Boy Dies In Death Valley National Park

Many times, our technology can give the false illusion of safety. Increasing numbers of people have started to rely on GPS units in the back-country and for navigation. Although this can be a handy tool, basic map and compass skills are still a vital and necessary asset for survival.

This Fox News article, covers the recent death of an 11 year old boy who died from dehydration in Death Valley National Park. The story quotes:

An 11-year-old boy died in the intense heat of Death Valley National Park after he and his mother became stranded in one of the world's most inhospitable areas and survived for several days on bottled water, Pop-Tarts and cheese sandwiches, authorities said Friday.

Alicia Sanchez, 28, was found severely dehydrated and remained hospitalized in Las Vegas a day after being found with her dog, her dead son and a Jeep Cherokee buried up to its axles in sand.

She told rescuers in California's San Bernardino County that her son Carlos died Wednesday, days after she fixed a flat tire and continued into Death Valley, relying on directions from a GPS device in the vehicle.

The story goes on to say that

"A GPS does not replace a map, a compass, checking in at the visitor center and letting people know where you're going to be," Pennington said.

He said searchers mistakenly looked late Wednesday for Sanchez in campgrounds in the Panamint Mountains, based on family members' reports that she planned to camp in free sites and visit the Scotty's Castle attraction in the far northeast corner of the vast national park.

This story illustrates how vital it is to take precautions while traveling in the back-country. Always let someone know your itinerary and check in with officials before starting out. Always carry a map and a compass. You never know what will happen in the back-country wilderness. Do not rely on technology to save you. Rely on yourself.

Be prepared and give the wilderness the respect it deserves. To read about how you can hone your back-country skills if you become lost, click here. We've had some close calls ourselves.

Storing Hiking and Backpacking Gear Effectively

Whenever I get ready for another hike or another backpacking trip, I seem to scurry around like a mouse for an hour or two, gathering all my gear and checking off my list, afraid of forgetting something. After our last backpacking trip, however, we have devised a simple system to make getting ready for trips easier and smoother. And the less time it takes to get ready, the more time spent hiking or on the trail!

Hang a "Master List" in the closet that holds your gear.

We decided to print ours out and laminate it, that way we can cross off things we have with a marker and wipe it clean for next time. This is a great time saver, since we don't have to hunt down where the list is- it's already there! Make a checklist for day hikes and backpacking trips and categorize them by seasons. Since hiking in the winter requires additional gear, have a separate list for it.

RePack each backpack at the end of each trip, leaving out only food, water, toiletries and clothing.

This saves a huge amount of time. Wash everything that needs to be immediately after each trip and repack. Make a separate list of items that belong in the pack permanently. Make sure to leave out items like sleeping bags so that they don't loose their fill, especially if they are down. Now all you need to do for the next trip is grab and go!

Sort through gear at the end of every trip and re-evaluate.

Determine at the end of each trip, when your memory is the freshest, whether you needed or used a particular item. If it's not one of the 10 essentials and you don't use it, toss it. This helps to bring down over-all pack weight over time. Make a list of items that need replacing and repairing as well, such as first aid items that were used or a broken tent zipper. If you don't do it now, chances are you will forget and have trouble during your next trip.

These system has worked out great so far, and I cannot imagine going back to my former scurrying!

Do you have a system/strategy when it comes to storing gear for the next trip? Share in the comments below!

Shawnee Backpack Trail Trip Report

Last weekend we went off on an overnight backpacking trip to Shawnee State Forest. Camp 6 is reputed to being the prettiest campsite in the entire forest, so we set our sights on getting them by nightfall. The camp is located about 10 miles from the trail head and is surrounded by tall pine trees and nestled next to a babbling brook. We passed the campsite on a previous trip, and so were very excited about staying there finally.

After passing up camp 7, we hiked about a half mile or so before reaching a clearing with no marking. Little did we know that we had missed the turn off for the trail a quarter mile ago. Thinking we were still on the trail, we plodded along on the random ATV trail we had been following. An hour went by and there was still no sign of an orange blaze. I started to panic.

How could we be lost? It's definitely something that no one plans on being. It was very easy to miss the improperly marked turnoff, however. I had settled on camping on the rough ATV trail that night (it was growing dark) and filtering water from a small mud stream nearby. Miraculously, we soon emerged out of the humid foliage and found the trail. But there was one problem.

We didn't know which way to go. Studying the map, we tried to determine where we were based on elevation. The forest service maps did not include unmarked ATV routes, so we could not even identify that. Finally, Chiliman determined that we needed to go south and that we needed to turn left in order to do so according to the position of the sun. I thought he was probably right, but I also thought that we should stay low in elevation, which is where the campsite would have been located. We decided to go right.

Two hours later from when we passed camp 7, we arrived right back at camp 7. It was disheartening. We had backtracked terribly, and it was partly my fault for misjudging Chiliman's instinct. The real curplit? Unmarked trail. If you are heading out to Shawnee State Forest to backpack, please note that there is a drastic one-hundred degree righthand turn a quarter of a mile from camp 7 on your way to camp 6. The turn is hidden amongst brush and overgrowth.

Unmarked, improperly marked or even unmaintained trails are easy to get lost on. This was the first time we did not bring a compass with us, and it was the first time we needed it.

To avoid getting lost on a trail, pay attention at all times. Do not move forward unless you see a marker or a blaze indicating the proper direction. We plowed straight ahead on what we assumed was the trail, but it turned out to be a misleading ATV track. This can happen to you too. Be prepared. Bring a map and a compass at all times. If you have a GPS unit, I would bring that too. If you become lost- do not go any further! Backtrack until you find yourself back on the trail or in familiar surroundings.

I hope this helps prepare you either for a trek in Shawnee State Forest, or any other backpacking adventure where backcountry hiking is involved.