About Over four years ago, I read “Touching the Void” and I was always intrigued by situation hikers find themselves in and the incredible things they do to stay alive.
This blog is about learning from other people’s mistakes, so you don’t make the same ones.
“Better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the grey twilight that knows not victory nor defeat”
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Who: 40-year-old Matthew Chidgey
Where: Wildwood Regional Park, California
His mistake: He was alone and possibly ventured too close to a swollen river
What happened: A man was anxious to see some nearby waterfalls after a large storm. He asked his roommate to go, but the roommate declined, so the man went by himself.
When the man didn’t return [...]
Who: A young adult male
Where: Florida Trail, Okeechobee County, Florida
His mistake: He was hiking alone and wearing insufficient clothing
What happened: Hikers came across the body of a young adult male while hiking the Florida Trail in Okeechobee County. The dead man was only wearing cargo shorts, a t-shirt and a light windbreaker.
Authorities believe the [...]
Where: Makaha Valley, Hawaii
His mistake: It’s unknown if it was a human error or equipment failure
What happened: One week after a First Lieutenant returned from a tour in Iraq, he and his friends went on a grueling two-day hiking trip bushwacking through jungle forests and traversing ridges. During the trip, the Lieutenant and a friend [...]
Who: A 23-year-old male
Where: Between Summit Cove and Keystone, Colorado
His mistake: He was alone and wearing tennis shoes despite the cold weather
What happened: A man was at a house in Summit Cove and decided to walk back to his house in the Keystone area. It is unclear how far the locations were. Despite the cold [...]
Who: 19-year-old Steven J. Strygulec of Rogersville, MI
Where: Buffalo National River, Arkansas
His mistake: He got separated, then lost a bunch of his gear
What happened: A group of five college students went for a camping trip through Buffalo National River. At some point during the hike, one of their friends – a hearing impaired, inexperienced outdoorsman, [...]
Who: A teenage boy
Where: Center Hill Lake, Austin Bottom, Tennessee
His mistake: Bad luck
What happened: A boy was hiking with companions when a large icicle dislodged above him and struck him in the leg. The boy was unable to continue on the hike. Friends alerted authorities. It took three hours for crews to package the boy [...]
Who: A 17-year-old female and 20-year-old male
Where: Appalachian Trail the towns of Beekman and Pawling, CT
Their mistake: They got lost in the dark
What happened: Two young hikers were on the Appalachian Trail and took the wrong trail at dusk. When they realized they were on the wrong trail, they used a cell phone to call [...]
Who: 26-year-old Joshua Carter
Where: Mt. Mansfield, Underhill State Park, Vermont
His mistake: He went alone in bad weather, but he did a lot of things right
What happened: A man set out for the summit of Mt. Mansfield on his own. Although the weather was good when he left, bad weather quickly came in before he reached [...]
Who: A man and two friends
Where: Glamarama, Borrowdale, Cumbria, Lake District, UK
Their mistake: Looks like they were traveling in avy territory
What happened: A man and two friends were hiking up a snow gully on Glaramara. During their ascent, the men disturbed the snow and set off an avalanche. Two of the men were able to [...]
Who: A 60-year-old male
Where: Donut Falls, Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah
His mistake: Just a simple slip
What happened: A man was hiking with his family to Donut Falls when he slipped on a rock and fell into freezing water. His family immediately called for help, but it took rescuers roughly 45 minutes to get to the scene.
The [...]
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If you're into the outdoors, why not think of going on a caravan or RV trip? Better make sure you get caravan insurance first, though!
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