LOST IN THE WOODS
YOU WOULDN'T think 4 fairly capable persons, world travellers all, equipped with a compass, a GPS device, a paper map & training, - for one of us as a naval officer & another as a sea-scout- could get lost in a fairly small forest behind our house, but that's what happened. And we've got the scratches & torn clothes to prove it!
It's lovely, "our" forest. Intertwined with trails, a variety of flora, serenaded by many different bird calls as you wander along, we really enjoy going there, especially on hot days, as the coolness under the trees is most welcome.
But each time we go, we seem to get lost. Yesterday, what should have been a half-hour ramble, turned into a bit of an ordeal as we fought our way over cliffs, along semi-dry creek beds, through brambles, over fallen logs, stumbling over roots & vines. It took two hours, TWO HOURS!
I mean, when you keep to the trails, the forest is welcoming, as the trails aren't that hard to follow. Trouble is, the map is useless - the various trails are not marked so you can't tell which one you're on, it only seem to cover about half the paths & trails, so just when you need to orientate yourself, the map is useless.
Our aim was to circumnavigate this swampy lake, which, often more by luck than planning, Pat & I had done a couple of times before, but, again, we took a wrong turn out of the half-dozen or so possibilities presented, bewilderingly unmarked before us as we went along.
And then, when we realised we'd gone wrong, did we turn back? Retrace our steps to the bits we knew already? Oh, no! We marched on, imagining we just had to turn there, turn here....and then we were miles, literally, away from home. We could hear the highway traffic through the impenetrable wall of dense firs. So we dug out the compass, decided on the direction needed, & cut across country. And the country cut across us. Arms & legs were bleeding quite profusely by the time we arrived, exhausted, at home. But curiously, I at least, didn't notice the cuts & scratches as the accumulated, so determined were we to find our path.
And, of course, showers again, clean clothes again, followed by a cool glass of iced coffee for me, & a cuppa for Pat. Lynda's casserole was slightly crispy on top, but we had such an appetite! Ooh! Relief!
It's lovely, "our" forest. Intertwined with trails, a variety of flora, serenaded by many different bird calls as you wander along, we really enjoy going there, especially on hot days, as the coolness under the trees is most welcome.
But each time we go, we seem to get lost. Yesterday, what should have been a half-hour ramble, turned into a bit of an ordeal as we fought our way over cliffs, along semi-dry creek beds, through brambles, over fallen logs, stumbling over roots & vines. It took two hours, TWO HOURS!
I mean, when you keep to the trails, the forest is welcoming, as the trails aren't that hard to follow. Trouble is, the map is useless - the various trails are not marked so you can't tell which one you're on, it only seem to cover about half the paths & trails, so just when you need to orientate yourself, the map is useless.
Our aim was to circumnavigate this swampy lake, which, often more by luck than planning, Pat & I had done a couple of times before, but, again, we took a wrong turn out of the half-dozen or so possibilities presented, bewilderingly unmarked before us as we went along.
And then, when we realised we'd gone wrong, did we turn back? Retrace our steps to the bits we knew already? Oh, no! We marched on, imagining we just had to turn there, turn here....and then we were miles, literally, away from home. We could hear the highway traffic through the impenetrable wall of dense firs. So we dug out the compass, decided on the direction needed, & cut across country. And the country cut across us. Arms & legs were bleeding quite profusely by the time we arrived, exhausted, at home. But curiously, I at least, didn't notice the cuts & scratches as the accumulated, so determined were we to find our path.
And, of course, showers again, clean clothes again, followed by a cool glass of iced coffee for me, & a cuppa for Pat. Lynda's casserole was slightly crispy on top, but we had such an appetite! Ooh! Relief!
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