[Slugman]

If I don't call in by midnight on the last day of the trip, my GF Tanja will call 911 (and she will have detailed, accurate info to give them). If I ever got into trouble, it would be a great comfort to me to know that SAR will be out at first light looking for me. But I also don't want any unnecessary searches to be done because of me, so I am careful to leave myself enough time to get to a phone before midnight. If I don't call in by then, something is definitely wrong.

[jalepeno]

This is a great topic! It has inspired years of spirited conversation at home since a ski trip twenty years ago when I was benighted in the Sierra Nevada, due to poor planning and a late start. My friend and I kept skiing in the dark because he had told his wife to call SAR at 11 PM if we weren't back. The snow was icy. I dropped my flashlight and skied up to the edge of a cliff that I couldn't see in the dark. The safer thing to do would have been to hole up until morning light and ski out the next day. We had extra food and warm clothing. It wasn't snowing. We would have been fine. So now I always add in an extra day for multi day trips or a half day for single day outings as the time to call.

[1k]

I made a deal with my wife when I go for day hikes. She gets a call by sunset in exchange for not worrying about me until then.