I've been "turned around" a few times but never really lost. But I got turned around this last hunt on the way back from a remote cellar hole site and it kind of surprised me. If the sun is out, I don't even need a compass. I can just dead reckon with really good accuracy. But the sun was behind the clouds and on the way back from this site, I zigged when I should have zagged and ended up going in the opposite direction that I thought I was heading in. I was really surprised when all of a sudden there was a wide stream in front of me. It took me a second to figure out what I had done, but if it wasn't for that stream, I probably would have gone another 30 minutes in the wrong direction before I would have suspected something was wrong.
I opened up my navigator app on my smartphone and could see exactly where I was and where I needed to go. I pulled out my Silva compass and used that and my navigator app to trudge in a straight line though swamp and briars to hit a trail that I knew would get me back to my car. But this mishap cost me almost an extra hour of slogging through rough terrain.
Besides the smartphone and the pocket compass, I always pin a ball compass to my shirt for quick reference. BUT.... I had left the ball compass home (this was a last minute hunt) and was too cocky or lazy to use my other compass or phone app until I got myself in a pickle. I guess the moral of the story is don't be cocky, lazy or stupid, especially when you are by yourself.
Anyone else have similar experiences?