A function of no compass, no map. I always make a point of knowing the direction roads, streams or other escape routes are if I should become disoriented. Which can happen.
Streams always flow downhill. Unless he managed to go over a mountain, the stream would have took him back to where he started.
Reminds me of the guy who died in the bus in Alaska. He was a seasoned hiker who made the basic mistake of going w/o a map.