Posted on 02/24/2020 12:21:43 AM PST by Yossarian
INVERNESS, Calif. (AP) — An academic couple who got lost during a Valentine's Day hike in the woods of Northern California was found Saturday by rescuers who spent almost a week looking for them and had given up hopes of finding them alive.
Carol Kiparsky, 77, and Ian Irwin, 72, were found in a densely forested area near Tomales Bay, a narrow inlet about 30 miles north of San Francisco, and were airlifted to a hospital for treatment of hypothermia, Marin County Sheriff's Sgt. Brenton Schneider said at a news conference.
“This is a miracle,” he said.
They were unprepared for a long hike or the cold weather, when night temperatures dipped into the 30's, and survived by drinking from a puddle, he said.
At some point, they may have fallen and Kiparsky attempted to find help alone. She tried parts of her scarf to branches in order to get back to her partner, Schneider said.
“They thought this was the end for them."
----SNIP----
Sheriff's officials and a volunteer team combed the woods and waters around Inverness for several days with the help of drones, dive teams and boats equipped with radar and sonar. On Thursday, they shifted the operation to a “recovery mission” when they received four independent alerts from cadaver dogs around Shell Beach, about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the cottage, and felt they had exhausted all possible leads.
----SNIP TO END----
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
From comments: Always carry a whistle, a compass, and a flint/firestarter, water and appropriate clothing, including a hat. Perhaps a space blanket.
Hint: “...an academic couple.”
Bernie supporting teachers.
And people think the masses fleeing the cities when the zombie apocalypse happens will pose a threat.
I’m beginning to suspect that less and less when I see how ill prepared people are when they go out in the wilderness for ANYTHING these days. Not to mention, going to the store or Post Office.
Sheesh, they seem to think that the cold weather isn’t so bad and they don’t need to dress for it. Are they going to be in for a rude awakening.
We don't know that. (I don't know that - have a link?)
They're a couple who made a hiking mistake, and people came together to save them. Be happy!
Also carrying a cell phone and a SPOT beacon wouldn’t have been a bad idea.
Total incompetent fools whatever the case may be. And old fools at that.
Build a fire and stay put
“when night temperatures dipped into the 30’s, and survived by drinking from a puddle, he said.”
Drinking from a puddle will keep you warm? I didn’t know that.sarc
How about a small eye dropper size bottle of bleach or iodine and a good knife. If it weren’t California I would also say a gun as it can also be used to signal. (shoot into soft ground)
The 10 essentials. (List) Don’t leave home without them, especially if going into the backcountry.
I would post the list, but my battery is done.
Goodnight. SW USA.
All of that will fit comfortably in a small fanny pack and you would still have room for a metal cup, couple of power bars and a hand full of bouillon cubes.
The pack with the two 1/2 quart water bottles, one on either side is nice.
I see lots of people wandering in the woods with nothing but a small bottle of water which they throw away when empty.
I guess they couldn’t see the sun at any point during their week long adventure. I’m sure it was a rough time when you are in your late seventies, but people think the entire outdoor world is Disney Land and nothing bad can happen. No need to be prepared, just do what you want. A good way to get dead.
BIC Lighters,
Yup!
And you just answered why having a cell phone in the wilderness is the backup to non electronic gear.
I once went on a multi day trek. The guy leading told me he had the maps. What he didn’t inform us of was that his maps were on a Apple Watch.
Mom,
These 20 somethings are not even prepared when the leave the house to go to work.
For example, my 21 year old son was leaving for work a couple weeks ago here in NH. We just had 4” of wet slushy snow overnight. He is wearing his brand new wing tip shoes. I point out I am wearing Timberland hiking boots on my feet.
It is good that they survived and were found by the searchers.
I’ve backpacked 3,200 miles, all of them on the Pacific Crest Trail, in CA, OR, & WA.
First tools, compass and paper maps in hand, in Zip Loc bags, then digital maps on an electronic device (Android cell phone) w/ waterproof container available and battery bank charger good for 96 hours.
We’re moving to NH in a couple months, soon as we get things settled here.
I’m looking forward to it.
Exactly.
We were on a well marked trail so getting lost wasn’t an issue but I was might upset at this guy. First he told us that we wouldn’t need water purification as there were plenty of wells and potable water stations along the trail. Uh, there were zero. (we had several Sawyer filters)
The map on the watch was killing me. It was so small it couldn’t be read so we had absolutely no idea how far to the next campsite.
The guy leading had all kinds of gear but no real knowledge. It was a small contingent from a weeklong youth camp. My buddy and I were the other adults and we had plenty of skills.
The trip was a combination of backpacking, Cycling and canoeing. About 70 miles over 5 days. The lead guy got injured on day two, (bad blisters) so we arranged a pickup and took over.
Most important thing is to file a flight plan with responsible adult(s)..
I go on rescue missions for local “lost” people. Most of the time around here is spent trying to figure out where to start looking.
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