Couple followed GPS stranded for couple days in 23 ft. MH

[snowdance]

Just saw a quick blip about a couple followed their GPS down road they should have never been on and were stranded several days in their 23 foot motorhome. They stayed with the motorhome. So OK unlike many that light out on foot. Search and Rescue found them and got them out. Report was from Roseburg Oregon. Did not see more and am leaving so can not search for more. Any one got time to see if they can find the storie?? Thanks...

[Matt_Colie]

Just to set the record as straight as you can follow:
The coach is a GMC 26' (Not 23-they are very different - look at the sig) built in 1976. Yes, it is front wheel drive, and uses the same basic engine and transmission as Toronado, but the similarity ends there. All had a tandem read axel. Of course they had their golf cart, they were going to a huge GMC Western States rally at Coos Bay. If you are out at the edges, walking to the convention hall is just not an option. They were not going boondocking. I have not asked what model GPS they have, but I would like the answer so I know what to avoid. Our SA2013 led us wrong just this last week.

Matt

[mockturtle]

Hindsight is certainly 20/20

It certainly is, as the following remarks from this thread would show:

Maybe it was leading them out of the gene pool ?

Sorry, I just don't have any sympathy for any one that gets stranded following a GPS whether it was a serious situation or not.

If anyone is that ignorant perhaps they shouldn't even be 'driving' an RV.

There is no queston there is nothing you can do to help dumb.

[DaHose]

While you can't prepare for everything, some basic knowledge and understanding of nature are important to know. Never get caught in the open during a snow storm. That is basics of staying alive. The Kim family should have descended well below snow pack if they weren't pushing over the mountain. Really, they should have turned around and headed back to civilization. Also, once trapped they kept running the car until it ran out of gas, then burned their tires. How would they get out if/when the snow melted? Mind you that when they were discovered, the road was again drivable. At the very least, their itinerary should have been reported to someone who would miss them when they didn't show up.

Hindsight is certainly 20/20, but the key is to have some sense of what keeps you alive in rough situations. We really lose touch with that when we spend our whole lives living in a city. There were so many little things that added up to a tragedy. The key to surviving is breaking the chain of critical events, so that you don't compound ignorance or foolishness into a deadly final result.

In my case, I have cell phones, GMRS radios, a HAM radio and training. Even if you haven't been trained or studied survival science and concepts that will keep you alive, for Petes sake at least spend the money on a small device that could keep you alive. I completely agree that a GPS safety beacon is CHEAP insurance for those who just don't know any better.

Jose

[mlts22]

I think one moral of this is to consider taking a GPS beacon (with the GEOS insurance so one isn't paying per foot a helicopter goes.) At least this would get someone notified that something happened.

[EsoxLucius]

mockturtle wrote:
James Kim, who died of hypothermia going for help after he and his family were caught in a snowstorm, has been misrepresented here. To give him some credit and a little more respect, here is an article by CNET, for whom he worked:

http://news.cnet.com/2100-1028_3-6141498.html

There is no doubt that hypothermia set in early and clouded his judgment. While taking the road he did was clearly a poor choice at that time of year, it does not make Mr. Kim 'stupid'.

I didn't see anyone call Mr. Kim stupid. Someone did say what he had done was dumb. Can't argue with that. The other stuff about his motives was pure speculation.

[JRS___B]

Just to be clear, deceased from hypothermia, not from the smashed foot.

[JRS___B]

mockturtle - You are so correct, plus, if put in the same situation, half of us might ultimately come to the conclusion that doing nothing was no longer an option, and that there was nothing to lose by trying to walk for help.

Case in point, three friends of our family were white water rafting on the Cheat River. It was in the fall, and all of the commercial rafters had finished for the day.

Their raft overturned. Then, in attempting to capture the raft, one person fell down a ravine and severely smashed his foot on the rocks below.

His sister and the third person in the raft walked out not knowing exactly where they were headed. They found help, and a helicopter rescued the guy with smashed foot that was left behind. They said that the helicopter arrived probably an hour or so before he would have become deceased.

You just never know.

[mockturtle]

James Kim, who died of hypothermia going for help after he and his family were caught in a snowstorm, has been misrepresented here. To give him some credit and a little more respect, here is an article by CNET, for whom he worked:

http://news.cnet.com/2100-1028_3-6141498.html

There is no doubt that hypothermia set in early and clouded his judgment. While taking the road he did was clearly a poor choice at that time of year, it does not make Mr. Kim 'stupid'.

[DaHose]

I say that if you are driving around in an MH or ANY vehicle, you should have your HAM radio license and pack a dual band radio. I'm studying to get my license.

Hell, even if you don't have your license, have a dual band radio in your that you can use to call for help if poop really hits the fan.

Jose

[EsoxLucius]

My understanding is that they even burned a couple of tires from their vehicle to stay warm. The BLM left the gate open as they thought there were still some hunters back there and didn't want them to be locked in.

[amandasgramma]

maillemaker wrote:

In 2006, the Kim family followed an online map route through Galice and onto the Bear Camp Road. They soon became lost in a snowstorm after turning onto a side road and going down it for 16 miles. After six days and running low on food and running their vehicle out of fuel, the father struck out on foot alone to get help, leaving his wife and two daughters with the vehicle. He died in a creek after walking 16 miles, the others were rescued. Message? Don't trust the GPS or online maps and stay with your vehicle!

I don't understand this. Definitely stay with the vehicle, and man, if you are in your camper, one thing you should have no problem doing is starting a fire.

I'd be making the biggest smoke pile you ever saw with all my free time. They'd spot me for a hundred miles.

Steve

There was speculation that this guy was actually trying to kill his family, but died himself.....or committing suicide. What he did was dumb. They also found that 'someone' had opened a Forestry gate........do NOT do that! There's always a reason those roads are closed. As for fire.....it was snowing pretty hard....I don't know what the undergrowth was, but it IS hard for city folks to understand how to do it in snow. He may not have had matches or a lighter. Regardless, it was a dumb move to take that road. Too bad.

[Bordercollie]

Somewhat off topic but we just bought a new Subaru Outback. There are a lot of videos and ads, etc., showing experienced drivers crawling up 40 degree hills and broad sliding around curves on dirt roads. Shudder to think of what the average owner might do to himself and a passenger trying some of the stuff.

[maillemaker]

In 2006, the Kim family followed an online map route through Galice and onto the Bear Camp Road. They soon became lost in a snowstorm after turning onto a side road and going down it for 16 miles. After six days and running low on food and running their vehicle out of fuel, the father struck out on foot alone to get help, leaving his wife and two daughters with the vehicle. He died in a creek after walking 16 miles, the others were rescued. Message? Don't trust the GPS or online maps and stay with your vehicle!

I don't understand this. Definitely stay with the vehicle, and man, if you are in your camper, one thing you should have no problem doing is starting a fire.

I'd be making the biggest smoke pile you ever saw with all my free time. They'd spot me for a hundred miles.

Steve

[snowdance]

We just got back from a few weeks on the Oregon Coast. Staying at places we like and trying a few new ones. While staying in the Newport Marina RV Park we saw one of the GMC rigs like this. It was a restore and looked like new. We were not able to find the owner but could see in and it was very well done. I wish I had found the owner and could have told him how great it looked. Left a note.
My wife and I thought about buying one of them when new but decided to have a custom boat built to live on.
For those that have not done that part of the Oregon Coast we like that RV Park because its across the street from the Oregon Coast Aquariam click which we always enjoy. And a short walk from a great Brew Pub thats makes nice lunches ect. There is also a great Old Town across the bridge but not in walking distance for us.