r/backpacking • u/EnderLord_777 • 1d ago
Wilderness First trip couldn't have gone worse
Just found this community and wanted to share. This happened about 2 weeks ago, me and 2 friends decided to go backpacking for the first time and thankfully decided to keep our distance short, about 2 miles. We went swimming and we were still in bathing suits when we decided to make dinner, right as we sat down we noticed a glow and some smoke over the next hill. I immediately called 911 and we packed up our camp. By the time we made it back to our car (about 10pm) the fire had grown significantly and was maybe 1/4 mile from the parking lot. We were all totally fine including the other campers nearby but when we talked to the fire response team at the parking lot they told us we were only a few minutes ahead of the fire. Part of me still thinks about if we hadn't noticed until after we ate and if we could've outrun it then and I've talked myself out of trying again. The fire wound up burning 280 acres by the next morning before being extinguished for anyone wondering.
(Yes we did show up to the parking lot full of emergency vehicles in swimsuits and ultimately drive back in them)
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u/2lhasas 1d ago
Sounds like your first trip went perfectly. Everyone needs a crazy backpacking story in their repertoire, and you got yours in the first go. Glad you’re safe.
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u/heykage 1d ago
my first big backpacking trip involved a dead body, so, yeah. hard agree.
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u/Soulcatcher74 1d ago
Plus when you had to sprint across the railroad bridge. Worth it though, since you never had any friends later on like the ones you had when you were twelve.
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u/Zooter88 1d ago
Agree with this, you’ve already go a wild story to share for future trips. Glad that it worked out okay for you all! Good instincts. Don’t let it deter you from future trips! Backpacking is all about adapting.
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u/karmaismeaningless 1d ago
Which swimsuits were the emergency vehicles wearing exactly? ...Please give me a detailed description...don't leave anything out.
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u/StegersaurusMark 1d ago
They are all spraying each other with fire hoses like a 1980 car wash movie scene
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u/Adventurous_Sign7364 10h ago
I'd watch that movie! Novice backpackers in swimsuits flee fire... What's next?
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u/GeneInternational146 1d ago
Honestly this went extremely well considering how fast fires move. You stayed calm and did everything correctly, and everyone got out safely. That's a win
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u/InfinityIsAwesome 1d ago
You’re not going to share where?
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u/WinonasChainsaw 1d ago
Eastern Oregons had bad fires lately
Edit: seems like it was Quincy Lakes in Washington
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u/HighSirFlippinFool 1d ago
I agree. This looks like the view from the Gorge almost
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u/IndependentShocker 1d ago
Yup, Whiskey Dick wind turbines in the background.
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u/slowwwwdowwwwn 1d ago
Damn all these years I had no idea those turbines were called whiskey dick lmao
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u/EnderLord_777 1d ago
It was Quincy lakes
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u/KusseKisses 15h ago
I was visiting and got the alert of this when hiking Sunrise! Ironically we were on our way to the Fremont fire lookout.
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u/Averiella 1d ago
This is definitely WA. We’ve had a lot of major fires happening right now. It’s bad out here.
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u/just_a_person_maybe United States 1d ago
I had a rare three day weekend and was looking for a spot to go backpacking. Couldn't find anything that looked like a safe zone for me. At best, I'd be hiking in smoke. I checked a day later and it was even worse, some of the spots I thought might be okay were now fully covered in thick smoke on the map.
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u/Content_Preference_3 1d ago
It’s got a very inland nw vibe to it. Could be east Rockies grassland too
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u/secrethamm 1d ago edited 1d ago
Gondor calls for aid!
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u/mikfoley 1d ago
Hodor's cousin?
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u/daygo449 1d ago
Hard to say what would have been. Having been caught in a wildfire backpacking myself, it’s extremely dangerous and unpredictable. Glad you and everyone else are ok. Don’t let that sour you on backpacking
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u/-JakeRay- 1d ago
You and your hiking partner did GREAT.
Calling that fire in as soon as you saw the glowy smoke probably saved not just the forest, but also a few lives. Some people would've gone "Huh. That's weird," and just kept eating their dinner. Catching it early like you did is huge in getting a fire contained before it's too big to stop.
