Body of missing hiker found at Mt. Rainier (Would a PSK have saved him?)

DeadeyeLefty said:
The whole trick to survival (IMO as always) is having the awareness to prevent problems while they're still small, just like anything else...

...Not trying to get preachy, but whether one 'survives' or not happens in one's attitude long before the boots even get dirty.
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I had an outdoor instructor who said that every time you go into the wilderness, you pull the lever on a slot machine.
If it gets cold, you don't have the appropriate kit, there is an accident, you don't tell/don't stick with your plans etc, a lemon comes up.

If you get enough lemons in a row, you 'win the jackpot'.

Every step you take to prepare lets you nudge a lemon over. It is the little things that get you. It is rare that people get into trouble in the wild because of a single factor.

A SAK, a small first aid kit and a space blanket is the bare minimum that I would consider taking when hiking solo in temperate rainforest.
 
Actually, its usually the crocs and hippos that rack up the bodies, but your point is well made.

Robert H said:
This is why we need Lions and Elephants.

They eat and stomp people all the time in Africa, and no one blinks.

We seriously live in Disneyland.
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That is a classic post !...Lions...Elephants....,now Crocs & hippos...on man I LOL on those two post ! TRUE..... but back to the topic....He could of had a backpack full of gear much less a PSK, if the Knowledge is not there what good is it !
 
Do we know yet what the cause of death was?

I mean, like another poster said, he could have just had a heart attack or something.
 
Ravaillac said:
Depend what you call a PSK.
He could have had stuff to start a fire an keep it running all night, but honestly I think right clothing would have been more useful than any altoid tin.
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I agree - a PSK may or may not have helped much. He essentially needed two things - shelter and fire. Proper clothing would have served as adequate shelter - but a tarp would have been better. Add a bic lighter and he could have lived and just had an interesting tale to tell over a beer.

Two things - a tarp (and some cordage) and a bic lighter. Don't go hiking without them.

IMO this is the key piece of info in his death:

"The search teams were following tracks in the snow when, at 4,200 feet, the tracks left the trail and descended to about 3,000 feet, where Ossman's body was found, Taylor said."

Sounds like it was getting late in the day, he didn't want to spend the night on the trail (probably because he was well aware he was unprepared). He got desperate (getting dark, no flashlight...) and went off trail trying to take a shortcut down - maybe he got lost at that point or just plain wet and cold. Once heat is leaving your body faster than you can generate it, the clock is ticking and you'll die soon. That 1200 foot off-trail descent was probably the mistake he made that cost him his life.

If you have something as simple as a tarp and a lighter you (hopefully) won't find yourself taking desperate measures like bushwacking shortcuts (in cotton clothing) through wet snowy brush to get back to the trailhead - you'll stop, think, take stock of the situation and decide to spend the night.
 
StainlessSteelRat said:
I had an outdoor instructor who said that every time you go into the wilderness, you pull the lever on a slot machine.
If it gets cold, you don't have the appropriate kit, there is an accident, you don't tell/don't stick with your plans etc, a lemon comes up.

If you get enough lemons in a row, you 'win the jackpot'.

Every step you take to prepare lets you nudge a lemon over. It is the little things that get you. It is rare that people get into trouble in the wild because of a single factor.
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This is exactly right.

The thing to keep in mind is that millions of people go hiking "unprepared" everyday, to NO ill effect. One death is the exception, not the rule.

This won't keep the fingerwaggers from pontificating and patting themselves on the back for their knowledge, however.
 
Return of the J.D. said:
It's a good reminder. A couple of years back, here in the desert, there was an unexpected winter storm very late in the season, after a lot of the local vegetation had started in on its spring growth. A local scout group got out into the mountains (in shorts and T-shirts, or other spring-weather clothing), only to find themselves stranded by snow. We had snow down well into the low desert, for the first time in years that it'd been that far down. I took my boys out for a drive, just to see the stuff.

It got me thinking: what if something unexpected happened, and I got stuck out there with them?

I later found out about the Scout troop. No harm to them--they were rescued, and did just the right thing after realizing they were stuck. The news accounts gave enough information about the search-and-rescue outfit that went and found them that I was able to call the commander and debrief him in a little more detail.
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If that was the troop that got stranded in the Chiricahuas a few years ago, I was there when they made it to the vehicles. It was not that they were not ready for the weather; it was that a lot of the kids didn’t follow the packing list. I was standing back a few paces listening to the Scoutmaster/leader of the trip complain how the parents didn’t have the kids follow the list. I didn’t get the impression that they were stranded or lost when they were found.

I thought that was a weak copout, if you are taking the kids out then you are ultimately responsible. Having an equipment check prior to leaving and sending kids home that didn’t have all their gear would stop that foolishness.


On the hiker in WA, natural selection at work.
 
H.T., the troop I had in mind got stranded in the Superstitions. (By a snowstorm--which is kind of a trick! I think the main peak in the Superstitions is around 5,000 feet above sea level, with most of the rest of the area well below that.) I'm thinking maybe about two years ago--but my memory's getting fuzzy as I age. I think Superstition Search & Rescue was the outfit that found them and led them out.

