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pula58 Member
Joined: 13 Aug 2009 Posts: 587 | TRs | Pics
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pula58
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Wed Nov 11, 2020 9:00 pm
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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 Member
Joined: 17 Jul 2005 Posts: 274 | TRs | Pics
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asdf
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 1:04 pm
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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 Member
Joined: 06 Apr 2012 Posts: 473 | TRs | Pics
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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 Thundering Herd
Joined: 05 Aug 2010 Posts: 1858 | TRs | Pics Location: somewhere over the rainbow |
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
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.
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 Member
Joined: 06 Dec 2011 Posts: 1316 | TRs | Pics
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Did you stop smoking the gange after that?
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kiliki Member
Joined: 07 Apr 2003 Posts: 2310 | TRs | Pics Location: Seattle |
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kiliki
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 3:22 pm
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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 Wannabe
Joined: 04 Mar 2006 Posts: 3700 | TRs | Pics Location: The big rock candy mountain |
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Opus
Wannabe
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 4:10 pm
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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 Member
Joined: 18 Dec 2001 Posts: 3086 | TRs | Pics
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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 Thundering Herd
Joined: 05 Aug 2010 Posts: 1858 | TRs | Pics Location: somewhere over the rainbow |
timberghost wrote: | Did you stop smoking the gange after that? |
no, but I don't do much fishing anymore...
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.
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 Snarky Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2008 Posts: 9495 | TRs | Pics Location: Bellevue at the moment. |
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Randito
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 7:33 pm
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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 Member
Joined: 19 Mar 2015 Posts: 1450 | TRs | Pics Location: the fitness gyms!! |
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 Snarky Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2008 Posts: 9495 | TRs | Pics Location: Bellevue at the moment. |
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Randito
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 8:27 pm
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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 Member
Joined: 29 Aug 2007 Posts: 1382 | TRs | Pics Location: Tacoma |
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altasnob
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 9:15 pm
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RumiDude Marmota olympus
Joined: 26 Jul 2009 Posts: 3579 | TRs | Pics Location: Port Angeles |
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RumiDude
Marmota olympus
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Thu Nov 12, 2020 10:11 pm
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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."
"This is my Indian summer ... I'm far more dangerous now, because I don't care at all."
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ChanceShowers Member
Joined: 06 Sep 2018 Posts: 49 | TRs | Pics Location: Seattle |
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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