Hiker Who Got Lost Found Alive After Two Weeks in Hawaii Forest

[easysurfer]

In the recent news, hiker who got lost found alive after two weeks in Hawaii forest:

Quote:

A 35-year-old physical therapist and yoga instructor who went missing in the Makawao Forest Reserve on Maui, Hawaii, two weeks ago has been found alive, according to her family and a Facebook page devoted to the search. Amanda Eller was found Friday in a creek bed between two waterfalls by three volunteers searching the area by helicopter. The Maui News reported that Eller was injured, but did not elaborate. Photos on the Facebook page showed her with bruised and swollen feet and a smudged, but smiling, face.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...st/1234209001/

Not mentioned in this article, but saw reports that at a time she spent time in a wild boars' (not sure if should be singular or plural) den. Also, she was found only about 3 miles from her starting location but walked about 30 miles in the forest.

A couple of questions come. One, why a wild boars' den? Safer in the den that out in the open? Two, I wonder if she had one of those GPS tracking things on her wrist would that have given a signal and location to get back from being lost?

[tfudtuckerpucker]

We were at Maui and hiked in that exact location a few weeks before she went missing. We stayed on the trails, but they were slippery (DW slipped and fell- fortunately wasn't injured). If I hiked by myself in an isolated area, I would bring a $300 PLB.

[Sunset]

It's a great story, she lost 15 lbs as well, so there is even a bright side to the adventure beyond the rescue

I'm guessing there were no wild boars in the cave, so she sees an unused cave as safer than sleeping out in the open, exposed from all sides. A cave would be less windy maybe warmer ?

[Elbata]

Her story was in The Daily Mail today. Reading the comments there, most thought she staged it and did it to write a book, make money. I don't believe it, and the article was slanted to make her sound foolish.

I tried to find out what forest she was in so I could "Google Map" it. One of the commenters in the article said it was only 3.5 square miles. That's hard to believe.

And if she slept in a boar's den, I would think there would have been boars. Are boars vegetarian or do they eat meat?

Survival stories are always interesting. Did you hear there's another fellow now lost in the same forest?

[f35phixer]

She's from our area and DD and DN have friends that are her besties...



"We stayed on the trails, but they were slippery (DW slipped and fell- fortunately wasn't injured)" She did fracture her leg, slipping as FUD's DW did. She was in a flood , that's how she lost her shoes, taking them off to dry.


Humanity is really starting to piss me off, hiding behind a screen, saying horrible things about her that they'd NEVER say to her or loved ones faces!

[Aerides]

The pics I saw of her leg weren't someone faking, and weren't something I'd endure for a $10m book contract.

Given she was injured, and lost, 3 miles may have well been 300. Without a decent meal you'd start to get weak and disoriented after about day 3, even with berries and water.

Glad this was a good ending for her and her family.

[street]

I go nowhere without my GPS in the back country. I suppose it was a dense forest so signal would be an issue. With GPS it would show the trail and you could get back on track. They are a life saving tool and have had to depend on it a few times for finding my way out. What I do is waypoint at the start or truck then turn the unit off. If I need it (GPS) then turn on and see which way to go to get back out. I don't waste battery power. In my case it would be on for 5 to 7 hours in that case. JM2¢
She was very luck girl with what I seen of her blisters etc..

[Ronstar]

Glad she was found and it appears like she will be ok. In the wilderness, it's best to have a GPS, and and hardcopy topo map and compass in case the GPS batteries go dead or the canopy is too thick to get satellite lock.

[easysurfer]

I see how one can easily get lost in a forest. Happened to one of my brother's friends his family. They were out camping and went for what they thought was a short walk but then couldn't find their way back to camp. Next thing you know, hours passed by and they weren't prepared (didn't bring much water or food). Luckily the guessed right and ended up getting their way back. From now on, they bring along a navigation device.

I attended an outdoor concert in the woods and wasn't prepared as only brought along a weak flashlight that was pretty useless in the dark. After the show ended, and the sun had already set, I couldn't find my car as things got quite dark. Panic was starting to set in as when night arrives I could hear the noises of the nocturnal animals. I had visions of being stranded overnight. As the park was closing up luckily I spotted one of the ushers from the show and told him I can't find my car and would he help. He said no problem and used a good spotlight and helped me locate my car.

If I ever go to an outdoor concert in the woods again, I'm going to bring along the most powerful spotlight I can find .

[ivinsfan]

Yes you can get lost in a forest or hiking anywhere.

This lady broke two rules about hiking (particularly in areas you aren't familiar with). Don't go alone. Have a form of communication on your person......hopefully with a full charge. The cell phone ping they did on her phone didn't help much when it led to her car in the parking lot. If you are traveling as a single tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back and carry a backup GPS with your phone.

This is just plain common sense.

