Choose the right trail
A good hike starts with an honest match between the trail and the people walking it. The National Park Service's hiking safety page for Great Smoky Mountains National Park describes how trails there vary in difficulty with mileage, elevation gain, terrain and weather, and asks hikers to research a hike before attempting it: its difficulty, and any current hazards, warnings or closures. That advice holds for any trail system.
Distance alone is a poor guide, which is why the Park Service's backcountry planning steps ask you to account for changes in elevation when you work out how far you will travel each day. The Great Smoky Mountains page notes that most trails there are out-and-back rather than loops, so the return half is just as long as the outward half, and it comes when everyone is more tired and the light is fading.
Read the website of the park or forest before you go. Land managers post trail closures, washed-out bridges, fire restrictions and wildlife warnings there, and those details change from week to week.
Hike as a group
The Great Smoky Mountains page gives two simple rules for groups: choose a trail suited to the skills of the whole group, and let the slowest hiker lead, with everyone staying together on marked trails. Putting the slowest walker in front sets a pace the whole group can hold, and it stops the group from stretching out until nobody can see the person at the back.
The Park Service's backcountry page goes further and recommends travelling with companions at all. Accidents happen to experienced people too, and a companion can give first aid, go for help or simply notice that something is wrong. If you do hike alone, the trip plan described in the trip planning guide matters even more, because nobody on the trail will know where you are.
Stay on the trail
Staying on marked trails is the simplest way not to get lost. The Great Smoky Mountains page says so directly, and adds that staying on designated, maintained trails also keeps you off unstable ground and protects the plants and animals around the path. It also gives a practical reason in snake country: staying on the trail helps you avoid stepping on a venomous snake.
Leaving the trail to cut a corner or explore is where many navigation problems begin. Even a short detour can lead into ground where every direction looks the same. Carry the navigation tools from the ten essentials, know how to use them, and check your position against the map at junctions rather than only when you feel unsure.
Footing, falls and the dark
Slips, trips and falls are among the most common hiking injuries. The Great Smoky Mountains page recommends boots with good ankle support and warns about specific traps: icy high trails in winter, loose wet leaves in autumn, and wet rocks near waterfalls, which can be extremely slippery. Its advice is to watch your footing and be ready to turn back when conditions are hazardous.
The same page advises against hiking after dark. Darkness raises the risk of falls and of running into wildlife, and a phone's flashlight is not a reliable light. If you are walking to a campsite, plan to arrive before nightfall, and carry a headlamp even on a day hike in case the day runs long.
Look up before you stop. The page also suggests checking for dead trees or branches that could fall before you rest or set up camp, and choosing a different spot if there is any risk.
Streams and rising water
Water is one of the most serious hazards on many trails, and it can change within hours. The Great Smoky Mountains page warns that heavy rain can swell streams and make crossings dangerous. Its advice is clear: do not try to cross a flooded stream. If a swollen stream blocks the route, go back to the nearest campsite or trailhead, or wait for the water to drop. When you do cross a stream at a normal level, it suggests wearing shoes, using a sturdy stick for balance, and loosening the pack's waist strap so you can get out of it quickly if you fall.
The National Weather Service explains why that caution matters. It notes that just 6 inches of fast-moving flood water can knock an adult off their feet, and that, after driving into flood water, walking into or near it accounts for the next largest share of flood deaths. People underestimate the force of moving water, and it is never safe to walk into flood water. The weather guide has more on flash floods.
If in doubt, wait or go back
A stream that was easy in the morning can be impassable in the afternoon after rain upstream. Waiting for the level to drop, or turning back, is the safe choice the Park Service names.
Cold, wet and windy
Hypothermia is not only a winter problem. The Great Smoky Mountains page warns that cool, wet and windy conditions can bring it on even in summer. The National Weather Service describes hypothermia as the body losing heat faster than it can produce it, and notes that people exposed to severe cold can be affected within minutes.
The park's prevention advice is practical. Put on rain gear before you get wet, not after. Choose moisture-wicking clothing, avoid cotton because it holds water, and consider wool, which keeps you warmer when damp. Stay out of the wind where you can, change into dry clothes as soon as possible if yours get wet, and dress in layers so that you can shed heat before you start sweating heavily. This is why extra clothing is one of the ten essentials even on a warm morning.
Deciding to turn back
The hardest safety skill on a trail is turning around. The Park Service's backcountry page talks about situational awareness: knowing what the weather is doing, the terrain you are in and the physical state of everyone in the group, and not falling into poor decisions because the goal is close. The Great Smoky Mountains page's advice to have a plan B, and to be ready to turn back in hazardous conditions, points the same way.
It helps to decide the rules before you set off, when nobody is tired or keen to reach the top. Common ones are a fixed turnaround time, a weather limit such as turning back at the first thunder, and a group rule that anyone can call a halt without having to argue for it.
If something goes wrong
In an emergency in the United States, call 911. The Great Smoky Mountains page asks callers to state their location and the emergency clearly, and, where there is no cell service, to send someone for help. A clear location is much easier to give if you have been following your position on a map.
Remember that help can be slow to arrive in the backcountry. That is the reason for carrying emergency shelter, extra clothing, food and light: they let a group wait safely for hours if it has to. The Park Service notes that search and rescue operations put rescuers at risk and take a heavy toll on park resources, friends and family, which is one more reason to plan for the trail you are actually on.
Some smaller hazards are worth a habit. The same park page suggests checking for ticks at least every 24 hours, carrying insect repellent near standing water, and treating stream water before you drink it, which the water and heat guide explains.
Example: a turnaround
Worked example
This is an illustration, not a real trip, and describes no real people. A group of three sets out on an out-and-back trail to a ridge, with a turnaround time of 1 p.m. agreed at the car.
- The slowest walker leads. At each junction, they stop and check the map together.
- Light rain starts mid-morning. Everyone puts on rain gear at once instead of waiting to see if it gets heavier.
- At 1 p.m. they are still below the ridge. They turn back as agreed, even though the top looks close.
- On the return, the stream they crossed easily in the morning is higher and faster. They do not cross. They wait on the bank, eat, add a layer, and cross only once the level has clearly dropped.
- They reach the car after their planned time, so the first thing they do is message their contact.
Nothing dramatic happened on that trip, and that is the point. The decisions that kept it uneventful were made before the trouble arrived.