Summary
Two Oregon men, aged 59 and 37, were found dead from exposure in Washington State’s Gifford Pinchot National Forest after failing to return from a Christmas Eve trip to search for Sasquatch.
The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office attributed their deaths to harsh weather and lack of preparedness.
A family member reported them missing early Christmas Day, prompting a three-day search involving 60 volunteers, drones, canines, and Coast Guard infrared technology.
I grew up backpacking those woods. December is dangerous even for experienced outdoorsmen. I’m going to guess they were not dressed appropriately, and didn’t have any means of navigation outside of cell phones. There is zero cell service in the area. It’s very easy to get turned around even with navigation there.
Be prepared and know what you’re getting into before you go off the grid folks.
It’s insane to me how many people just grab their phone and think “I’m good to go on an all day woodland adventure!” with no water, no food, clothing for an afternoon at the mall, and not even a backup battery for their phone.
I’ve actually packed extra clothes for someonein my bag specifically because I knew they were going to regret shorts and half a t-shirt. Cue 2 hours later they’re complaining about being cold when we’re in the valleys…
Like fuck, it can get damn chilly at night in the mendocino forests in June the wrong years. I don’t want to imagine how fucking cold it feels in actual winter a few hundred miles north
If you save the maps offline you can navigate without cell service.
I don’t have a data plan, so my maps are always downloaded!