[Which Roger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivinsfan Yes you can get lost in a forest or hiking anywhere. This lady broke two rules about hiking (particularly in areas you aren't familiar with). Don't go alone. Have a form of communication on your person......hopefully with a full charge. The cell phone ping they did on her phone didn't help much when it led to her car in the parking lot. If you a traveling as a single tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back and carry a backup GPS with your phone. This is just plain common sense.

Also had no map or compass. And followed a "voice" down an unfamiliar trail.

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elbata Her story was in The Daily Mail today. Reading the comments there, most thought she staged it and did it to write a book, make money. I don't believe it, and the article was slanted to make her sound foolish. I tried to find out what forest she was in so I could "Google Map" it. One of the commenters in the article said it was only 3.5 square miles. That's hard to believe. And if she slept in a boar's den, I would think there would have been boars. Are boars vegetarian or do they eat meat? Survival stories are always interesting. Did you hear there's another fellow now lost in the same forest?

Boars? They eat anything! Ever heard the old saying about someone went to the outhouse and was eaten by the hogs? There's more truth in that statement than most people understand.

It's very easy to get turned around in strange places. There was a gut in one of our MO homes I'd frequently hunt mushrooms in. I always got turned around in it. Up appeared to be down and east was west.

[MuirWannabe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Which Roger Also had no map or compass. And followed a "voice" down an unfamiliar trail.

The reality is most folks don’t know how to properly use a map and compass even if they carry it.

[kgtest]

What upset me (but didn't surprise me living in Maui for a bit) was Maui PD stopped their S/R efforts after a single day. It was on the community to do the heavy lifting. Glad she is okay, there was another women that was not as fortunate when I lived there and it rocked the whole community. BF did a no no. RE Charlie

[W2R]

In my late teens and early 20's, I used to hike in the more or less remote forested mountains in Hawaii every weekend with my boyfriend at that time (a total jock, college football player and biochemist, who loved hiking). These were just day trips and we never camped out. I would absolutely NEVER have hiked up there by myself because even as a late teen I had at least a tiny bit of common sense.

Anyway, to continue, those hikes were so much fun. Some of the rock climbing near the top was challenging for me and I loved that aspect of it. Yes, wild boars are something you want to avoid, and yes, there are places where it would be easy to take a bad fall and break a leg. On the other hand, mountain streams were everywhere; also it would be relatively easy to forage food compared with a mainland forest (IMO anyway), but I don't see how she could with a broken leg like that.

If she hadn't had a broken leg, I'd think the whole story was pretty fishy. Even so, I am surprised that searchers did not hear her calling out earlier because sound seems to travel remarkably easily in those forests. Glad she was found and seems to be OK.

[COcheesehead]

I know two people who got lost in the woods. One was a weekend camper type, the other an experienced woodsman. In dense forests with faint trails, I can see how someone could get turned around. Without a trail you also tend to favor your dominate leg and eventually you'll walk in a circle. In both cases of the people I knew, they eventually found their way out within a day, but both said there is a moment when you realize you don't know where you are, how you got there and fear the next step will make things worse. That has to be a very bad feeling.

[Brat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivinsfan Yes you can get lost in a forest or hiking anywhere. This lady broke two rules about hiking (particularly in areas you aren't familiar with). Don't go alone. Have a form of communication on your person......hopefully with a full charge. The cell phone ping they did on her phone didn't help much when it led to her car in the parking lot. If you are traveling as a single tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back and carry a backup GPS with your phone. This is just plain common sense.

I wholeheartedly agree. A hiker should also carry a whistle. That sound carries much further than a shout and it takes less energy.

[ponyboy]

The story is fishy imo. The lady claims it was a "spiritual" experience. Wut??

For anyone who has ever been to Maui...its a small island. She could have walked in any direction and would have ran into civilization in much less time that it took for her to be "rescued." Even without survival skills, you should know that water flows to the ocean. Follow the water, hit the coast...start walking. She didnt want to be rescued.

Hope she had fun camping in the hawaiian woods for those 3 weeks. Get ready for the hand outs and the interviews about how hip and spiritual it was. Did she have crystals with her too?

[neihn]

GPS and/or topo map are useless for some :-). One needs to learn and I mean learn them well before wandering into the wilderness.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brat I wholeheartedly agree. A hiker should also carry a whistle. That sound carries much further than a shout and it takes less energy.

Never leave without a whistle. No batteries or line of sight required. It carries! If blasting it doesn't gain attention, S-O-S can be blasted out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ponyboy The story is fishy imo. The lady claims it was a "spiritual" experience. Wut?? For anyone who has ever been to Maui...its a small island. She could have walked in any direction and would have ran into civilization in much less time that it took for her to be "rescued." Even without survival skills, you should know that water flows to the ocean. Follow the water, hit the coast...start walking. She didnt want to be rescued. Hope she had fun camping in the hawaiian woods for those 3 weeks. Get ready for the hand outs and the interviews about how hip and spiritual it was. Did she have crystals with her too?

I was suspicious, and maybe still am a little. However... Somewhere it was written that she was caught between two waterfalls. Don't know if that is true, but it would help explain not being able to follow the water out.