Yeah, the Chiricahuas are rugged as Heck--and a LOT higher--and with all that incredible topography, it's easy to see how one could get lost and NEVER get found, even if one were trying to get found. Whenever I see a photograph of the "Heart of Rocks" section of the Chiricahuas, I have to marvel about how much trouble it must have been for the U.S. Army to try to track down Cochise and Geronimo and their fellow Chiricahua Apaches in that country, on horseback. Can you imagine having to do that?

Edit: here's a picture of the topography I had in mind: http://www.amwest-travel.com/images/chiricahua05.jpg
 
Have you ever noticed that there are very few stories of prepared people with training and PSK's that get into this type of situation?? A PSK would certainly have saved him. He'd not have done this if he'd have the training and built a kit. Unless this was suicide, then est kaput.
 
alco141 said:
skills stay with you forever.

alex
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I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but skills (the ability to actually accomplish) are perishable. Simple cold weather can make one's hands so cold as to render them almost useless. On the other hand, if you are talking about knowledge, well then that is also perishable. People forget all the time, especially in regards to things thought about only infrequently. However, knowledge with repeated application so as to acquire AND maintain a skill set is generally harder to lose than a PSK.
 
on_the_edge said:
I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but skills (the ability to actually accomplish) are perishable. Simple cold weather can make one's hands so cold as to render them almost useless. On the other hand, if you are talking about knowledge, well then that is also perishable. People forget all the time, especially in regards to things thought about only infrequently. However, knowledge with repeated application so as to acquire AND maintain a skill set is generally harder to lose than a PSK.
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AMEN! The hard truth is that any of us here could fall victim to simple happenstance. Sometimes all the skills and gadgets in the world are not enough to overcome dumb luck.
 
I think the reason you dont see "lost hiker saved by PSK" is becuase if you are smart enough to bring a PSK and put one together you are most likly smart enough to 1. know when to turn back, there for avoiding the whole thing, 2. have enough knowledge (the best thing to bring with you) that you can make it out on your own.

When ever i am out camping and go on short hikes i always have my school backpack with me even if its a one hour hike, it has extra clothes, food, water, fire first aid kit and emergency blanket, cell phone, 2 X light knife. I always plan on getting stuck over night in a rain storm.

I read a survival book like the keeping your body at 98.6 degrees, called Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why. Were it is said that the best survival people are never given any credit, there the ones who avoid the situation when they can. Know when to turn back and your limits.
 
When I was working at RMNP in 2004 some Rangers talked to a guy headed up Longs Peak with jeans and a hooded sweatshirt. They told him his gear wasn't adequate and warned him of an approaching storm. He was reported missing and the search began. I remember the night, it was windy as hell. If you didn't find shelter you'd be dead.

They found him 300 yards from the summit the next day, covered in an inch of ice. When the SAR crews call everyone back you know it is no longer a rescue, but a body recovery.
 
Dannyboy Leather said:
From what I have observed and experienced, most people give little thought to their survival equipment or capabilities during extremes of stress. If they can manage to settle down, regroup if you will, they will sometimes turn their attention to setting their house in order with the view to surviving. The more experience they manage to acquire with their equipment in practice, the greater the propensity for actually using it when necessary.
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In the late 80s, I was the typical boy scout. I had decent woodlore, but I (and my fellow scouts) carried everything but the kitchen sink. This attitude is still prevalent amongst hikers, hi-tech gear solves every problem. Even amongst the ultra light set, people are too gear dependant. Using ethanol stoves or jetboil will leave you very cold and hungry if you don't have a backup.

Then my friends and I started doing our own expeditions, away from the scouting organization. We did some outdoor survival courses (mainly to keep out parents happy). What we did on these courses was learn to build bivouacs and tarp shelters, sleep rough using bivvy sacks, start fires from first principals using flints. The next time we went away, we looked at our mountain of gear and started throwing things out. No tent, just a tarp. No stove, we can build a fire. Less food, because we can fish along the way. No sleeping bag, because we have warm clothing anyway and a bivvy sack.

I think that the mentality that your PSK should contain your last resort in case something goes wrong should change. If you go into the woods, your EDC should be should be the basics for survival in the environment that you are entering.

Technology does not dispense with the need for knowledge, however. Even if you are city bound, things like learning to light your barbecue or indoor fire using fuzz sticks and tinder could save your life one day.
 
I have been on the AT when it seemed like a beautiful spring day only to have a cold snap come through and the temp plunge into the teens. That experience taught me an important lesson.

Now I may hike in cotton from time to time (summer as well as warm spring and fall days), but I have in my pack: poly underwear, breathable rain gear, as well as a fleece pullover and a knit, poly hat. It's important that you stay warm and dry *while* you're finding shelter or trying to build that fire.

I agree though that the PSK is not a magic talisman that will suddenly offer salvation. Practice with your gear in the cold and wet.
 
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