What Your Child Should Do If They Are Lost in the Woods

Every year children get lost in the woods while on a camping trip, picnic or hike. Unfortunately, without survival skills a number of children die, usually from hypothermia, but there is no need for this to happen. By teaching your children a few simple survival skills, they will be able to stay alive until they are found if they get lost in the woods.

I read a news story recently about a group of family and friends that were hiking on a major trail. The group split into two smaller groups and each drifted further and further apart on the trail. When they had separated enough so that they could not see each other, a little boy in the front group wanted to walk back to the group further back to be with his mom. The adults in the first group let him, thinking he would be fine on the trail, never thinking he might get lost in the woods. After all, it wasn't far.

Apparently the little boy wandered off the trail for some reason and got lost in the woods. Who knows why he wandered. Perhaps he was chasing a butterfly. Regardless, he was stuck out in the woods alone overnight, and the night got cool, although it stayed well above freezing. That is when hypothermia is the most dangerous, when it is cool but not freezing, and this case was no exception. Tragically, after much searching, they found his body a few days later.

This child getting lost in the woods and succumbing to hypothermia needn't have happened, but unfortunately most adults don't know enough about survival skills in order to teach their children how to survive if they get lost in the woods. It's a shame that many parents don't take the time to teach their children what to do should they get lost in the woods, because the survival skills children need are easy to learn and easy to teach. The following are in the order in which these simple survival skills should be taught.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #1: Teach Your Children to Stay Found

First, teach your children to stay found so they don't get lost in the woods in the first place. While walking on a trail, point out to them that the trail will look different on the way back, and occasionally pause and look behind you to show them what it will look like.

Stress that they should never, ever go out into the woods without an adult - not even if they will be walking on a trail. Make sure they know how to follow a marked or unmarked trail also just in case. I know that may seem obvious to you and me, but I know from experience that younger children often have no clue when it comes to following a marked trail, much less an unmarked one.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #2: Stay Put!

If for some reason they do get lost in the woods, tell them to stay put right where they are when they first realize they're lost. If children are lost in the woods and wander, the rescuers will have to first track them and catch up with them, an act that takes up precious time.

In San Diego, California, there is a program called Hug-A-Tree that was started by the parents of a 9-year old boy who got lost in the woods overnight and died. They didn't want any other child to ever get lost in the woods and die, so they started the Hug-A-Tree program.

One of the survival skills they teach children if they get lost in the woods is for them to find a "friendly" tree - one that they feel especially good about - and sit down next to it, even hug it. This prevents them from getting further lost in the woods. Then they emphasize children should stay right there besides their tree "protector" until help comes. Sitting next to a "friendly tree" will give a child lost in the woods a small sense of security and comfort in a very scary situation.

Also, be sure to tell them that if they do get lost in the woods, they should not hide, especially if they hear their name being called. Explain to them that those calls would be from rescuers, not from "strangers" they should be afraid of.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #3: Signal

Any time you go camping with your children, to insure their safety should they become lost in the woods, you should do two things: 1) have them stand on a piece of foil with their shoes on so that if they do become lost in the woods, a tracker will have a shoe pattern right away; and 2) any time they are away from camp, teach them to always make it a habit to have two things: a plastic garbage bag tucked in their back pocket, and a whistle. Those two survival objects alone can make all the difference if they get lost in the woods. Even adults should have a whistle and garbage bag with them in case they get lost in the woods.

Teach your child to blow the whistle three times as the international signal for help. Emphasize that they should never, ever blow their special whistle unless they are lost in the woods. As a signaling device, the whistle can be heard farther than their voice and doesn't require as much energy as shouting.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #4: Make a Shelter or Stuff Your Clothes

So we have our imaginary child who is lost in the woods sitting in one spot and blowing a whistle three times periodically. Next in the survival skills they would need - and very important - is to stay warm. The reason that staying warm is at the top of the list of survival skills if they get lost in the woods is that a person can go without food for 30 days, without water for 4 days, but only overnight if they have no shelter and become hypothermic. Hypothermia, or a drop in the body's core temperature, is the number one killer of people who are lost in the woods.

Hopefully you have done as Hug-a-Tree recommends and your child has a whistle and a garbage bag with him or her if they get lost in the woods. Show them how to tear a hole in the bottom of the bag for their head to poke through, and two holes on either side for their arms to poke through to make an instant rain poncho / survival sleeping bag. If they are lost in the woods, they can stuff the garbage bag with leaves and crawl in, just like a sleeping bag. Just a simple garbage bag can save your child's life should they get lost in the woods.

Also, your children need to know one or both of two survival skills: 1) clothes stuffing, or 2) how to build a debris hut. Small children under about 10 or 11 may not be able to build an entire shelter and stuff it with leaves but they can stuff their clothing with leaves for insulation. Tell them it's like playing "scarecrow" if they get lost in the woods, because they will sure look like one after they stuff their shirts and pants with leaves.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #5: Water

Once they are staying put, signaling, and have some sort of shelter from the elements, there is about a 4 day window for searchers to get to a child if they are lost in the woods. After 4 or 5 days, people die from lack of water (although I know of one case where a woman lasted 6 days without water). So should the situation get to this point, your child will have to know the survival skills necessary to find water if they are lost in the woods.

Show your child how water collects in the hollows of rocks and tree stumps after a rain. Rain water in a hollow is usually safe to drink. Explain also that water flows downhill, so walking downhill should eventually take them to water. (Only in desperation, after 4 days, should they attempt leaving their "friendly tree" area to get water.)

Another of the survival skills that will get you clean water for drinking is to get up early and wipe a bandana or t-shirt along dew-laden grasses. Then after collecting enough dew on a bandana or t-shirt, simply squeeze the moisture into your mouth.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #6: Fire

If you get lost in the woods, fire is the next most important consideration. For children, though, you may want to skip this unless they are older and you know they know about fire safety. Suffice it to say that they will be warm enough in the debris hut or stuffed clothing even without a fire, so I would suggest concentrating your survival skills teaching efforts there.

That being said, when you go on camping trips gradually start introducing your children to the art of firemaking. Have them gather very thin, small, dry sticks so that they get used to recognizing good tinder. When you teach them how to build a fire, teach them how to build a tipi fire because it is the hottest fire one can have and uses relatively little fuel.

Lost in the Woods Survival Skill for Children #7: Food

Last in the order of survival skills if you get lost in the woods is food. A human can last for up to 30 days without food, so this is the least important of the survival skills if your child gets lost in the woods. To an untrained child, there should be practically nothing they should eat in the woods. If they can't positively identify common edible plants, emphasize to them that if they get lost in the woods, they should wait until rescuers find them before eating. Assure them that the rescuers will bring them food, which they usually actually do.

Basically, the survival skills that are important if your child gets lost in the woods are to: 1) stay put; 2) signal; and 3) build a shelter or stuff his or her clothes with leaves.

One last word on preparing your children if they ever get lost in the woods. When camping, on a picnic, or hiking make sure that 1) you have already taken a foil imprint of your child's shoe, 2) each of your children has a garbage bag and a whistle with them at all times; and 3) you and your children all agree that they are never to go anywhere in the camping or picnicking area without an adult. Following all of these guidelines will assure that you and your children come back with nothing but positive experiences of the outdoors and never get lost in the woods.