Stay Safe

[tim629]

wasn't sure if I should put it here or in the general section but figured here makes as much sense as anything:


when you go out hunting/hiking make sure to carry some emergency supplies, an older gentleman that I know is currently missing very active & fit can glide across slick rocks in his barn boots at the age of 72. went for a hike yesterday morning with his dog and hasn't been seen since, dad just texted that the searchers lost the trail and are giving up so now it sounds like my dad & this gentleman's son are the only two with boots on the ground actively searching :x


https://www.facebook.com/wtajtv/photos/ ... =3&theater

 

[Whitesheep]

Ouch. Keep us posted on how this turns out.

Your advice is sound. The one time I got lost in AK I had little with me because I was "so close to the cabin." I had my rifle with me, but no compass or GPS so spent the night out. Found myself the next day.

On last year's Javalina hunt we came across an older fellow that high centered his large american sedan and had spent the last two days trying to walk out. He was actually headed in the right direction and since it was the day before opening Javalina he would have been found that day or the next. He had drunk from puddles to no ill effect (a buddy checked in on him much later), but had no food and inadequate clothing. He was ill prepared and had no idea what he was getting into "so close to town" here in AZ. He is from North Dakota. We hydrated him and gave him a granola bar then took him to the closest fire station about 20 dirt road miles away.

Stay Safe is right!

 

[Vince]

Living in a rural environment now I realize I'm 911.
Water, emergency blanket, food, gps, and/or phone, and firearm accompany me when I leave the homestead.

Vince


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[tim629]

also remember if you are going to look for someone be prepared yourself.

called dad at one point just to check in asked him if he brought along some emergency supplies: "yup I did" so i said "you have something to start a fire with right" he replied with a no, i guess i probably should have.

turns out a few more people are out searching, someone said they may have found his dog but not going to quote that one yet.

I'm sure in this guy's eyes he was going for a walk in the woods with his dog, within 3 miles of home on a mountain he has hunted and hiked for at least the last 20 years. I know i'm young & guilty of the same thing... does make me think a bit more about some nature of a GPS locator that i ahve been mulling over for a few years now just been cheap and not buying one yet

 

[truck driver]

The problem is as we get older we think we can still do the same things as we did just a few years ago. Now when we slip and fall we are in trouble and don't recover the way we used to.

 

[DrMike]

I do pray they find him soon.

 

[Guy Miner]

So easy for a simple trip into the wilds to turn bad...

Take a clue from the Boy Scouts, and "Be Prepared."

I hope the missing fellow is located soon, safe. Often though, there isn't a happy ending to these stories.

Guy

 

[Elkman]

I do hope he returns safe.

I frequently hikes in the woods near my home "without" any gear other than a walking stick. Last September I was accosted by something that wanted to eat me ( low light conditions). That was the first day in months that I had carried a weapon, whatever it was, ran away with one of my bullets. I will now carry daily. Being old isn't a bad thing, but being unprepared at any age can have negative consequences.

 

[sask boy]

Prayers coming from Saskatchewan for the lost hiker. Please keep us updated if possible?
PS. Thank you for the post.

Blessings,
Dan

 

[tim629]

well the update is good/bad:

unfortunately someone located Byron's dog which gave the searchers a better idea of where he was and they did find him. They found him sitting under a tree and figured he must have had a massive heart attack which was my fear since he had a heart attack I would be guessing over 20 years ago (I don't remember it, and one of his sons ran the dairy farm while still being in high school). So a very sad end to the story but for a semi-retired guy that was only picking up more outdoor activities, I don't think he would have wanted to go any other way.

just in the past year since turning the farm over to one of his sons he picked up a part time job with the local soil & water, but also took up hunting with a crossbow, flyfishing, and got his first dog (his wife thought he was crazy but he wanted a partner in crime for the great outdoors, his dog couldn't save him but helped to bring closure to the family a bit sooner)

I am a bit disappointed in the local fire departments, police, and other public services though. at 4pm yesterday I called one of my friends and was told that the fire company knew nothing of Byron missing, nothing had come across for a request of their manpower. The state police knew he was missing at 10pm monday when his wife called it in, so I could see a search being started at night but I would have expected a FULL search being organized at first light on the following day, not 2 days later. The official plan was for a search party to start at 8am today if Byron wasn't found which would have meant two nights in the woods.

Thankfully he was found to bring closure to the family and all the searchers to the best of my knowledge made it back ( I know a few guys that were out there with artificial knees in poor climbing shape but they wern't going to quit till dark then they were starting the next morning with the organized crew)

thank you for your thoughts/prayers the family will have some adjusting and some grieving to do




on another side note of positives: Byron's two sons finally spoke & shook hands for the first time in a LONG time so hopefully this time of pain may cause them to put aside their differences and value one another a bit more

 

[OU812]

Sorry to hear the out come was not what I and everyone else was hoping to hear, prayers are with you and his family.

 

[truck driver]

Sorry to here of their lose. I use to tell my wife if I don't come home just look for me under a big Oak tree and she would say she would have me cremated and cast my ashes to the four winds off a high bridge over a river that way she would always know where I was. Since I hunt a lot by my self I print out a google earth map of the area where I hunt so she will have some place where to start looking.

 

[Vince]

I'm sorry this happened but I can't say I'm surprised.
Prayers for his family and friends.


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[Whitesheep]

Sad, but not a bad way to go. In the woods with your dog sitting under a tree. I am sure it was painful, but hopefully not for long. I hope my last is in the back country and not hooked to tubes in a hospital. My wife is a Hospice Nurse and I hear all sorts of stories I don't want to be in.

Good point on the lack of an organized search. Probably wouldn't have made a difference, except to the remaining family's health.

 

[Elkman]

I think that most of want to go the same way. I know that I do. Bless him!

 

[super-7]

Condolences to his family and friends. And a thank you to all who took the time to search for him. And lastly good on him he went out doing what he loved, give me a hillside with trees and my mutt any day over a hospital . God Speed!