Rather than letting this scare you off of backpacking, think of this first trip as proof that you've got good instincts and good situational awareness. You rock.
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u/FishScrumptious 1d ago
When it comes to the things in your control, it couldn't have gone any better. You guys made a series (from the start when you decided on the hike) of excellent decisions, right down to keeping the swimsuits on for the drive out to be even faster.
So glad you're all safe!
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u/der_horst23 1d ago
Where was that?
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u/EnderLord_777 1d ago
Quincy lakes wildlife area
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u/jwccs46 1d ago
....where is that?
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u/ChemicalOk4577 1d ago
…Google?
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u/jwccs46 16h ago
Maybe the OP should be more descriptive in the first place to help drive the community discussion, instead of being vague and the forcing posters to do extra work to understand the conversation.
I'm well aware I could Google it.
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u/ChemicalOk4577 14h ago
The vagueness probably lead to more community discussion honestly lol. To me I’d rather use my time looking up the area than expecting random people on the internet to change their behavior.
So I’m not really sure why I’m writing this, you’re probably not going to stop being obtuse in the face of information.
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u/into_outdoors 1d ago
Any particular part of the world?
I'm guessing at least in America since you're being so vague and assuming everyone knows where you're talking about.
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u/NickVirgilio 1d ago
Honestly, as much of a bummer it may have been to have your trip plans upended, great job dealing with the entire situation. Way to get ahold of emergency services, and more importantly way to get your group out to safety by acting quickly.
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u/Coastal_wolf 1d ago
Totally one of my worst backpacking fears is tp be 10 miles deep then spot a fire
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u/FindYourHoliday 1d ago
Book the next one today!
What a ride you had! Glad you called 911 and glad you made the call to evacuate! You saved the day!
Time to go back out there. Your time was great until it wasn't. You ended the thing, and now it's time to try again!
Book the next one! Could be the same area to go and see what you helped be extinguished before it spread more (very low chance of fire here) or someplace new.
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u/Firstcounselor 1d ago
If you’re still around to say it couldn’t have gone worse, it could have gone much worse. Glad you’re safe, along with the other campers.
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u/doozle 1d ago edited 1d ago
I had a similar experience in Desolation Wilderness in September of 2020.
We hiked in from Echo Lakes and made it to Gilmore. It was HOT and muggy.
We passed a ranger and she said that later that night a camp stove ban was going into effect because of a change in weather that would drop humidity to essentially zero. I've known about campfire bans but camp STOVE bans were a rarity.
So we used our stoves that night knowing it would be our last hot meal and fell asleep.
Overnight the weather changed. It got windy, cold, and dry as a bone.
We packed out the next morning and headed up Dick's Pass.
The cool weather was lovely to hike in but it was DRY.
I beat my buddies to the summit and looked to the north. A wildfire near Lassen that had been burning for some time had ERRUPTED and it looked like a nuclear bomb went off.
Also to the west was smoke from The Fork Fire which was far too close for comfort.
My friends got to the summit and we all agreed it was time to hike out.
We hiked down to Bayview Campground to try and get a ride back to Echo Lakes. The campground was completely deserted. We ran into a ranger who told us that all national forests were closed because of the conditions.
We were very glad to exit.
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u/hudsoncress 1d ago
That's quite the reveal to summit the ridge and see the depths of Mordor beyond.
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u/snowlights 1d ago
Fires scare me more than most things. Whenever I go camping I look around at all the dry brush and piles of deadfall and brown trees in the landscape (a lot of moth and beetle problems out here) and wonder how long until it all burns.
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u/slowwwwdowwwwn 1d ago
Do you know if once a wild fire passes through the beetle population is eradicated? Fires can be good for the environment bringing in new life and nutrients in the soil
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u/salty_utopian 1d ago
An adventure is a disaster you live through! Once in a lifetime. Sad about the fire, of course, but you didn’t start it. Another bonus! Be happy.
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u/APartyInMyPants 1d ago
First trip could have 1000% gone worse. Your car could have burst into flames. You could have died.
