Rescued Unprepared Off-Roader (Soft Roader!)

[GTGallop]

My Third-grade Amigo and I took a trip into the Tonto National Forest today to go have lunch under a juniper tree. We were about 15 to 20 miles from the pavement down Cave Creek Road / FR24. Well into Yavapai county (AZ). Had a great lunch and then turned around to come home and noticed a young lady stranded on the side of the road. There was already two guys helping her and they were blocking the road so we just waited patiently. It became pretty obvious that there was no progress so we pulled up and offered to help.

Her car was a Volkswagon Tiguan with low profile tires. The sidewall had given way and she was dead in the water. Apparently VW's have some weird proprietary lug nut that needs an allen wrench and this girl was missing her lug wrench with that special attachment.

She was 21ish.
Blonde
Short shorts
Sun tank top.
Super thin fashion sandals with no tread on them.

No food.
No water.
No sunscreen.
No hat / sunglasses.
No change of clothes.
No flashlight. No lighter.
Out of cell service with a disabled car.
Never told anyone where she was going and when she'd be home.

We picked her up and started back into town with her. At one point we topped a ridge and I was able to grab a radio signal into the W7ARA Mount Ord Repeater, activate Auto Patch, and make a phone call using the ham radio to her dad. He didn't answer because he wasn't expecting a call from a ham radio but we did leave a message that the young lady was safe and secure and the car was disabled about 20 miles into the Tonto with a flat.

When we hit Sears-Kay Indian Ruins, I knew there was cell signal in the parking lot. She was able to get off a text and then a phone call. Met her Parents at Janey's Coffee Shop. I'm not sure if they got the car or not. The "rescue vehicle" was a Land Rover (good pedigree) with low profile tires (

) and I didn't get the feeling they knew about airing down your tires.

But the point is this....
This girl was probably 30 to 60 minutes from being a search and rescue case. Another 48 from being a recovery case. We only saw about 10 cars today down that road and three or four of them looked shady as hell. I don't know if the people helping her when we got there were on the level or not, but my buddy and I looked pretty shaggy and she willingly got into our vehicle over theirs. She seemed way too resigned to just go along with us because she had absolutely no options. While she was completely safe with us, it could have been any car she got into miles from civilization with no witnesses. This was a very smart girl. Very academically advanced at her university, well red and very book smart. And she had made the dumbest decision of all that put her in a position of having no options.

Please impress upon your kids and grand kids how important it is that they not put themselves in this position.

Tell people where they are going and when they are returning.
Take food and water.
Take shelter or clothes.
Have the necessary tools in your vehicle.
Don't push your vehicle beyond it's abilities.
Take a buddy or two - Strength in numbers!

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[tgRanger]

That was very honorable of you to do. I’m sure she was very grateful to have you come along to help and maybe you made a good friend in the process. Good job and story!

 

[RedlandRanger]

Please impress upon your kids and grand kids how important it is that they not put themselves in this position.

Tell people where they are going and when they are returning.
Take food and water.
Take shelter or clothes.
Have the necessary tools in your vehicle.
Don't push your vehicle beyond it's abilities.
Take a buddy or two - Strength in numbers!

Excellent advice. I follow this when I go hiking but the same precautions apply when going anywhere off the beaten path. I also carry a Garmin communicator so that I can communicate with my wife pretty much wherever I am. It is a two way deal, so I can send her messages and she can reply if needed. It is very useful.

That girl was fortunate to have people come to her rescue and not take advantage of the situation.

Kudos to you and your buddy.

I will add a "back story" of a friend of mine. He hikes a lot by himself, but is VERY good about telling his wife EXACTLY where he is. On one trip, he got off the trail, got in his truck and tried to start it, and the battery had died - he was completely stuck. He figured he was going to spend the night in his truck (he had a sleeping bag and extra food/water so he would have been fine). He was just going to go to sleep when he saw headlights coming down the road - it was the county sheriff - He had told his wife exactly where he was and the sheriff knew exactly where to go so they came looking for him. They jumped his truck and he was home before midnight. It was ONLY because he was very specific where he was going to be. And this is a guy who is very prepared and doesn't take stupid chances - it was just bad luck. It could happen to any of us.

 

[IdahoRanger]

She may have been more comfortable with you since you had the 3rd grade amigo. Did a lot of dumb things myself as a kid.

 

[Deleted member 1634]

I've heard similar stories too many times. Some that didn't work out as well. Especially those that happen in the winter. I always have gear for almost any occurrence that can happen. Food, water (and water filter), safety gear (first aid, etc), recovery gear (come along, straps, hand saw, hatchet, shovel), any weather gear (hoody, mid weight jacket, rain jacket, coveralls in the winter, ballcap, bug net hat, orange hat in case it's hunting season and I don't want to get shot, knit hat), extra blankets, toolkit, NOAA weather radio, emergency PLB, bug spray, sunscreen, battery jump kit with built in air compressor, fire starter, etc. I also always do a bunch of research regarding where I'm going, bring a paper map, and tell someone where I'm going. When we were young and would go driving in the woods as a family in our old Explorer, my dad would always leave an old bike in the back so one of use could ride out to get help if it came to that. One of the few things I don't have, and @RedlandRanger and I discussed this awhile back, is a two way communicator like his Garmin. I have an emergency communicator (PLB) if things get really bad though. It's definitely on my list and something to get before going on any of my overland adventure ideas, though I'll have a partner vehicle for most of those trips hopefully.

 

[GTGallop]

She may have been more comfortable with you since you had the 3rd grade amigo. Did a lot of dumb things myself as a kid.

Just to be clear... We are both 46 now. Been besties since the 3rd. And when you see what we look like, you'll know how desperate this lady had to be.

