what I needed to find my way 3 airplanes in circling pattern ready to land at Gatwick airport, when I heard the descending noise they give off I knew which way to walk. My kit was on my back within minutes and off I walked for another 3km up and down hills just listening to the sounds of aircraft in the sky. What a sigh of relief when I got to somewhere I knew very well but by now it had taken me 6 hours and I was very tired and very hungry. I stopped on my favourite view point for the area which over looked the south of England most of which is open farm fields but I enjoyed the view all the same.

The next day I explained to my friends what had happened to me and had a very good laugh about the whole day, something that I learned that day was to stay true to what I teach and preach. It doesn’t matter whether you think you know, why not double check with a map (that is in date of course!)