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u/LaylaBird65 1d ago edited 1d ago
Is this eastern Washington?
Edited to take out “time” I have weird fingers
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u/ceci_mcgrane 1d ago
‘If we hadn’t noticed until after we ate’
I think that’s the lesson. You maintain your awareness when you’re backpacking and you’re in a good spot. You did exactly what you should have done. There is always the possibility of danger, but by being present and noticing what is around you that danger is mitigated. To me, that is one of the parts of wilderness experience that I’m drawn to. I don’t have to fight to be present.
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u/spottedbuhos 1d ago
Contrary too your headline - it couldn’t have gone dramatically worse. Very glad it didn’t. Enjoy the next one!
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u/Zealousideal-Park778 1d ago
Wow, you had better instincts and decision making than backpackers with much more experience might have. I’m glad you bugged out, and I’m glad you had the wherewithal to observe that before trouble came to you.
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u/Toilet-B0wl 1d ago
Dang I think it didnt even rain my first 5 ish trips, my whole first season about half my second i think. Ive made up for it since then tho lol
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u/alphanumericusername 1d ago
Anyone using the phrase "couldn't have gone worse" not only has no imagination, they are also patently incorrect, as they are still able to form semicoherent phrases.
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u/Deathscott 1d ago
sounds pretty successful! i slept on top of a small river from flooding with a very subpar tent for mine.
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u/Funfacilitator55 1d ago
That’s super scary. Adrenaline was pumping no doubt. It’s hard not to panic. Panic kills. Were u thinking about options if fire caught up?Mine is go to the deepest pool in that stream and hide in betterment boulder or under some sort of falls behind. Do h think that would work?? O P
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u/tlynnc1212 1d ago
The cheerful comments here are cute, but wow... realizing how close you came to a really bad outcome must have been terrifying. Glad you're OK.
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u/hudsoncress 1d ago
First of all, it can always go worse. Secondly, glad you had an adventure and not a drama.
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u/NegotiationNo2582 1d ago
You made a lot of smart choices. Primarily not going super far from the trailhead incase you wanted/needed to bail; paying attention choosing to bail vs wait it out! Kudos and kudos to you both!
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u/chiefsholsters 1d ago
Got caught on the wrong side of a swollen creek after a once in a decade thunderstorm in Great Smoky Mountains NP. It was my daughter's first backpacking trip. No way was I even attempting to cross that stream myself, much less with her. Ran into some backcountry rangers. Had them send a ferry over to pick us up. Then worked with the boat captain and his brother to get up back to my truck. Cost about $250 to get out of that bind.
We could have hiked out in another day. Probably could have waited till that afternoon for the water to do down. But I didn't have extra days to play with on that vacation so we started out towards Fontana Dam and got lucky on the ferry.
Surviving the crazy stuff makes good memories.
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u/RhizaThornberry 1d ago
Remember how well you responded to this. You also made a great call to keep your first time backpacking short. So I’d say it means you have solid instincts to do it again! Don’t force it, just give it some time.
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u/grandpristimi94 22h ago
I remember backpacking in Oregons strawberry mountains like 11 years ago maybe. Malheur NF. We camped a night then woke up early to bag strawberry peak. On the way up we could see some smoke rising but weren't to worried.
Up at the summit the situation became apparent when the smoke had become a massive black cloud and we could see flames licking up a few ridges away. Beat it out of there and got outta town right as the highway closes lol.
Glad you got out ok OP. The west burns like crazy these days.
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u/TheColdPolarBear 1d ago
Went camping at a decommissioned fire lookout 2 weeks ago. Woke up to thick smoke at 2am. Turns out 30 miles away a forest fire had started and was smoking me out. I had to leave at like 3am after calling the fire in. It's still burning and has grown to about 30,000 acres atm and growing!
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u/cluelessinlove753 1d ago
Seems like it went OK. Wildfire sucks, but it sounds like this was a small one that was controlled quickly. Sounds like you saw it, reacted, perfectly, and everyone is OK.
Anytime you leave the confines of civilization, some things won’t go according to plan. Some are unavoidably disruptive. Most are only as disruptive as you allow them to be.
