Newsday

A number of great examples here:
1- How being physically fit (youg too) can help in a survival situation.
2- How he could have been in better shape had he had some sort of PSK with him.
3- How he would have saved everyone a lot if grief had he obeyed the rules about not going out of bounds.

Is this guy a hero or a bum?

We've had 8 such mishaps in California with lost hikers, or people going over cliffs recently. I don't think it's hubris, so much as the mass ignorance of, and complacency our society holds Mother Nature in ( and we all know what happens when you don't listen to mother.) We all put ourselves in "Harm's Way" somehow daily. I don't wear helmets riding horseback, the apartment handyman almost lost a hand wearing gloves running a table saw and that black asphalt is a study in stupidity by otherwise decent people.

I vote for NOTA - none of the above. The guy lived, in spite of some strenuous efforts on his part to the contrary. That makes him lucky. If he hadn't, it would have been another entry in the annual Darwin Awards.

He lost both feet to amputation. The Doctors felt they could be saved, but with a long recovery with severely reduced usefullness. We are now in a strong rain front predicted to last several days. My ranch is experiencing mudslides on the burned hills. I hear sirens on the nearby freeway. It's a good night to cuddle up with the G/F and watch CLAN OF THE CAVEBEAR <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

$5-$10 in PSK equipment could have saved his feet; common sense may have as well.
How sad.

I agree with Chris. I don't think it's arrogance or hubris, but a rather a common misconception (among urban/suburban Americans, anyway) that Mother Nature is either harmless (think of all of the people who feed bears in National Parks), or any harm can be eliminated by technology ('I've got my cell phone, what's the problem??"....). Because so few of us live in close proximity to the true forces and whims of Nature anymore, the tendency to romanticize Nature or not see it as a real threat is understandable. Wrong and ultimately dangerous, but understandable. From one who has survived more than a dozen hurricanes, I have no such illusions. Google up a few pictures of the results of Hurricane Camille and you'll see why.

.....CLIFF
"Out there, son, there's two kinds of critters: those looking for lunch, and those looking to not be lunch."

What would be the best way to protect your feet from frostbite? Do you mean a particular item, or just some means to start a fire?

Hands,feet and facial extremities are the first victims to frostbite. Remember that a body will protect the core organs by shutting down circulation. It would be simple to say "keep warm," but there is more going on, with gear, our physiology and the environment. Most people venturing into cold or snow will have wool or pile socks and possibly a liner of poly or silk. This is about as good as it gets. What we put over it (boots) is where things can go wrong. Most boots are very robust affairs for wear and mechanical protection. leather, rubber and other manmade materials work well with various insulators- to a limit. Remember your body is pumping moisture out, and it either vents, or remains. Advocates of the Vapor Barrier school say this is a good thing. It works, until A. you remove the system for cleaning and B. the vapor overwhelms the ability of the insulation to absorb and the bodie's ability to warm become taxed. At @ 20 degrees snow becomes 'dry.' The system I prefer is a porous Muckluk of breathable canvas and leather. My foot is also in a flexible system that encourages mechanical heat and movement. The best of rigid boots become very unyielding affairs in extreme cold. Above 20 degrees external moisture is going to make a mess of things and another boot is required. A suprising strategy by Mors Kochanski can be seen and read @ www.countrywoolenmills.com

My reference was in his ability to start a fire. Yes, I am making the assumption that there would have been some sort of combustable material he could have worked with, dead tree branches, etc, but without the details, I could not be certain.