James Kim, missing in Oregon, found [dead].

CNN Headline News | 12-6-2006

[Spiff]

Why do you say that? They stayed...he strayed. They did not find his wife and kids because of him.

ABC News just reported that it was Kim's footprints, spotted by a helicopter pilot, that lead the rescuers to Kim's wife and daughters in the first place.

[The KG9 Kid]

Sure is bad news. Sad to hear.

I hope that this event will teach some people to stay alive when confronted with inclement weather in journeys into unfamiliar territory, and general preparedness.

I grew up in a desert and had the occasion to warn people who weren't from around where I lived that it would be a bad idea to go hiking or take their motorcycles off-road during the first big rains of the season. A 30-mph flash flood that's only a little higher than your ankles and no wider than a little stream can whip a person right off their feet, drown them in a foot deep of water, and carry their remains far away from where they were last thought to be. I've also heard of hikers succumbing to heat exhaustion and dehydration not even a thirty minute walk from where they parked their car.

Best wishes for this man's family.

[Howlin]

We only went to that area for the first time in August and we're headed back to explore some more; we were headed that way this time (I think -- is that east?) so I'll be sure to write it down.

Should I mention your name?

[TexanToTheCore]

A couple of rules for cold wether ground travel.

1. Never leave your car for any distance.
2. You can hollow out a snow drift and the inside will be 32 degrees.
Carry in your car:
Space blankets for each person
Rolled up Sunday newspaper for tinder.
Matches or a butane lighter for starting a fire.
Hatchet or axe or saw.

When you get stuck, start a fire early. They are easy to see in a snowy landscape.

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

They had a vehicle to stay dry and warm in though. They could have built a fire close to their vehicle which would have warmed up the interior as well as break the wind.

Of course they were dangerously inexperienced in the ways of the natural world. But in my continual experience it has always come back to the fact that there is no tolerance for the ignorant in the real natural world. There is a process of elimination that many people do not understand.

Why they did what they did has no bearing on what the outcome of this tragedy is. It is the simple fact that a chain of poor choices led up to this event. The same rule can be applied to why the mother and children are still alive. One of the few correct choices they made was to stay with the vehicle. My whole effort here is for people to understand the importance that we learn through our mistakes or by the mistakes of others. It may prevent others from suffering the same fate in the future.

[Irish Eyes]

On days like today, I just try to look away; we have people trashing this man, people trashing Mary Cheney, and a bunch of old coots handing this country over to the terrorists to get some face time.

Where do all these "holier than thou" people come from?

I think that your post is the earns the title Best Post of the Day

[Sir Gawain]

Nah I've only eaten there when I go to the beach some summers. I've eaten there about 4 or 5 times (no reservations needed). If you want nice private beach houses or condos, check out Seagrove Beach. It's right smack in the middle of Panama City and Destin, and really cheap. Here's the rental site:

http://www.garrettrealty.com

Yes PCB is east of Destin. Here's the restaurant website:

http://www.captanderson.com/

[serpentineshel]

I couldn't agree with you more. Your statement about people blaming the victim as a way to feel more secure, more able to be in control if it should happen to them is dead on. It's also a shame.

I'd also say that being stranded in a car in such horrible weather with a toddler and a 7 month old baby didn't leave much room for either of those parents to be too resourceful. Children are very demanding. They apparently did the best they could for themselves and their children under extreme circumstances. And after a week with no sign of rescue, I would bet that my husband would do the very same thing Mr. Kim did. Especially if we were out of food and water.
He would have made sure that we were as safe and comfortable as possible and then he would have gone to look for help. A week is a freaking long time. Breast milk works for the children, but what happens to them when their mother starves to death or becomes dehydrated herself?

He knew what he had to do, and even if it didn't lead the rescuers to his family, he did the right thing for them.

[serpentineshel]

I have to completely agree with you.

[Howlin]

Oh, we drove on that road on the way out of town just to check it out, so we didn't have time to shop.

You know, we have good beaches here in NC, but *nothing* like that; it's just breathtaking. My husband hates the beach and loved it down there.

[Howlin]

Oh that made me miss RJayne!

[Sir Gawain]

Panama City is changing its image from a party college town to a more upscale vacation spot. If you drive down Front Beach Rd, you'll see that all the roach motels have been torn down and high rise condos are going up. Alot of the souvenir shops are closing because of it. Nothing really to do in PCB anyway. It's in a transition phase.

[Salvation]

Oregon Ping

Please notify me via FReepmail if you would like to be added to or taken off the Oregon Ping List.

[Billthedrill]

Amen to the space blanket. That silly little package will save your toes and might save your life. I have two in the glovebox of everything I drive. I do a good amount of winter driving in a fairly remote area and my guidance is always to assume at some point you'll be walking and pack accordingly. Tell people who will miss you when you intend to leave and where and when you intend to arrive, and keep them updated.

I'd add to your very sound guidance - if you experience a winter driving incident in a remote area, be where they're looking. Stick with the vehicle and if you can't do that stick with the road. Leave signs. Make heat. And don't give up, because there will be people looking for you and your job is to make theirs as easy as you can.

[publana]

I knew the sanctimonious biddies would be out in droves when I saw it on FOXNEWs. I avoided that one like the plague knowing I'd lose it and get banned. ;) This has been a bad day all around.

[TexanToTheCore]

If I may also add:

All pine trees have dead branches close to the ground. Fir also.

Stomp HELP large into the snow. It will be visible during most of the day.

The underside of wet logs are frequently dry.

The material between the bark and the wood (oakum) is freqently dry and easily used for tinder.

Even in snowy areas, thick forest will yield considerable amounts of dry wood and other vegetation with little effort.

Whatever you do, keep that fire going.

[Howlin]

We've never been before, so I'll be seeing it for the first time, but I have HEARD all about it, mostly from guys we knew in bands in the 60's and 70's.

[indcons]

Bump...couldn't agree more. I share your opinion - fear for the lives of near and dear ones is always on my mind.

At the same time, I don't care less about how/where/when I'll die. I know I await my turn in the future, near or distant, but won't waste any time thinking about it.

[Arizona Carolyn]

We carry water here in the desert on any treks around town, but particularly if we make a drive over to Vegas, etc., too many times people get off the highways and died out in the desert from dehydration and heat stroke. Heck we have to take a cooler to the grocery store in the middle of summer.

When we lived in California we had a backpack with survival gear in both cars in case an Earthquake happened when we were at work and we had to walk home.

[SuziQ]

I didn't say put it right next to their bodies. They could put it outside the blanket in which they are wrapped, but in the car with them, or in whatever shelter they may be. It shouldn't reduce the core temperature as would eating the snow right off the ground.