Hiking With Kids: When Lost, Hug a Tree

Here’s some great advice for kids, and adults alike. If you get lost in the woods or seperated from your parents sit down and hug a tree. Let the rescuers come to you.

Antelope Valley Press: “Members of the Antelope Valley Search and Rescue Team had a clear message for Westwind Elementary School students who get lost while camping or hiking: Hug a tree.

‘If you’re in one place, we’re going to find you,’ said Bill Tibbitts, a civilian volunteer specialist. ‘Find a tree, hug that tree, and stay put.’

Lost children are easier to track if they are not wandering around, since rescuers will most often follow footprints. Tibbitts added that calling for help is little use if searchers are not in ear shot, so he encouraged the students to save their voices until someone calls out to them.

‘If you’ve been screaming and crying a lot, you might not have a voice left,’ he said. Tibbitts also reminded the students not to shout at search helicopters, since ‘the helicopter can’t hear you.’ A jacket or brightly-colored object waved in the air will better attract the pilot’s attention.”


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