Nevada Backroaders

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=10867128#

So many questions, but too late now.

_________________
WS7BR
2019 Cherokee Trailhawk 2.0T
Rescue Ranger & Training Dummy
I'm not stuck, I'm providing recovery training opportunities!

yep, many questions and lots of advise to give, but too late. How horrible for the mother, however stupid she may be.

_________________
"Wizard Tom"

"Zeek, I don't think we're in Kansas any more"
"If I only had a brain"

On the same subject: Fish and Game has asked us (NVBR) to come up with some tips (rules) for desert driving for a placard they will place at the new facility they're building at Corn Creek.
I'm now asking for all suggestions. Even the easy ones like: "Always take two vehicles",
and "have a spare and a jack".
Thanks.

_________________
"Wizard Tom"

"Zeek, I don't think we're in Kansas any more"
"If I only had a brain"

extra food, extra water, sunscreen, blankets

don't panic if something happens

ration your food

know how to use your recovery equipment

cell towers can carry very weak signals even out in the boonies....it is possible to get a text message out, even if you can't get a voice message across.

_________________



ɹǝʌo ǝɯ ןןoɹ sıɥʇ pɐǝɹ uɐɔ noʎ ɟı

Bingo! Text messages are much easier to get out. If they don't go out imediately they will stay in your phone and go when the signal is there. Sometimes a signal will come in for just a few seconds, but most of the time thats all it takes. Something as simple as a tarp with some rope can be a life saver. Giving you shade where you need it. Water water water, you can almost never carry enough water. Extra food past what you think you should take, always have emergency rations. I always try to have food and water for at least an extra 3 days past what I anticapte. Simple things like jerky and trail mix can carry you a long ways. People crack up at my little tent and sleeping bag that is ALWAYS in my Jeep, but emergency shelter is a must. First aid kit with some simple additions like superglue and a snake bite kit. I keep a small bottle of proxide as well. Shovel, pick and at least a hatchet. I don't know I could go on, you can use what you deen nessescary.

One time I got stuck and I used my sleeping bag along with the blankets and extra clothes etc in my Jeep under wheels to get out. Jack it up, fill in the holes as best as you can and then a sleeping bag or blankets can be a big help.


I guess the Boy Scout in me shows. I am loaded up for the worst even when I take my Jeep down to the store. My Jeeping equipment is almost never removed. Ok I probably got a little off track, sorry for that.

_________________
Jeep, it's a way of life and life is good!

That is such a tragic story that could have been avoided. It just goes to show that you can't always rely on cell phone coverage in the event of an emergency and sometimes we aren't always prepared for the worst. Just for that reason, I bought a SPOT. It works off Satellites so as long as you can see the sky, it will work. I don't know what the response time for a rescue is, and I hope I don't have to find out, but if anything did happen, I feel better knowing help is only a button push away. My heart goes out to the mom and the family.

Oh, and thanks to Mike for sending me an email about this device, and to my cousin who recommended it a while back, too. Well worth the money spent!!!

_________________
2002 Jeep Wrangler X, ARB's, 4.5" RE lift, 35" KM2's, built to crawl on rocks

I keep some pieces of carpet to use under tires if I get stuck in the sand. Haven't had to test them out yet.

An interesting tidbit I read in a desert survival guide - don't talk if you don't have too. You lose lots of moisture from your mouth when you talk.

And, of course the best advice, don't jeep in any further than you are willing to walk out!

latest news story has the mother saying she was following her gps and it got her lost. to darn many people are using these things like they are infallible and like lemmings are being lead to their doom. not to mention the peope driving 4x4's that think they can not get stuck. put the 2 together and you have a recipe for disaster.

last year a group of 12 or so vehicles in utah were following a gps to a natural arch just off the highway. they ended up lost, out of gas, out of water, out of food, and at the top of a 400 foot cliff. they had made so many turns at various intersections they had no idea of how to get back to where they started. they were lucky that one of the group finally got a cell signal after several days of everyone trying.

i'm sorry for the mothers loss but some people just shouldn't be in the back country.

_________________
1994 jeep yj wrangler-"d.d." []lllllll[]
Retired Trail Boss and Website Director
Founder of Uncle Brad's Misguided Children
NVBROFC
Re-located from my beloved Mojave to Texas. Where did all the mountains go???

