I don't doubt that a properly built shelter outside of the car would have been better especially if the temps started dropping even further. However, their shelter was sufficient simply based on the fact that the mom & two kids are doing great now.

I would say it doesn't matter what the chances of getting stuck are. People do get stuck, and if you are one of those unlucky few that do, you'd best be prepared.

I’ve not recommended a PLB, though it’s a good idea if you can afford it. I can’t right now. For about 1/3rd of that they could have had a pair of snowshoes, a tarp, a map, a compass, a signal mirror, and enough food to get through the ordeal.

The items I mentioned above would hardly take up much room, about the size of a medium-sized toolbox.

Yep. And I hope a lot of people can learn from this situation. I’m already rethinking some of my gear choices because of it.

So we should never prepare for a survival situation or analyze one after the fact because sometimes people die in spite of their preparations? Sorry, with all due respect, that is just flat-out wrong. (BTW it is still a good idea to look both ways and still a good idea to avoid tailgating even if doing so won't prevent all accidents.)

Via con Dios James
My family and I will keep your family in our prayers.

Re the Air Force guy and his son: I presume that you saw the reconstruction on one of the Ray Mears programs? The thing's that struck me most strongly about that little debacle where:
1) His total lack of preparation.
2) A properly employed Ritter PSK would have gotten him and his son rescued.

I was sorry to read about James, but after that lenth of time I would also be thinking along the lines of do I go for help, or do I sit there and watch my wife and kids perish?

I think that he was an ordinary, decent family man who was about out of options and it was try, succeed or die trying time.

Nuff said.

Path graphics that I found on the Hoodlums Forum post #39. Not a walk for the casual camper.

I did some research on PLBs last night after reading this thread.

There's a PLB rental site:

PLB Rental

They seem pretty affordable. This is not the end all solution, but an option.

I'd like to add a couple tidbits into the PLB discussion here…

Yes, they are high-tech and they signal Search and Rescue very quickly to your specific location, which is why they are so expensive. They do their job and they do it well.

But a PLB is not the only solution for attracting attention to yourself. As others have said, a good signal fire would work as well, or snap the mirrors off the car and start shining everything that moves. Another great option is to have one or two (or more) RescueStreamers. These aren't just made for water, and they pack small and are much less expensive than a PLB!

Note that Kati Kim and the two children were spotted by a chartered helicopter by waving an umbrella with a reflective "SOS" on it. Using the RescueStreamer(s) to draw an orange line or "V" in the snow would have made a much larger, more noticeable, and passive signal. Hell, you could even throw one up a tree to give your signal a vertical aspect.

As Doug states in several locations throughout his articles, preparation involves redundancy. You don't just get yourself a PLB and think, "Hah! I'm set for every situation!" The moment you start thinking that is the moment the PLB's antenna falls off or the battery falls out and rolls off a cliff. The idea of emergency supplies is to give yourself several effective methods to get yourself out and to keep you alive until that happens.

To conclude, while being a great addition to any survival kit, a PLB is not the only option to consider and it is also not a 100% solution to every problem.

the rearview mirror of a typical car seems like it would make a good improvised signal mirror. i assume the surface would be pretty even because its made from glass. has anyone experimented with one?

Wow! that is amazing graphics of the path. All the different angles really puts it in perspective. He covered a lot of ground.

Of course we can 2nd guess him all day long, but I would be curious why he didn't start back the road going down hill right away?

Norad45 said:
(sigh). This is the point. Your car could catch on fire, so you had better buy a fire extinguisher. You or a family member may have a heart attack -- better carry an AED. Just in case on tsunami, carry an inflatable raft and life jackets.

It is easy to jump on the bandwagon of "carry more stuff," but unless you want to take you family on vacation with an 18-wheeler, there are very hard limits of what you can carry. In the 98.6 book, Cody Lundun says that you need to be prepared to survive for at least three days. This guy more than doubled that, yet it still wasn't enough. The simple fact is that you can absolutely never prepare for everything. I would like to think that I am more prepared than the average person, yet I cannot honestly say that I would have an excellent chance of survival in such an environment for a week and a half.

The usual advice is always to "stay put." This guy also followed that advice for a whole week. He only set out after it appeared that staying put would not result in success. He did not have a crystal ball, so he could not know how soon help was coming. It is possible that his family might still be stuck out there even today. Staying put is true in MOST cases, but in some instance, it is just waiting to die. And without knowing the future, you do not know with 100% certainty which action is the right one. Clearly, the "staying put" option did nothing for a whole week, so he figured that it was time to try something different.

In short, I admire the guy and his family for lasting as long as he did. It is easy to play armchair quarterback, but it is a whole different thing to be in the game.