Always have a couple of backup plans

I've been on some guided hikes and ones I have taken alone, but always have a couple of backup plans and take the safe option in the end. If you know you have researched what to do if you get lost, or if the weather turns, or a wild animal approaches you then you are prepared.

Always take a torch (and check it works) a hat (because keeping your head warm can save your life when it gets cold), and make a note of how long it will take you to get to your destination. I was once on a mountain in Italy and we should have reached our destination after a couple of hours according to the map, but we hadn't. The group of people I was with had taken a wrong turn and we were stranded. We made a decision to stop climbing and to try and find away down, because clearly we were lost. You have to be sensible too, and it was the right choice before it got dark and it would have been dangerous to climb. We couldn't call anyone because we didn't know where we were.

 

When hiking you also should tell no less than three people where you'll be hiking and the time you expect to be back. Many have wandered into the wild and got lost never to be found because they told no one of their plans/where they would be. If a number of people know you were hiking and aren't back they could be the ones who'll get you help if something bad happened.

 

Now I feel like I messed up the other day when I went out to walk through a nearby forest, which is quite large and remote. I realize I should of told my parents where I'll be headed and for how long considering how I wandered off quite a bit. It's true what you say, I could of gotten attacked, or simply wandered off too long, to the point where I got lost.

 

Good point @John Snort! It pays to inform someone (most especially someone you live with or your neighbor) if you're going on a hike because anything could happen when you are in the mountains and it's usually hard to contact anyone for help through phone because of the absence of a phone signal in the deep forest. If someone knows where you went and you still haven't gone home when you're supposed to, then he/she would already conclude that there's something wrong and eventually help will be on your way.

 

As long as your backup plans don't cripple you in any way (like carrying considerale extra weight in your backpack to carry aditional supplies ) you can be quite creative with backup plans.