Lost in the Woods.

This past Christmas I got a GPS unit so I could partake in Geocaching. If you're too lazy to click the link to find out what Geocaching is, I'll tell you. You go to a web site, like the one above, you find a cache in you area, get the coordinates, input the coordinates into you GPS unit, and then find those coordinates. When you find the location you are headed out for, you look around until you can find the cache. It may be an ammo can, a plastic container, a film canister, you get the idea. In this container will typically be a log for you to write your name and the time of your find, also there may be some sort of goodies that you can take, and replace with something you brought along.

Now to my story. During Saturday's 70 degree weather I set out at a local park to find a cache with my girlfriend. The cache was on the back side of a ridge, which means I could have gone either way around it. After some debate and an excursion in the wrong direction we found the best path to the cache. This cache took me way out of the way from the populous part of the part. About 500 feet from the cache my girlfriend told me she didn't want to go on, so she was going to have a nice sit while I bushwacked it to the cache. After going off the trail to find the coordinates, I went back to find my girlfriend when I couldn't find the cache. Problem. She was gone. This was a little after 4:00pm, and sunset was 4:36, and we were about an hour from the trail-head. I needed to find her, and fast. I went up and down the trail for about ten minutes yelling her name. After I couldn't find her, I called 911, thinking I need help finding her if it was going to be dark soon. I had them on the phone for about 20 minutes, they were on their way to the park when my girlfriend showed up. I was freaking out before I found her. She is originally from Atlanta, and I was dreading the call to her mother telling that her daughter had disappeared into the wilderness. Apparently she had sat down for a few minutes, and then went to find me, but because I had left the trail to find the cache she hiked right on past where I was. From what she told me she was down in a dark part of the woods. I felt bad for leaving her behind, but I had faith in her ability to fend for herself (she watches enough Survivor Man). Anyway, that was my big scare for the weekend. One thing I know is that I won't be getting separated in the woods again.