CB ch9
Even if you do not get a response keep transmiting every 15mins or so, CB is omni directional and can bounce, even if you don't get a response you may be heard. That in mind transmit location, state, county, and type of emergency.


#1 stay calm, take inventory, make a survival plan
1 gallon per person per day
2000 calories per person per day, low sugar more protiens and carbs MRE's are awesome
spare/jack/tools
point of contact/ where, how long, when to look for me.
signal devices
shelter/ min: space blanket for each, mylar space blankets are very good sun shelter and signal device in day time. keep you warm at night.

oops got to go for the run tonight, lets add Desert Safety to our info forum.

_________________
WS7BR
2019 Cherokee Trailhawk 2.0T
Rescue Ranger & Training Dummy
I'm not stuck, I'm providing recovery training opportunities!

I'd like to add being prepared in that you know where you are going and how to get there. It appears by the news articles that I've read that she thought she could get around the southern end of the Panamint Range via Wingate Wash or around the southern Owlsheads via historic roads that were closed when the B-Range of China Lake Naval Weapons Center was created; then head north to Ballarat. Most maps show the military centers and their boundaries and often eliminate the roads that cross them from view.

I'd also suggest leaving a detailed itinerary with family or friends and sticking to it.

When I plan a trip, be it for a day or for several, I research topo maps and/or BLM or Forest Service maps to determine a route. If I find there might be a confusing series of roads that could lead to a wrong turn, I program the applicable amount of waypoints into my Garmin eTrex (I have both a basic eTrex w/no mapping and a Delphi NAV200 for mapping; however, I also always carry the applicable topo maps and a Benchmark Nevada Atlas with me to aid in navigation just in case).

I also leave a detailed itinerary with my wife. It has photos and license numbers of my vehicle and those of who travel with me; along with contact information for my cell phone and contact information for the wives of friends who go with me. It has a basic map of our planned route, along with any possible side tracks we might take. And the time frame we plan on for the trip. That way, if I go missing, my wife can hand out this information to authorities, which will greatly narrow their field of search and they will know with details what vehicles to look for.

_________________
D.A. Wright
~When You Live in Nevada, "just down the road" is anywhere in the line of sight within the curvature of the earth.

okay does anyone else think that they should have had enough water for 5 days pretty easily?


and the mom and the dog survive, but NOT the kid?

did she hoard that water for herself?

_________________



ɹǝʌo ǝɯ ןןoɹ sıɥʇ pɐǝɹ uɐɔ noʎ ɟı

Since everything else seems to have been covered, I'm going to throw in a pet peeve of mine: appropriate desert footwear. Flip-flops and sandals are fine for driving, but keep some better foot gear in your rig, just in case. You never know when you might have to change a tire, move rocks, or some rock scrambling to the top of a hill just to see where you are. Cholla's love sandals, too.

I've been broken down and spent a beautiful night in Death Valley before, and it can be scary if you're not prepared. I was rescued by a couple that must have bee ex-French Foreign Legion as they were driving a Peugeot wagon.....

_________________
Adam & Amanda

'06 Rubi- really, really ORANGE!
'02 Tacoma 4x4 TRD
WWJJD?

Yes! And wear (or at least bring) pants! Shorts are a bad idea too.

Maybe I'm just being a skeptic, but it's starting to sound fishy IMO. She tells everyone she's going to the north end of the park, but instead goes to the south end. She gets a flat, and instead of turning around (the flat tire was close to the asphalt I read) and going back, she went on; on very apparent limited use roads. She claims she was following her GPS, but yet got lost. Keep in mind she claimed to use it frequently on other camping trips (so I read). I haven't heard what year her Cherokee was, but most I have seen have a built in compass. And last, they didn't take enough food and water for one night, let alone 3 or 4.

So either she's up to something or incredibly (and sorry if I offend anyone over this statement) stupid. Unfortunately, the boy paid the ultimate price either way.

_________________
All Jeep trails had to first be Scouted.

1978 IH Scout II Lifted, locked, blah,blah,blah.
2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee, Her car.
1992 Ford F350 XLT 4x4

Yes to both of these! Years ago it used to be a fight with the wife every trip on footwear and clothes for the trail. At least she has learned.

_________________
Jeep, it's a way of life and life is good!