Locating the camp could be difficult but a hunter should try to find the ways to get out of his troubles when he is lost in the woods. He doesn't need to act silly and take aimless steps. Using the compass and other things he might have to locate his where about would be the best thing he can do in the first step.

When one first finds that he is uncertain of his where-about in the woods, his first inclination is to speed up and get as far as he can before night with the hope that he is traveling in the right direction or that he will meet another hunter who will set him right. This is about the worst thing he can do. Instead of rushing around aimlessly, probably away from camp, he should sit down, take a rest and smoke his pipe or relax in some other manner. He should take account of the situation. If he does not know where the camp is, he should admit it and then say to himself, "What of it?" Is it absolutely necessary that he return to the camp that night or even on the morrow? His friends at camp will worry if he doesn't show up, but what of that? His reputation might suffer if he has to stay out over night, but what of that? It is better for them to worry than it is for him to go blundering around getting more hopelessly lost as time goes on. What good is his reputation as a woodsman if his friends find him a hopeless madman, rushing blindly through the woods, heedless even of the men who find him?

If a man has a compass, he should be able to locate himself in relation to the home base if he has any idea of his travels since leaving it. If the camp is on a road that runs north and south and the hunter left it to hunt on the east side of the road, all that he needs to do in order to return is to travel in a westerly direction until he comes to the road. The chances are that this road will be the one on which the camp is located and it should be easy to find. It is not necessary to travel in an exactly straight course but merely in a general westerly direction in order to find the road. Other situations require other solutions, but most problems of this sort can be solved by a little clear thinking. If the lost man has no compass and the sun is not shining, the only thing which he should do is to sit tight and wait for aid to arrive.

The people who lead organized searches for lost persons are all in favor of the lost person's, staying in one place and building and maintaining a smoky fire. This is sound advice and is the best thing a lost man can do. It is also about the most difficult, because it gives a man too much time to think and worry about his situation. I would recommend that he establish as comfortable a camp as possible and that he look for food nearby, in-stead of merely sitting on a stump and waiting for some- one to find him. Physical activity will relieve the mental strain and will often prevent a man from doing irrational things which so many lost persons do.

I knew a man who became lost and on the second day he saw a deer standing nearby watching him. It was an easy shot, but he did not shoot because he was lost and didn't want to drag the deer along with him. He had had nothing to eat since the previous morning, but to him the deer did not represent food. All it looked like was an added burden.

By now you most be having some idea on what to do and how act in those kinds of situations. So be prepared for any kinds of situation that you could face in hunting deer.

Mitch Johnson is a regular writer for http://www.kids-games-n-crafts.com/ , http://www.hubforcomicbooks.info/ , http://www.interactivecomicbooks.info/

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