Quote: Originally posted by John Wehbring on 31 January 2006

---

Holding it in your hand and constantly looking at it means you're still an amateur, it's pitch dark or you are caught in a whiteout.

---

Two other instances come to mind where this might make sense:

1.  You are looking for a waypoint that was previously input to your GPS, and you are in fairly close proximity to it (< 1 mile).

2.  You are retracing your steps/track on an out-and-back hike, such as the one the hikers were lost on.

Getting back to the "event coordinator" (a.k.a. leader) responsibility, this event which was just posted sounds like a nice disaster waiting to happen.  It is a beginning hike which means just about anyone could show up.

"Big Horn Gold Mine:  The hike is about 3 miles round trip. It starts off on a old dirt road and then narrows down to a trail as you get closer to the mine.    We will be meeting at Vincent gap parking lot at 8:00am.   

You should bring some water and a snack and if you wanted to explore the mine a flashlight or 2. I will not be leading a trip into the mine but feel free to explore on your own at your own risk." 

It actually sounds really cool and I might go, and would probably explore a little bit, but I would not take a group of unknown people there and assume they will be smart about this.

Quote: Originally posted by Rusty Hoar on 25 January 2006

---

Mornin’ guys and girls… figured I’d throw my .02 worth in here…

 

I was the team leader for the SAR team that found Allison.  First off, let me say I have no doubt that she would have made it out on her own – she seems like a tough, determined lady.  I think she was probably pretty close to hitting the wall, however.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen 2 bottles of Gatorade disappear so fast!  I am glad that we encountered her when we did, as the information about Doug was radioed into base camp, and the whole search was re-directed as a result.

I, along with the other volunteers of the Sheriff’s Dept and San Diego Mtn Rescue, by definition don’t get paid - not with $$ anyway. 

 

The scene of Verdi hugging Allison was enough to pay my salary for a couple of years.  Makes it worth the 1000 or so hours each of us spends each year in classes, re-certifications, training, teaching, and actual searches.

 

In one of the posts Curtis Sutton mentioned GPS units with the SAR teams.  Yep – each team had one.  At least one.  Some teams had one for EACH MEMBER.  GPS’s are a great tool, but only that – a tool.  Not an end-all to navigation.  In a deep canyon like Palm Canyon, sometimes the satellites are not “visible” to the GPS.  So we revert to map and compass skills.  There was at least one map of the area with each team, and each team member had a compass.  Maps of anywhere can be had FOR FREE off TopoZone.com and a decent compass is relatively inexpensive.  Another poster mentioned cottonballs and Vaseline – good tip.  That, plus a cheap Bic lighter (it’ll light if it’s wet!) will start a fire for you.  Signal mirror?  One of those throwaway AOL CD’s you get in the mail will work wonders.  Or the inside of a snack chip bag, if it’s foil lined (like “Sun Chips”).  Actually found a couple of kids up on Palomar Mtn a few years ago when they used a bag to signal a helicopter.

 

Lost Person Behavior – or “how to intelligently guess where someone is going”….  A good source is http://www.sarbc.org/behchar.html#hiker from the Search and Rescue Society of British Columbia.  In this particular case, the original “intel” we had was that Allison and Doug were last seen on the ridgeline at 3:15 pm on Saturday.  Thinking that they had at least seen the rest of the group descend into Palm canyon, there was no reason to think they’d go anywhere else.  Of course, Murphy’s Law applies here too!

 

End result, everyone was found safe, a little worse for wear, and lots of sore feet and legs.  No big deal.  A good learning experience for all, and definitely an adventure few will forget.

 

Rusty

---

Quote: Originally posted by Jeff Miller on 01 February 2006

---

It actually sounds really cool and I might go, and would probably explore a little bit, but I would not take a group of unknown people there and assume they will be smart about this.

---

Jeff,

Now you can go on this hike and lead the masses with your trusty GPS.  The UTM coordinates for the Big Horn Mine (using the WGS84 datum) are:

11S 431502E 3801896N

   Great, Now we're bashing a trip that has not happened yet . It's an easy trail/road to the mine and anyone with any sence of adventure will want to look inside the mine. With all the leader bashing going on, Bob is smart to not "be responcible" for anyone who chooses to go inside. I am involved with a sea kayak group(SoCalKayakers) who include this disclaimer; "You are welcome to share the water. Just be self-sufficient, responcible for your own safty and be willing to be left behind if you fall behind".