Washington Trails Association comments on the welcome news that a woman was found after spending two nights in the woods.

It also underscores an important point: fall and winter hiking in the mountains is much riskier than in summer. Always carry the 10 essentials and other winter time necessities, including warm clothing, shelter, and sleeping bag. Know your limits, stay away from icy or avalanche-prone conditions, and leave a detailed itinerary with someone at home.

Suppose, though, you forgot your compass and had no GPS. How would you find your way? Here’s a page of links, including these tips:

What can you do when no compass is available?

The first answer to these questions is observation of natural phenomena,
such as:

• Position of the sun in the sky and the shadow it casts
• Position of the stars in the night sky (see Resources – Planisphere)
• Direction the wind usually blows from
• Thicker bark and growth rings on one side of trees
• Plants which grow their leaves in a particular compass direction
• Trees shaped by prevailing wind
• Side on which moss grows on logs or beside logs

Snow looks so lovely that it’s easy to forget the minor detail that it covers just about everything that makes it possible to navigate through it.

Here’s a Seattle Times story about the woman’s rescue. She told rescuers she stayed up for two nights and kept moving the whole time out of fear that she’d freeze to death if she stopped.

Prepared only for a day hike, Wysocki was wearing a wool cap, hiking boots, a sweater, a rain jacket and nylon pants over tights or long johns, Jackson said. “She was lost, cold, wet and not prepared to spend the night” outdoors, she added.

Wysocki hiked north, west and north again, and ended up 10 miles “on the opposite ridge” from the Denny Creek trailhead, Jackson said.

Must be a function of living with Pacific Northwest weather that you go out in rainy, sleety weather that would keep most people on the couch.