Posted on 12/28/2009 10:17:16 PM PST by myknowledge
An American couple who relied on their SUV's navigation system to guide them through the high desert in the state of Oregon got stuck in snow for three days when the GPS unit sent them down a remote forest road.
On Sunday, atmospheric conditions apparently changed enough for their GPS-enabled mobile phone to get a weak signal and relay co-ordinates to a dispatcher, Klamath County Sheriff Tim Evinger said.
"GPS almost did 'em in and GPS saved 'em," Evinger said.
"It will give you options to pick the shortest route. You certainly get the shortest route. But it may not be a safe route."
Evinger said the couple got stranded on Christmas Day and a sheriff's deputy found them in the Winema-Fremont National Forest outside the small town of Silver Lake on Sunday afternoon and pulled their four-wheel-drive Toyota Sequoia out of the snow with a winch.
John Rhoads, 65, and his wife, Starry Bush-Rhoads, 67, made it home safely to Reno, Nevada.
"It will be (a Christmas) we remember the rest of our lives," Starry Bush-Rhoads said in a telephone interview from her home.
"They said if they didn't find us 'til this time next spring, we wouldn't be happy."
The couple was well-equipped for winter travel, carrying food, water and warm clothes, the sheriff said.
"Their statement was, being prepared saved their life," he said.
The couple had been in Portland and followed their GPS as it directed them south on US Highway 97 to Oregon Highway 31, which goes through Silver Lake and Lakeview before connecting with US Highway 395 to Reno, Evinger said.
In the town of Silver Lake, the unit told them to turn right on Forest Service Road 28, and they followed that and some spur roads nearly 56 kilometres before getting stuck in about half a metre of snow near Thompson Reservoir, the sheriff said.
"For some reason, they finally got a weak signal after 2 1/2 days," Evinger said. "They called in. They alternated between two different cell phone numbers."
A GPS-enabled phone is able to send its co-ordinates to emergency dispatchers, and eventually one of the couple's phones sent its location to the dispatcher's console, the sheriff said.
A decent map IS up to date.
Two things:
They didn’t have a paper map? Not cool. Acts a as a system for verification and backup should primary system go down.
The GPS didn’t indicate they were going onto a service road and it didn’t mean anything to them?
Next time try Magellan, Rodney Wrongway.(I actually prefer Garmin but your mileage may vary)
Took a road trip to Yakihma from the Bay Area a few years ago. Loved the GPS but confirmed the routes and points of interest on a physical map before taking off.
Carried the maps of three states with me just in case plus my 30 day pack, which has everything I need to survive or get home with two compasses and my handy dandy star map for North America.
People think they can go out in the winter on trips to rural areas in their all conquering 4x4 SUVs and be totally safe. They were better prepared than most but were very lucky they did not die.
GPS has it’s uses and they can be great, but you can’t turn off your brain.
Forget the street directories how about a little common friggin sense???? Do you not look at the road in front of you? Have these idiots NO sense of direction???? Hell this is inexcusable as far as I am concerned. If you rely that much on GPS to get places then you probably should not be behind the wheel of a lethal weapon ( cars after all kill people)
I often use GPS but I am no overreliant on it because I am aware of its shortcomings.
lawyer up 4sure
lol...its ppl who kills with cars just like guns~~~
but of course ;)
Too true but, they did.
Sure does smell like it
The GPS directions didn’t get them in trouble. They got in trouble when they drove into deep snow following the GPS? If the GPS told them to cross a washed out bridge in a flood would they have tried that, too.
like to see how long it would take you to pinpoint a small unmarked wreck 35 miles offshore in 300 feet of water with a map compared to me with a GPS
If staged, it’s based on a similar situation a couple of years back that resulted in a fatality. Could be where they got the idea.
Our Garman had us arriving at our destination on the left.
Which was the Hudson River.
Not so good!
What’s weird is that just staying on the 30 from Portland to 395 looks to be the most direct route. That 97 to 31 to the Forest Service Rd. is the long way around.
LOL!
Well, at least you weren’t stranded in snow without food, water, or blankets!
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