Slightly off topic, but I read this the other day and.. well.. I Hope he didn't eat the Dog's liver....

Toxicity from eating liver {from Wikipedia)

While liver is often eaten, the vitamin A content of the liver of certain animals—including the polar bear, seal, walrus, moose, and husky—is highly hazardous.

This danger has long been known to the Inuit and has been used by Europeans since at least 1597 when Gerrit de Veer wrote in his diary that, while taking refuge in the winter in Nova Zemlya, he and his men became severely ill after eating polar bear liver. In 1913, Antarctic explorers Douglas Mawson and Xavier Mertz were both poisoned (and Mertz died) from eating the livers of their sled dogs during the Far Eastern Party. Another study suggest however that exhaustion and diet change are more likely to have caused the tragedy

Pathological changes consistent with hypervitaminosis A have been seen in bones of Homo erectus, and have also been attributed to consumption of carnivore liver. More recently, the bone pathology of the Homo erectus KNM-ER 1808 has actually been attributed to treponematosis, a bacterial infection.

The more you know...

Are you suggesting we should ascertain the facts before rendering judgement? You must be some kind of a radical, indeed! This is the internet,after all....

It really does sound like a really tough ordeal. I would think long and hard before I would eat my dog, but I wouldn't say that categorically I would not do it. It would come down to the situation and circumstances

From what limited info we do have though it doesn't seem like he was very well prepared. If he were a member of this forum he probably would have had some vital gear carried on his body.

We all do keep some gear on us physically, right?

In all seriousness, I am a little surprised he didn't have a PLB on him. It sounds like he made these trips often, and I would think by now he would have invested in a little insurance just in case....

Probably he is a lot like many of us older types (like me!). He has been doing his thing for many years, decades even, before LBs were available, and did just fine....They are not cheap, so why bother.

I am right on the cusp myself.

I disagree - good basic PLB is about $300 US a year; half of what I pay for cable TV. Its not only cheap, its tiny and great insurance. With more advanced models you can do check-ins to email and more. Well worth looking into

spot PLB catalog info

RNewcomb,

I have to agree with Hikermor (as is common, we have a lot of similar experiences) that people did this for centuries without a PLB and some don't see the need.

Some also choose NOT to degrade the experience. It was best described in "Paradise Below Zero" where the author described the dropoff from a coastal freighter as he and an old trapper were left for the winter. The trapper said (IIRC) "At least now we can holler for help - and no one will hear" Many of us seek the true independence of not being able to call in the cavalry when we screw up. It is a part of the true wilderness experience. When I am responsible for others or when I am working I carry a PLB. Often, when I am on my own I don't. YMMV

Respectfully,

Jerry

I was thinking the same thing, and was reminded of this discussion we had last year.

SPOT is not a PLB. SPOT is a SEND. Two different animals , both of which have their place. Most notably, a PLB has no annual subscription, a SEND does.

So if I read this right, his stuff was either eaten or broken by a bear. He had the ability to turn around right then and return to civilization, but didn't. Me Macho Man, me good to go without the basics. Things got worse the farther he went, he ate his dog. He ate his freaking dog. His dog. He makes a rookie mistake in the beginning and compounds it. Nice play there Shakespeare.

I have a word for this guy. MORON. He should have manned up the first day after his stuff was destroyed and gone home. Instead, with no common sense involved, he continues his trip. I pity his family. I'm really sorry for the dog, he got roped into this clown's macho mindset without much input.

This story should be prominently displayed in a section of "What not to do in the woods". Or possibly the "Take your head out of your butt, admit defeat, and go home."

I certainly hope the SR guys charged him for their services.