Wednesday, December 06, 2006
There's no substitute for local knowledge AND a good map. After a little adventure of my own driving in the Oregon mountains (gas gauge below empty, heavy snow, no cars coming toward me, and driving 45 mph with no one coming up behind me), I was told about a man who was found dead in his car (in the spring) on one of the roads I had travelled. He was about 400 yards away from a work crew, but apparently never ventured out. Maybe if he'd burned his tires?
If you don't know whether or not a road is kept open (plowed) during the winter, it would be a dilemma. Like the other Tim, it would be my nature to set off, probably shortly after getting stuck. This is usually the wrong thing to do, but one factor might be: how quickly would someone notice I was missing? I think the family did remarkably well, especially if they had little outdoor experience--most folks today would be at a complete loss without a functioning cell phone. The father might have died of exposure whether he went out on Day 2 or Day 7.
If you don't know whether or not a road is kept open (plowed) during the winter, it would be a dilemma. Like the other Tim, it would be my nature to set off, probably shortly after getting stuck. This is usually the wrong thing to do, but one factor might be: how quickly would someone notice I was missing? I think the family did remarkably well, especially if they had little outdoor experience--most folks today would be at a complete loss without a functioning cell phone. The father might have died of exposure whether he went out on Day 2 or Day 7.
