Lost Woods

The Lost Woods is a recurring location in the Legend of Zelda series. This mysterious, forested region of Hyrule is typically a maze-like forest that requires one to navigate one's way through it by a variety of means.

"Correct Path" Technique
Some Legend of Zelda games (The Legend of Zelda, Oracle of Seasons, and Ocarina of Time) use the clever ability to get hopelessly lost without the knowledge of a secret; a certain pattern of directions (north, east, south, etc.) is required in order for Link to pass through the Lost Woods. Taking the wrong path will either take him out of the main entry point of the maze (Ocarina of Time), or just make him return to the screen he was on a moment before (The Legend of Zelda, Oracle of Seasons). In Ocarina of Time, Kaepora Gaebora states that Link must follow the music, "Saria's Song". If Link is facing a path where the music is louder, then that is the correct path to follow. In Ocarina of Time, another easy method can be used. When the path hinders Link's progress, there is a small pentagonal white ring inside, when this is absent in the correct paths.

This "correct path" technique is also used in some dungeons (Oracle of Seasons, Link's Awakening), where Link cannot reach a certain room unless he knows the pattern he must use to get there. In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, the pattern is observing the different tunnels in the current clearing: if there are occasional flashes of light coming from one of them, then that is the correct path to follow to find and defeat the Skull Kid, whose lantern is the source of the light.

The Legend of Zelda
In the original game, the Lost Woods is one of two places in the game (the other being the Lost Hills) where a specific pattern must be walked in order to avoid being trapped. Moving north, west or south aimlessly will result in the exact same screen loading over and over; however, if Link moves east, he will escape the Lost Woods. Moving north, west, south, then west again will bring him to the Graveyard.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
The Lost Woods is located in the northwestern section of Hyrule, directly north of Kakariko Village. The forest is mist-drenched and broken up by ridges of impassable ground. Fallen hollow tree trunks litter the forest, providing the only way through the terrain. In the northern reaches of the forest, a glade filled with animals holds the Master Sword. However, there are several fake swords scattered throughout the forest. Removing the Master Sword from its pedestal causes the mist to flee, but even then, the forest is thick enough that it remains full of shadows. The dark shadows of the trees are also good growing conditions for fungi, including the Mushroom.

Thieves have a significant presence in the Lost Woods. Link may be accosted by Thieves while wandering the region who will try to steal his Rupees, bombs, and arrows. The Thieves also run a high stakes Rupee gambling game and have a hideout that holds a Piece of Heart.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The Lost Woods lies directly to the north of Kokiri Forest and is inhabited by Skull Kids. It is a maze of trees that can be navigated by following the sound of "Saria's Song". Taking a wrong path leads back to the entrance in Kokiri Forest; if navigated correctly, the Lost Woods will eventually lead Link to the Sacred Forest Meadow. Portals to Goron City and Zora's Domain are hidden within the Lost Woods. Also found in the woods is a slingshot challenge where Link can win an upgrade for his Deku Seeds Bullet Bag. The area is also home to a few Business Scrubs. There are two locations where Link can play songs with the Skull Kids residing there and receive Pieces of Heart.

According to local folklore, any Hylian that does not possess a Fairy will be transformed after becoming lost in the forest: Adults will become Stalfos, while children transform into Skull Kids.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
The game begins in the Lost Woods. There seems to be a portal to Termina deep in the Lost Woods, which the Skull Kid has been using. Link ends up pursuing the Skull Kid back through the portal back into Termina. Apparently this is not the first time the Skull Kid has traveled through the portal: at the end of Majora's Mask, he indicates he met Link in Ocarina of Time in the Lost Woods, at which point he had not met Tatl and Tael; he is shown to meet the fairies in the hollow log in Termina; and he clearly returns to the Lost Woods before he steals the Ocarina of Time from Link. While he seems to mug the Happy Mask Salesman in the Lost Woods, this may have been the same visit to the Lost Woods as when he took the Ocarina off Link. It is not clear whether the Skull Kid is aware he has traveled to another world; he refers to the place where Link taught him the song as 'the woods', as if it were any other part of Termina. The Lost Woods is the only area in Hyrule that is seen in the game. It is never mentioned in game that this area is really the Lost Woods, though it has been referred to as such in other Nintendo licensed materials.

