How to Spend a Miserable Night in the Bush - Judith and Peter Hawkins

Rating ***

How to spend a miserable night in a bush is an article meant to grab your attention and show how you must be prepared for everything because anything can happen.

This inspirational story recaps the adventure of Judith and Peter Hawkins who went out for a hike at Montcalm’s Point, Ontario and got lost. Their day started off as a beautiful warm sunny day and soon turned into a disaster. They went off course and started to run out of water, food and energy. With daylight quickly fading they tried to rush back to their vehicle but were unable to as they were lost. They had to stay the night in the pouring rain with no food or proper clothing to keep them warm.

This article has shown me how quickly things can go wrong if you’re unprepared and how easily things can get worse by the minute. It made me realize how a small complication can lead to a big problem. It makes me realize that I need to be prepared for any event, even something unlikely, when planning for a trip. Our behaviour needs to change to understand that hiking isn’t so easy and really can be quite complicated.

I highly recommend for anyone new to hiking to read this article. It will assist them in understanding that hiking isn’t just a walk in the woods, you have to be well prepared for all circumstances.

Hawkins, Judith and Peter. “How to Spend a Miserable Night in the Bush.” Ottawa Outdoors. Fall/Winter 2009/2010. Page 18.