Posted on 12/05/2006 9:18:33 AM PST by george76
Searchers intensified their efforts Tuesday to find a San Francisco man missing for more than a week in a rugged, remote area of the snow-covered Oregon Coast Range as his wife and two young children, rescued just the day before, recovered in a hospital.
Trained dogs, horse patrols and a helicopter with heat-sensitive sensors were sent to join other helicopters, snowmobiles and foot patrols Tuesday for 35-year-old James Kim.
Trackers had followed his footprints until dark Monday night.
"They determined that he went over the side of the road into the Big Windy Creek drainage area and that's when the two deputies from Jackson County went over the edge and they are tracking his footprints right now," ...Tuesday morning.
"There are some cliffs they may have to go down to get down to the creek.
And there's still snow and ice, cold temperature, but they've been out all night and they plan to be out all day. And their hope is to find him today," ...
Kim...had left his wife and two young children in their frozen, snowbound car and set off into the wilderness to seek help, wearing only tennis shoes, a sweater and a jacket.
State Police Lt. Gregg Hastings said Kati Kim told a detective the family intended to take Oregon 42, the usual route from Interstate 5 to the south Oregon coast, but they missed the turnoff, found Bear Camp Road on the map and decided to take it instead of turning back.
Their car was 15 miles from Bear Camp Road when found.
The complicated network of roads in the area is commonly used by whitewater rafters on the Rogue River or as shortcuts to Gold Beach in the summer, but the roads are not plowed in winter and can be impassable.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedenverchannel.com ...
Apparently, they could easily follow his foot prints in the snow, but then he decended into cliffs and rocky areas with no good snowy foot prints.
So the searchers had to closs the full creek to check the other side...this is where they were getting wet and cold.
I do not think that they know if he fell in.
But this is why the need the Eugene water rescue team who is better equipped to cross cold water.
Hopefully this man tracker from Bend can track his footprints over the rocks.
I heard that the searchers were finding some little scuff marks.
Has anyone asked the family why they had ventured off the main Highway in the first place?
Also the next question would by why didn't the man walk back on the road they came in on. It sounds like he started walking through the forest.
How big is this river!
Imagine if your cellphone battery had died and you had no charger..
It's pretty clear from listening to the posts of people who have traveled that road. It is ill marked and not maintained. The main road looks no better than the turns-offs so you think you're on the main road and you're on one of literally hundreds of fire roads and logging roads which dead end.
Everyone local says the road is extremely hazardous in winter, yet the chamber of commerce touts the road as being "scenic" without saying it is not traversable in bad weather.
I am not from Oregon, but apparently it is big enough for river rafting.
At night, for heat.
Pop the clutch at 6000 rpm...
Its too big to cross and to swift to swim, I really don't think the man MR Kim would have even attempted it. I have a friend who used to be a river guide on the river it is famous for the white water rapids.
His family said he had outdoor experience.
One would think he would have had extra clothing and/or long underwear in his luggage to bundle up in before leaving out on his own. Blue jeans alone will not suffice in those temperatures and snow.
Cotton jeans are terrible in cold and cool weather.
If cotton gets wet and cold...very bad.
Apparently he had no hat; he would lose alot of body warmth thru his uncovered head.
unless you are used to driving the back, back roads of this country, people don't have a clue what kind of trouble you can run into....
this could have happened to probably 90% of our population.....
God bless them all and I hope he is found alive......
save the cheerleader....save the world....and all that.....
Sounds like the river valley would be cool and damp even in the summer...
Now cold and wet ?
Use the sidebar to zoom in and out fo the map.
a hunter with vast experience got lost in north eastern Washington two months ago....he wandered and wandered and finally they found him 19 miles from his camp...he simply sat down under a tree and went to sleep permanently.....
Pop the clutch at 6000 rpm...
Thanks for the map.
Looks like an easy place to get lost.
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