This summer, the police in different parts of Finland have dealt with more than 100 cases in which a person found missing in the forest got lost and was reported missing. The most cases, 40, were reported in Lapland.
Risto MertalaA senior constable of the Lapland Police Department told Yle that a missing berry picker is typically found four to five hours after the first report of the disappearance.
Most of those who go missing in Finland during the summer are berry pickers, Mertala stated, but hikers and the elderly can also get lost in Finnish forests.
"Often the lost is found during the same day," Mertala said.
In many cases, a lost person has to go around, especially if he is moving in the dark or in open terrain.
The general feeling of getting lost in circles is real, but the reason for this is not fully understood, according to him Marja Hietanendocent of neuropsychology at Helsinki University Hospital.
"The question is really interesting and there is no clear answer," Hietanen said.
One hypothesis suggests that moving in a circle is related to the human balance system.
"It is believed that small errors in the perception of balance accumulate when walking forward, which leads to a person walking in circles," Hietanen said.
Source: The Nordic Page