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pula58
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PostWed Nov 11, 2020 9:00 pm 
I am surprised that the two guys went down to leave the lake, instead of the obvious up, over the ridge, to get back to Alpental.

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asdf
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 1:04 pm 
pula58 wrote:
I am surprised that the two guys went down to leave the lake, instead of the obvious up, over the ridge, to get back to Alpental.
Well, I guess this goes back to the question of why anyone gets lost. And the answer is, they're not paying attention, and only have a sketch of the hike in their mind's memory. For Snow Lake that sketch was probably something like "gee, we climbed a lot" and so to get back of course you head down. Of course I'm just speculating. But I've been lost before (not SAR-lost, just the kind of "wait is this the same drainage I came up"-lost where you retrace your steps and get back to the car 5 hours late) and that's why, in my case.

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MangyMarmot
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 1:11 pm 
I've made similar mistakes. In hindsight it seems like it should have been obvious that it was the wrong way, but I was preoccupied by something or I made a bad assumption.

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coldrain108
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 1:40 pm 
I've been temporarily disoriented once to where I had to stop, sit down, take a deep breath, formulate a plan. Was off trail, came to the river from the road, 1/4 mile walk through trailess brush. Didn't pay enough attention to landmarks where we came to the river, started excitedly fishing (take a hit to get a hit) . When it was time to return to the car I was not 100% sure where the return point was. Took a few minutes of back tracking and sniffing around. In Wyoming. In 1987. Some cannabis was involved. Started to get dark...in Griz country. I never made that mistake a again. It was an unsettling feeling. I am always the navigator in our hiking adventures - I've got a pretty good internal GPS system. That instance was a spur of the moment adventure - some one told us about a good fishing spot - so no map study before hand. Usually I have the terrain and trails of the area I want to hike in my mind's eye, that way I have the "larger picture" stored in my memory. I take all hikes seriously. The more I do it the greater the odds are that something may happen. I day hike mainly for exercise so I always have way too much gear with me (weight training). I'm always ready to spend an unexpected night out...but I have never had to. 35 years and counting. knock on wood doof.gif

Since I have no expectations of forgiveness, I don't do it in the first place. That loop hole needs to be closed to everyone.
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timberghost
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 2:03 pm 
Did you stop smoking the gange after that?

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kiliki
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 3:22 pm 
I've made a similar mistake too. When backpacking to Waptus Lake I missed the turn and headed up up up Polallie Ridge, though I had a topo, I was looking at it, I could tell I should not be gaining elevation, and yet I hadn't seen any other trail options so I continued on up that stupid steep trail. By the time I figured out that there must have been a trail that I missed I was pissed off and tired and there was snow on top of the ridge and no camp spots so I just turned around and went home lol.

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Opus
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 4:10 pm 
I think a lot of hikers who go on towards Gem Lake, or at least across the Snow Lake outlet, get turned around on the return. You're out of sight of the lake for some distance going up and over another rise and then hit a junction. Awhile ago I passed some people at the outlet log and they asked me to take a photo of them. I did, and they yelled "Gem Lake, woo!". I didn't have the heart to tell them it was still Snow Lake...

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Mike Collins
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 4:20 pm 
car68 wrote:
People going down Rock Creek instead of back to Alpental happens often enough that Rock Creek is part of any search plan involving lost hikers at Snow Lake.
You are absolutely right about this. It happens often enough that the Rock Creek trail should have a sign placed shortly after descending from Snow Lake. "TURN AROUND IF YOU WANT TO GO TO ALPENTAL". It would save everyone a lot of trouble and maybe someone's life.

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coldrain108
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 4:58 pm 
timberghost wrote:
Did you stop smoking the gange after that?
no, but I don't do much fishing anymore... peace.gif

Since I have no expectations of forgiveness, I don't do it in the first place. That loop hole needs to be closed to everyone.
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Randito
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 7:33 pm 
Mike Collins wrote:
You are absolutely right about this. It happens often enough that the Rock Creek trail should have a sign placed shortly after descending from Snow Lake. "TURN AROUND IF YOU WANT TO GO TO ALPENTAL". It would save everyone a lot of trouble and maybe someone's life.
Nah -- not these days -- signs like that are part of the "deep state" so they must be ignored. In all honesty, you would be amazed at what people will ignore to continue going the wrong way once they have got it in their head that they are headed in the right direction. I have certainly observed arguments at signed trail intersections where someone is very insistant that the sign must be wrong.

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BigBrunyon
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 8:24 pm 
Randito wrote:
I have certainly observed arguments at signed trail intersections where someone is very insistant that the sign must be wrong.
If they see a wrong sign then they should take it upon themselves to remove or correct the sign!!!

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Randito
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 8:27 pm 
BigBrunyon wrote:
Randito wrote:
I have certainly observed arguments at signed trail intersections where someone is very insistant that the sign must be wrong.
If they see a wrong sign then they should take it upon themselves to remove or correct the sign!!!
The sign wasn't wrong.

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altasnob
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 9:15 pm 
These skiers take the prize for most "lost." They took a wrong turn from Crystal Mountain ski area and ended up 22 miles away at the closed Ohanapecosh ranger station where they found a pay phone and called home for someone to come pick them up. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/missing-skier-snowboarder-turn-up-at-ranger-station/

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RumiDude
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PostThu Nov 12, 2020 10:11 pm 
Randito wrote:
In all honesty, you would be amazed at what people will ignore to continue going the wrong way once they have got it in their head that they are headed in the right direction.
It's called "bending the map". It's a well known phenomenon. Rumi

"This is my Indian summer ... I'm far more dangerous now, because I don't care at all."
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ChanceShowers
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PostFri Nov 13, 2020 10:43 am 
Randito wrote:
I have certainly observed arguments at signed trail intersections where someone is very insistant that the sign must be wrong.
I've done that to myself! I took a cross-country short-cut and came out on a trail that I *thought* I understood, and followed it to another trail junction. There I found a sign that didn't make sense to me, given where I thought I was. For about three minutes I was convinced that someone had rotated the signpost. All this, even though I'd been at this junction many times before, but from a different direction.

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