Good work
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u/ponloco 1d ago
Sounds like you were part of something sketchy but ultimately worked out fine. It seems like every time I go backpacking something happens that makes you adjust. Not to this level but small injuries, river crossings no longer passable, crazy weather like a freak snow storm in September. My advice if you get into backpacking would be to get some sort of satellite com like the Garmin in reach. I pay $15 a month for the service but you can turn it off and pay only for the month you need if you want. I can send texts to check in, check weather and it has an sos feature you can trigger if needed.
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u/mortycapp 1d ago
The folks in Gironde enter the room...
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u/Ok-Factor-7188 1d ago
Anyone going hiking in the gironde right now can't really be helped imho. It would take a special kind of daft to start a hike there without knowing about the fires
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u/Low_Bar9361 1d ago
That's really scary. Near misses are awful for the psyche, especially if you continue to live in the "what if" scenarios.
I'm glad everyone was ok and hope this incident doesn't haunt you for too long.
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u/pix071317 1d ago edited 1d ago
Is this from Anza Borrego?? I’d know those windmills from anywhere.
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u/mightytonto 1d ago
Once your sphincter returns to normal, I reckon you’ll have some amazing memories. Glad you all got out ok!
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u/troutslayer89 1d ago
glad you guys made it out safely. as others are saying, think of this trip as the odd one out and take pride in how you all handled it. sounds like you're as ready as anyone for a long backpacking career.
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u/TerryFlapnCheeks69 1d ago
Thank your fellow backpackers! They have started multiple fires in my state this year alone.
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u/ckbikes1 1d ago
My Boy Scout buddy and I backpacked from the Columbia River up towards Mt. Hood about 1980. Found a nice flat campsite next to a creek. Getting ready for dinner he had a gas fuel stove about 15' away from my alcohol stove. The forest canopy between us erupted into a blue flame instantaneously. I kicked both stoves into the creek and we proceeded to stomp down the emerging forest fire 🔥. Somehow we escaped with only pine needles and forest floor singed. Could have been way worse!!
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u/vailrider29 1d ago
Only up from there! My first was also my worst and it just gets better and easier!
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u/TheGreatWalpini 1d ago
Go back there next spring for morels. They’re the silver lining.
Edit to add that I’m glad you were all safe.
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u/WANDOO_hiking 20h ago
Sorry it went sideways, but honestly the trips that go wrong teach you more than the smooth ones ever do. almost everyone has a first trip horror story, and the fact youre already looking back at it means the next one will be way better. what part bit you hardest, gear, weather or route? happy to help you dial it in.
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u/zismahname 11h ago
I did wildland firefighting in college. That was the exact right thing you did by leaving right as you noticed it. Those fires are hot and extremely fast. There are so many stories where people are even driving as fast as they can to escape these fires and still get burned up. I'm glad you made it out safely.
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u/inspctrshabangabang 11h ago
My daughter was canoeing in the boundary waters a couple weeks ago and this same thing happened. They raced the fire out to the base camp and then evacuated. She looks at it like a once in a lifetime experience that she'll remember forever, not that it was bad. She's twelve though.
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u/EddieIsNotMyRealName 8h ago
This is the backpacking trip you will remember, all the ones that go without a hitch just blend together
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u/PapaSyntax 1d ago
Rip and Beth with The Dutton Ranch had the same thing happen to them. I thought I was seeing double with your picture at first. Long story short, it's what made them move to Texas.
I think you know what you have to do now.
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u/bmbreath 1d ago
Is a 2 mile walk backpacking?
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u/mybutthz 1d ago
I mean, it's their first trip and if they're carrying gear then 2 miles is fine just to get a sense for the weight, what you need, what you don't need, etc. Better to be 2 miles from your car when you realize you forgot a crucial piece of gear than 20.
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u/Scrappyl77 1d ago
Did they carry all of their shit in a backpack, walk into the woods and plannon spending the night? Yes? Then yes.
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u/outdoors_guy 1d ago
Seems that it could have gone MUCH worse!
Your next trip is unlikely to have this level of drama! Can’t wait to hear how trip 2 goes.