The equivalent of the Lost Woods in the alternate world of Termina is the Woods of Mystery, found in the Southern Swamp.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons
The Lost Woods is the location of the penultimate step in the quest for the Noble Sword. Beneath a tree in the southeastern region of the woods is a singing Deku Scrub. After Link plays the Phonograph for it, it tells Link how to find the Noble Sword by teaching him the correct path to navigate the Lost Woods. Similar to the Lost Woods in The Legend of Zelda, the Lost Woods include a repeating screen in which Link must travel in each direction in the correct order while also using the Rod of Seasons to manipulate nature in order to pass. After successfully navigating it, Link can either travel west to the Noble Sword or north, further into the Tarm Ruins.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
The Lost Woods is the first stage of the Dark World, the game's fifth level. Much of the Woods is overrun with Deku Scrubs and Buzzblobs. Floormasters will occasionally try to pull Link into the Dark World. Many Anti-Fairies are in the Dark World. Although there is no specific path that Link is required to take, many of the screens are very similar to each other. Near the bottom of the level are two items: the Roc's Feather and the Pegasus Boots. The Roc's Feather is used to access the Lantern, which is then used to get past tree stumps and, ultimately, get to the Moon Pearl.

By talking to various Deku Scrubs, Link learns that they have hidden a Shovel. By helping a pair of Deku Scrubs called Dekki and Deppi in the southwestern Lost Woods, Link earns a Power Bracelet that he can use to proceed farther into the forest, where he must defeat several Gohma. He then finds a key that can be used to open their storage shed. After picking up their shovel, Link can continue through the woods through a hole in the ground just east of the circle of Deku Scrubs.

Unlike most stages, the Lost Woods does not have a final boss; however, Shadow Link appears, dropping Giant Bombs. Link must avoid them while searching for an underground passage leading north. After Link escapes Shadow Link, he can continue toward Kakariko Village.

An issue of Tingle Times can be found here. It reveals that Tingle had also visited the woods and got lost.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Link must pass through the Lost Woods in order to reach the Forest Sanctuary and meet Gage, with whom Link must play a "Lokomo Song" in order to restore the Spirit Tracks in the Forest Realm. To navigate through the Lost Woods, Link must follow the trees in the forest; if a tree points towards the right of the tracks right before a fork in the road, Link must take the correct path. The fourth and last tree that is encountered indicates the wrong direction; thus, Link must choose the track that is the opposite of the fourth tree. Once Link solves this puzzle, he does not need to repeat it.

Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
In the First Continent, there is a land known as the Deku Forest. This forest may be composed of both the Lost Woods and Kokiri Forest since it has elements of both. However, it is said that it's easy to get lost in the Forest. Indeed, the "correct path technique" is used in the section of the woods known as the Forest Maze. However, in this game, the Great Deku Tree is the protector of all the Forest, including the areas that most resemble the Lost Woods.

Additionally, the Forest's greatest hero is known as Junglo, although by the time Tingle enters the Forest, Junglo is an old man who is capable of very little.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time manga
Although not appearing in the main story, the Lost Woods do appear in the bonus chapters. The Lost Woods is a dangerous place where people will get lost if they lose sight of the exit. Nobody is allowed in there but Link and Saria; they enter it in an attempt to retrieve a mask.

The Forest is dangerous and, according to Skull Kid, those that get lost will eventually lose all hope and become faceless Skull Kids. It is also home to the Baga Tree, an evil opponent of the Deku Tree that is possessed by a bug (most likely Gohma) and is eager to kill Saria and Link as an act of vengeance on the Deku Tree for "Ignoring the rules of the Forest" and allowing Link into the Kokiri.

Strangely the forest appears to be home to only Skull Kids, Wolfos, and Moblins (under complete command of the Bagu Tree) that wish to reclaim the forest for their own with no Deku Tree at all. The forest is accessible also from Hyrule Field (as seen in Skull Kid's memory).

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
It is theorized by some that the Lost Woods became the Forbidden Woods. Evidence supporting this theory is that the Lost Woods from Ocarina of Time are near Kokiri Forest, and that the Forbidden Woods from The Wind Waker are near the Forest Haven. The Kokiri Forest and the Forest Haven are theorized to be the same place, since they have similar climates and both are home to the Great Deku Tree. Also, there are stump-shaped houses inside the Forbidden Woods which look very similar to the houses of the Kokiri in the Kokiri Forest from Ocarina of Time, and a Korok tells Link that he may see some of their old houses in the Forbidden Woods.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
The Sacred Grove in this game is believed by many to be part of the Lost Woods. Though this has never been officially stated, they carry identical music themes, and both woods are roamed by the Skull Kid. It is also impossible to traverse both of these areas safely without a guide. One of the biggest similarities between the Lost Woods in Ocarina of Time and the Lost Woods in Twilight Princess is that the area which holds the Master Sword in the Sacred Grove is exactly the same as the area where Saria sits in the Lost Woods in Ocarina of Time.

Both areas in both games are high, circular chambers deep in the forest. Also, when Link looks up in the Sacred Grove, he can actually see the Forest Temple from Ocarina of Time, which appears as an immense archway. There is also a room with a Bomb-able rock hiding an Imp Poe and the entrance to a Dig Cavern which also resembles this area.