Backpacker – September 2019

I walked a few miles until the road went

over a ridge. We’d camped at the bottom of a

similar feature, but I still didn’t recognize

anything. Keep moving, I told myself. If this

was the right road, there would be a high-

way turnoff 8.5 miles downhill and, hope-

fully, cars. Hiking there would produce body

heat and help keep my mind occupied. It

would take seven or eight hours to reach the

turnoff—it would be light out by then. I grit-

ted my teeth and focused on the thought of

that warm morning sun on the horizon.

My icy clothes clung to my skin and the

frigid air stung. Rocks stabbed my arches

and I cursed loudly with each step. My

increasingly raw feet helped distract me

from the idea that I might not make it. I kept

moving and hoped that I had chosen the

right direction. I thought about it like run-

ning a marathon: I just had to keep slogging

to the finish line.

After a few hours, well past midnight, the

moon finally emerged above the treetops,

confirming that I was walking southwest,

in what I thought was the right direction.

With moonlight came hallucinations. I

imagined more houses ahead of me, but as

I got closer I would see that they were just

stands of pine. I saw a herd of elk cross-

ing the road, but knew it wasn’t real when

I heard no snorting or stomping hooves. I

considered the idea that I was having a vivid

dream, and any minute I would wake up in

my sleeping bag. But that was just the cold

muddling my thoughts. I picked up the pace.

After about five hours of stumbling down

the road, the sky lightened to reveal mead-

ows in the distance. Exhilarated, I realized

I was a few miles from the turnoff. Once I

hit the highway, there would surely be traf-

fic. I wanted to get off my feet and back to

my son as soon as possible.

As I finally approached the turnoff, I

noticed a camper at the far end of a meadow.

I saw movement, but without my contacts I

couldn’t be sure it was people. As I limped

closer, three men emerged, and they all

stared at me. I couldn’t blame them—what a

spectacle I must have been in my long johns

and socks in the wintry weather, my sleeves

frozen and sticking out like a scarecrow’s

arms. One of the men greeted me, and I

explained everything. They were shocked,

but happy to drive me back to camp.

I was overjoyed to reunite with Jordan,

who had been out searching for me all

morning. He took one look at my purple feet

and insisted I see a doctor. We loaded into

the truck and, sighing with relief, I turned

the heat up high.

Skill

School

FEND OFF

THE FREEZE

Dr. Luanne Freer is the founder of Everest

ER and former president of the Wilderness

Medical Society. Heed her advice on

staying safe when hypothermia sets in.

Know the signs.

Hypothermic individuals will feel cold,

shiver, and experience confusion,

clumsiness, irregular heartbeats, and

eventually unconsciousness and death.

Block out the cold.

If you must stay put, improvise shelter.

“Getting into a cave or hollowed-out area

can help with both radiation and

convection heat loss,” Dr. Freer says.

Maintain body heat.

If you’re hypothermic and without access

to layers or fire and choose to stay put,

insulate yourself above and below with

leaves or other natural debris, and get out

of the wind. Generate body heat by doing

sit-ups or jumping jacks.

Learn how to build an emergency

shelter in our online survival course at

backpacker.com/survival101.

The Lady Light GTX, designed to keep sensitive feet happy over

many miles of trekking, features a one-piece upper with no

interior stitching; flat lace loops to prevent hot spots, our

patented lasted GORE-TEX lining for a wrinkle-free fit with

improved climate control, and a shock-absorbing DuraPU®

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ENDURING QUALITY.

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GORE-TEX, GTX, GORE, and GUARANTEED TO KEEP YOU DRY and design are registered trademarks of W.L. Gore & Associates Inc. VIBRAMGORE-TEX, GTX, GORE, and GUARANTEED TO KEEP YOU DRY and design are registered trademarks of W.L. Gore & Associates Inc. VIBRAM®, the Octagon Logo, and the Yellow Octagon Logo and the color Canary Yellow are registered trademarks of Vibram S.p.A. Photo: ©Bernd Ritschel. ©2019 LOWA Boots, LLC.

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