FUBAR!!!

And THAT'S what you have to plan for.

BTW, the salesman's rig had slid off the road in the deepest patch of snow around, in the trees. He was mobile, he was in good shape, he had equipment and supplies. It was said (in hindsight, of course) that had he attempted to walk the half-mile back down the road after the first week or so, the snow had probably been melted enough for him to walk out. He apparently had thought that the whole area was as bad as the particular place where he was.

If you've changed your direction, haven't notified anyone, and no one knows you're lost, it seems to me that you should check out the area, esp the road. A half-hour walk (car door to car door) isn't going to put you in hypothermia if you stick to the road. Go out, check out the road/terrain, go back to the car and warm up. Check out the other direction, then warm up. Make a decision. Of course, I'm not talking about doing it during a snowstorm, or after dark.

But the Kim case (and the salesman's case) show that waiting around until you starve to death may not be the best way to handle the situation.

Depending on people who won't accept information, people who assume something has been done, people working on erronous information.... why leave these people in charge of your life?

Sue