Search-and-rescue teams across the state perform 1,500 missions every year, said Joe Carter, regional assistant with the Department of Local Affairs.
Common mistakes
Hikers, mountain bikers and campers often make the mistake of not telling someone where they are going and don’t have good knowledge of the area where they are going, said Butch Knowlton, director of the La Plata County’s Office of Emergency Management.
In many cases, people don’t know their friend or co-worker is lost or missing until they fail to show up for work. That’s why it is important to tell someone where you are going, where you’ll be parked and exactly what time you’ll be home, Knowlton said.
This also limits the area search-and-rescue teams have to comb through looking for lost hikers. If a person didn’t tell anyone where he or she was going, the search starts by finding the missing person’s car and trying to limit the possible areas the lost hiker is in.
Panicking is the biggest mistake people make when they realize they are lost, said MK Thompson, conservation education assistant at the San Juan Mountains Association.
If hikers lose the trail, they typically start wandering trying to find the trail, and they become only more disoriented, she said.
“The experts say if you are really lost, you should stay put and focus more on keeping yourself healthy, especially if you did tell somebody where you are,” Thompson said. “Someone is going to come find you, so better to not make yourself more lost.”
Tips for survival
The first thing a lost hiker should look for is shelter.
It needs to be as close to a natural shelter as possible, so energy isn’t wasted, Thompson said, and it won’t need to be very big, so body heat won’t be lost heating up the space.
Ideally, the shelter will be in an open space so a search-and-rescue team can find the lost hiker. Also, the shelter should be close to a water source, but not directly next to raging water, so the hiker can hear rescuers.
Large trees, like spruce, make a good shelter against the rain because the branches give protection against the moisture, Knowlton said.
Humans can live for about three weeks without food, but only three days without water, so getting water is the second priority.
Frosty Pines, a nonprofit wilderness-education group, hosts a Lost in the Woods class to teach kids and teenagers all of this and more. The kids learn how to use a map and compass, navigate using the stars and how to filter water and start a fire. They also learn about the dangers of animals in Southwest Colorado.
“We did an exercise that this is our home. It may not have four walls and a television and be cozy and warm all the time, but it is our home,” said Marcie Morgan, executive director of Frosty Pines. “If we can get across to them that the wilderness is their home, they won’t feel so lost.”
Frosty Pines will offer an advanced class for adults at the end of July.
Take precautions
Many hikers carry personal-locator devices, such as the one manufactured by SPOT, a firm that makes emergency-notification devices. The device allows a hiker to check in with family and track his or her progress. By activating a feature, it sends a GPS location to the GEOS International Emergency Response Coordination Center, which alerts authorities worldwide when emergency-notification devices are used and gives a location for the device.
Other hikers carry satellite phones, which connect to orbiting satellites rather than cell towers.
Knowlton recommends everyone buy a Colorado Outdoor Recreation Search and Rescue Card.
A card costs $3 for one year and $12 for five years, and revenue from the fees goes to the Search and Rescue Fund. If a hiker has the state’s search-and-rescue card, agencies involved in a search can seek reimbursement for their costs.
Those who have purchased a hunting or fishing license, or who have registered their boat, snowmobile or all-terrain vehicle are also covered by the fund.
Carter warns the card is not insurance, though, and will not reimburse individuals for medical transport.
A person who may need to be rescued by search-and-rescue crews is not charged unless he or she require medical transport, but rescues can be expensive for agencies.
Aircraft are used during most rescues in La Plata County, and they cost $1,200 an hour, Knowlton said.
A Colorado Outdoor Recreation Search and Rescue Card can be purchased online at https://dola.colorado.gov/corsar_order/order_instructions.jsf or at participating vendors. The state’s website has a list of those vendors.
jdahl@durangoherald.com
Volunteer Cameron Crofford, 13, walks past one of the shelters made during Lost in the Woods, a winter survival class for kids, held near Vallecito Reservoir. Cameron is the son of Tom Molinelli and Marcie Morgan.
Instructor Tom Molinelli, left, said the purpose of Lost in the Woods is to teach kids basic survival skills such as navigating, building shelters, making fire, foraging for food and finding water.
“Out in the elements like that, you can really die, really quickly,” said instructor Tom Molinelli, center, as he gives pointers on how to build a fire to Noah Spangler, 12, left, and Cooper Williamson, 7, right, during Lost in the Woods, a winter survival class for kids, conducted near Vallecito Lake. Noah is the son of Mark Spangler and Kelly Sems, and Cooper is the son of Kendrick and Amanda Williamson.
Volunteer Jessica Cook, left, Bailey Spangler, 11, and volunteer Cameron Crofford, 13, try sheep sorrel during Lost in the Woods, a winter survival class for kids, held near Vallecito Reservoir. Bailey is the daughter of Mark Spangler and Kelly Sems, and Cameron is the son of Tom Molinelli and Marcie Morgan.
Nine-year-old James Chenowith warms his hands after helping build a shelter and find water during Lost in the Woods, a winter survival class for kids, held near Vallecito Reservoir. James is the son of Jim and Nicola Chenowith.
Instructor Tom Molinelli says clean, giardia-free drinking water can be found when you dig a hole near a stream. Morgan Crofford, 10, watches Tom, his dad, at a winter survival class for kids held near Vallecito Reservoir.
Students discover that in their zeal to get warm they have ripped their emergency blanket, during Lost in the Woods, a winter survival class for kids, held near Vallecito Reservoir. Students, from left, are Jessica George, 12; James Chenowith, 9; Paden Williamson, 10; and Bailey Spangler, 11. Jessica is the daughter of James and Trisha George. Paden is the son of Kendrick and Amanda Williamson.
