Don't panic. Don't panic. Don't panic.
Yeah - easier said than done, when it starts in the pit of your stomach and works its way up...
BTDT - never (quite) lost control tho. And never been in more than mild hypothermia.
That’s very true. I learned early on that a cool, calm, collected approach is the best way to face life and death matters but even the most trained and competent individuals can find themselves starting to “panic”. Panic doesn’t necessarily manifest itself by erratic movements and illogical behavior, it can be confused or misleading thoughts like my compass is broken and my GPS is wrong, etc.
In the times where I’ve gotten myself into a precarious situation outdoors I have sat myself down to reflect, even in the pouring rain. I determine whether I am in fact lost and now wandering rather aimlessly or admit whatever I’m currently facing to myself. That’s when I prioritize the importance of survival over “getting back”.
One time years ago I was elk hunting in a new area high above the Teanaway river with a few friends. I was paired up with “Mike” an Army intel guy attached to a Ranger Btn. He was a great guy but that’s when I realized that there was a difference between a Ranger and being attached to the Ranger’s. 😁. We were dropped (followed them in my truck) in the early darkness into a new area that was only quickly described to us before getting out. I made the mistake of following the advice of my friends and not equipping myself properly for the new area. Long story short we were lost and had no idea where we’d parked. By this point of the afternoon everything looked familiar because we’d walked in circles, squares, triangles….everything but find the truck. The sun was going to be behind the mountains in less than an hour and my decisions switched to survival based decisions rather than getting back to the truck and getting comfortable. We found a spot to make a spike camp and began setting it up. Gathered wood and built a little fire which brought about a renewed clarity….the magic of a campfire or beach fire cannot be underrated. Somehow I realized…or maybe a good guess, or divine intervention?….that the trail I had found and we’d begun to camp by was the trail that led back to the truck so I told him to stay with the fire and I wouldn’t deviate off the trail but if it was correct I’d fire a shot and he’d snuff the fire and follow the trail. Sure enough I got lucky and we were back to our buddies ranch an hour or so later.
I learn a lot through my mistakes and based on that fact alone I should be the smartest guy in the world 😂 but thankfully the good Lord has allowed me to have the temperament to stay calm when it mattered and make good decisions, at least good enough to survive. Unfortunately my mistakes could have been fatal for someone else if they were to make different choices in those same circumstances. Both of our hypothetical mistakes would’ve been identical but the outcome would’ve been the opposite…simply because one stayed calm and thought about the long game while the other person made choices for the short game…getting ASAP to the comfort of home and others.
