You Are Never Lost, Only Misplaced…©

The only portrait of Daniel Boone, painted from life, by Chester Harding in June 1820¹

Daniel Boone when he was eighty-four, was asked by Chester Harding if he had ever been lost on one of his long hunts as he did not carry a compass, he answered "I have never been lost, but I was once bewildered for three days"². 

You are in the woods, nothing looks right, and you have started going through the S.T.O.P. acronym: you have stopped and sat down, thought, and then realized that you don’t know where you are or how to get back to where you were.  The next thought that you have might be the most important one you ever have.

For years I have taught that, YOU ARE NEVER LOST, ONLY MISPLACED, because misplaced things are found, lost things are not and that is scary.  The reason that this distinction is important, is that in the woods, PANIC kills, and sometimes word games make all of the difference in your ability to deal with “wood shock” and panic.

So decide that you are misplaced, not lost and finish S.T.O.P., by organizing and planning for your “unexpected overnighter”.  Hopefully, you have thought ahead and have a survival kit or at least some of the 10 Essentials in your pocket.  If so your unexpected adventure will be more comfortable, if not it will be harder and next time you go out into the woods, I hope that, you will be better prepared.

Things to remember:

1.      Keep yourself calm by singing, whistling or even telling yourself jokes or stories. Do anything it takes to make yourself feel better.  Use your imagination to pretend you are somewhere else that you really enjoy.

2.      You usually do not have to worry about wild animals; they do not like to be near people.  If they hear or smell you, they will usually run away.

3.      If you hear a noise in the woods, a good rule is “Answer a Noise with a Noise”, so make noise back.  If it is an animal, it will run away, if it is a searcher then you are found.  So blow your whistle if you have one, and you should always have one if you go into the wilderness, sing your favorite song, bang a stick on a log or a rock, or shout.

4.      Remember that nothing changes just because the sun goes down and it gets dark.  The fear of dark is easily overcome by memorizing your surroundings while it is light so that you can see with your memory when it gets dark. 

If you are a young person, remember that even though your parents have told you “not to talk to strangers”, there are “Friendly Strangers” who will help you if you are "misplaced".  Searchers are safe to talk to, even though they are strangers, because just like a police officer in the mall, they “work there”, in the woods looking for people.  In addition, “Friendly Strangers” usually work in groups and wear a uniform.  If you are a young person, also remember that your parents are not going to be mad that you were misplaced.  They are going to be happy when you are found!

So, it is okay if you become disoriented in the woods, misplaced people just have to wait to be found and even woodsman as great as Daniel Boone become “bewildered” from time to time.

Notes:

¹ Wikimedia, “Unfinished Portrait of Daniel Boone”

² Margaret E. White, Editor, A Sketch of Chester Harding, Artist Drawn By His Own Hand,

References:

Wikimedia, “Unfinished Portrait of Daniel Boone”, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Unfinished_portrait_of_Daniel_Boone_by_Chester_Harding_1820.jpg, (accessed 9/21/2018)

Margaret E. White, Editor, A Sketch of Chester Harding, Artist Drawn By His Own Hand, (Houghton, Mifflin and Company, New York [1890]) p 47-48 reprinted in https://books.google.com/books?id=zgROAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48&dq=%22he+had+a+very+large+progeny%22+%22chester+harding%22&source=bl&ots=I9y_v-yRI2&sig=qxwqKUR9y42naWBjhoArGJi2P5U&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj4goGi7czdAhXEnOAKHWvECaoQ6AEwAHoECAUQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22he%20had%20a%20very%20large%20progeny%22%20%22chester%20harding%22&f=false, (accessed 9/21/2018)