 

[RedlandRanger]

One of the few things I don't have, and @RedlandRanger and I discussed this awhile back, is a two way communicator like his Garmin. I have an emergency communicator (PLB) if things get really bad though. It's definitely on my list and something to get before going on any of my overland adventure ideas, though I'll have a partner vehicle for most of those trips hopefully.

The PLB is good, but I really like the ability to actually communicate for non emergency stuff as well as emergencies. Sometimes I get up and planned to go one place, but for whatever reason I need/want to go somewhere else. With the Garmin I can send a message telling my wife. For $12 a month, I consider it cheap insurance for as many times as I go out to remote places.

 

[HenryMac]

Good for you Greg.

Search and Rescue here in Central Colorado is out saving lives multiple times every week.

Everybody wants to climb a 14'er... but many aren't in any way qualified or prepared to do so. Usually they find the flatlanders and all is well. Other times it's a tragedy.

Amazing folks the Search & Rescue crews. Truly risking life and limb.

 

[rang19ca]

Good for you and your buddy. I’m so glad that you came along and did the right thing. Thanks to you guys, she is safe.

 

[jsphlynch]

I've done my fair share of hiking, including some minor mountaineering and a couple trips to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. On multiple occasions (especially in the Grand Canyon) I've encountered people who were woefully unprepared for the situation. Most of these people I don't think were dumb, just lacking necessary knowledge for the particular situation they were putting themselves in. The best thing you can do is exactly what Greg did: help them out as best you can and hope they learn from it.

Amazing folks the Search & Rescue crews. Truly risking life and limb.

In their retirement, my grandparents worked with their local search and rescue to provide logistics and support. To say these folks are amazing is an understatement: they truly don't hesitate to take great personal risks in the hopes of helping someone else.

 

[GTGallop]

...Most of these people I don't think were dumb, just lacking necessary knowledge for the particular situation they were putting themselves in....

Agreed, I always say and have probably posted on here before, "We all slid out of our mamma's belly dumber than a bag of hammers with no knowledge or defenses. If you know something today or possess a skill it is because someone cared enough to show you or make the material available to you. Do not judge the stupid. We all had that in common at one point. We are all responsible for helping the next generation succeed. Instead, judge those who refuse to learn."

I got the feeling this one was book smart but naive. Guilty of being sheltered by her parents who never showed her that there is a world out there ready willing and able to eat you for lunch if you are soft and unprepared. It was a good lesson for her.

And honestly - I'm probably happier about being able to use Ham Radio in the back country. I hear so often that it is out of data, no longer relevant, and useless - an old man's hobby for those in Heaven's Waiting Room. Was nice to show my buddy and the young lady (who probably never heard of it or saw someone use a radio to complete a telephone call) that Ham has a very solid role in personal safety and responsibility. That's the part I'm geeked out about.

 

[AzScorpion]

She's lucky you were there so help her. I've seen (I'm sure you have too) my share of stories here where hikers are out in the 100+ temps with little to NO water. Because it's so dry right now they think they're not sweating but it's really the opposite. Most times Search and Rescue gets to them but now you're putting their lives at risk. It was 105 here yesterday and very dry so it gives you the impression it's not as hot as it really is. I drink 1 gal of water on a normal day and sometimes that's not even enough.

You're so right about being book smart and naive. My girlfriends daughter is very book smart but has NO street smarts what so ever! I remember even when she was 15 talking to her how amazed I was that she was so smart. But then she'll come out with something totally off the wall which should be common sense.

 

[GTGallop]

It was 105 here yesterday and very dry so it gives you the impression it's not as hot as it really is. I drink 1 gal of water on a normal day and sometimes that's not even enough.

Yep - It was 7% Humidity and we were at 4,000'ASL. I think I saw the temp hit about 98 when we were out there.

 

[Sketch]

Excellent advice. I follow this when I go hiking but the same precautions apply when going anywhere off the beaten path. I also carry a Garmin communicator so that I can communicate with my wife pretty much wherever I am. It is a two way deal, so I can send her messages and she can reply if needed. It is very useful.

That girl was fortunate to have people come to her rescue and not take advantage of the situation.

Kudos to you and your buddy.

I will add a "back story" of a friend of mine. He hikes a lot by himself, but is VERY good about telling his wife EXACTLY where he is. On one trip, he got off the trail, got in his truck and tried to start it, and the battery had died - he was completely stuck. He figured he was going to spend the night in his truck (he had a sleeping bag and extra food/water so he would have been fine). He was just going to go to sleep when he saw headlights coming down the road - it was the county sheriff - He had told his wife exactly where he was and the sheriff knew exactly where to go so they came looking for him. They jumped his truck and he was home before midnight. It was ONLY because he was very specific where he was going to be. And this is a guy who is very prepared and doesn't take stupid chances - it was just bad luck. It could happen to any of us.

I have a Garmin InReach Explorer+ just for these types of events. I spend a lot of time out in the back country of the Eastern Sierras where there is zero cell service. Plus, I'm a bit impulsive and tend to take random dirt roads just to see where they lead which means nobody would be expecting to look for me in those areas. I highly recommend a satellite communicator and if I had a daughter, she would definitely have one!

 

[RedlandRanger]

I have a Garmin InReach Explorer+ just for these types of events. I spend a lot of time out in the back country of the Eastern Sierras where there is zero cell service. Plus, I'm a bit impulsive and tend to take random dirt roads just to see where they lead which means nobody would be expecting to look for me in those areas. I highly recommend a satellite communicator and if I had a daughter, she would definitely have one!

After his experience, my friend now has a Garmin as well. For $12 a month it is cheap insurance in my mind.

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