I Think We're Lost

I Think We’re Lost

The brittle pine needles and fallen leaves crunched beneath their feet emitting an earthy smell under the warm October sun. Julie and Karen embarked on a hike in the late morning after the two hour car ride to reach the trail head. They’ve been hiking together for the past three seasons.

This was a familiar trail for Julie and Karen as they had hiked this trail several times in the past. They were having a great time talking, but before long they became lost.

Karen noticed the trail looked different. “Something is wrong here”, she stated.

Julie responded, “Maybe it was because some of the leaves have fallen since the last time we were here”.

They kept hiking. Before long they both know they were lost. Karen tapped the trail map on her I phone but the blue image appeared for a few seconds before turning black. Her battery had died.

Recognizing that they were lost, anxiety and fear raced through their bodies. However, they knew they had to keep a level head. First, they listened for other hikers. The only sound was the scampering of small animals among the forest floor and the song of birds perching in the towering pine trees.

Next, they tried to figure out what direction they were facing in relation to the sun. Squinting their eyes in an upward fashion, they determined which way was north and began hiking in that direction.

They came upon a fork in the trail. After some discussion, they decided to go left.

“I hope this leads us back to the trail head “, Karen stated as they continued to walk.

As the sun was setting, the filtered rays beaming through the tree branches cast a shadow on the trail covered in pine needles and leaves.

Word Count 296

Prompt: “Something is wrong here”