I Went Hiking for Peace—What I Found Was Pure Survival

Last weekend, I tried something I hadn’t done in years: going completely off-grid.

No phone. No power bank. No generator hum in the background. Just me, a borrowed tent, my crusty hiking boots, and a patch of forest outside Ogun State where my uncle owns a small piece of land.

I told myself it was for “mental clarity.” But the truth? I’d just gotten ghosted after 6 weeks of texting someone who said I was “their peace.” Peace ko. Pain ni.

So I packed my bag, added a few survival essentials I’d seen on YouTube (thank you bushcraft TikTok), and headed out like I was Bear Grylls in a Nigerian forest.

The first night was calm—just the hum of insects, a tiny fire I struggled to light, and the satisfaction of cooking noodles over a rusty portable stove. It felt raw. Real. Like I had disconnected from the chaos of city life, heartbreak, and bad WiFi.

But on day two, around 4pm, I heard crying. At first, I thought it was an animal. Then the sound got clearer—it was a child.

I paused, heart pounding. No one was supposed to be out here. I followed the sound, about 400 meters from my tent, and found a small boy—barefoot, shivering, clutching a broken water bottle. Maybe 6 or 7 years old. Tears stained his dusty cheeks.

He couldn’t speak much English, but from the little I understood, he’d wandered away from his family’s cassava farm on a visit and had been lost for almost a whole day.

No phone. No shoes. No food.

That was when all my “camping for vibes” training kicked in. I gave him clean water from my canteen, wrapped him in my extra shirt, and stayed with him as we made a fire for warmth. We stayed there till sunrise because I wasn’t going to risk walking us through thick bush at night.

At dawn, I guided him out to the main road where luckily, some farm workers recognized him. The relief on their faces was something I’ll never forget. Apparently, the whole community had been searching since the evening before.

They offered me yams, goat meat, even a chicken. I declined politely. I didn’t do it for reward.

As I packed up my things to head back to Lagos, I realized something:

I went into the woods trying to escape heartbreak—and ended up saving a life.

Funny how nature humbles you.