Angie called from the office this morning, saying a couple of hunters were in trouble and had to abandon their truck down in Madera Canyon, not far from here. Can you help?
Meeting them at the ranger station they had quite the story: Leaving their rig in a precarious situation Wednesday evening they hiked six miles to pavement and caught numerous rides arriving at their camp 30 miles away on forest roads, well after midnight. The next day they drove their other truck all the way to Espanola where they bought a receiver hitch-mounted winch and some straps. Back to camp where they loaded an old-school ATV on a trailer and drove the 30 miles to the bottom of the road in question. They hauled everything up the six miles of 4x4 road to the stuck rig. Imagine two men, tools and and a 9,000 pound winch on a quad. Maybe they made multiple trips, I should have asked. They worked all afternoon winching, strapping and digging before giving up again. This morning, facing defeat, they stopped at the Ranger Station to ask their friendly neighborhood (unpaid) federal employees for help. Having only a skeleton crew and no one to spare Angie called me knowing I'm always up for an adventure.
Not knowing what to expect exactly, I grabbed some hand tools, extra straps, winch extension line, the dog and my neighbor, Ted. After talking with the hunters at the station and getting a location pin I realized they were on a very narrow shelf road hacked out of cliff with no turn-arounds and no way to pass their truck. (The road is on a 100 year old railroad grade). Not having enough data to determine my best approach, from above or below, we decided to split up and arrive from two directions. Them on the ATV, which involved a highway drive and staging the trailer and us in the 460 coming down from the top.
Airing down, Ted and I arrived at the truck an hour later and well before the hunters coming up from below. We were astonished at what we discovered! A nice, lifted quad cab 4x4 Chevy 3/4 ton pickup parked in the road with a clear, non obstructed path forward. Yes, the location is sketchy, a sharp bend around a deeply-incised washout from a steep side drainage. And indeed, this spot has given me pause in the past - one must negotiate an uncomfortable off-camber climb while keeping your rear end from falling into the void. But it's really just a perceptual thing and a good line.
The hunters clearly did not have the necessary perception and they worked very hard at arriving at a visual they were comfortable with. In addition to all the angst and expense they'ed already suffered, they worked at winching the back of the truck, mounted in the receiver hitch and hooking to an iffy boulder, to gain a better alignment. They also spent time hacking away at the uphill road bed with a shovel to reduce the camber.
None of their efforts were really necessary but they did succeed in greatly improving the situation. But they still did not recognize this.... to the point of giving up for a second day.
It took some word smithing on my part to convince the owner that all he had to do is get in and drive. After some more coaxing and spotting five seconds later he was on safe ground. All rather anticlimactic. Clearly relieved, we helped them load up their gear and we followed them back down to the other truck and trailer after spotting them around a couple of other tight spots.
They were, of course, very grateful even though all we did was provide a little coaching and encouragement. Ted and I felt bad for them after all they had been through. It also made me realize how important experience is in understanding risks, vehicle capability and everything else that we take for granted. It was also late in the day for them, Wednesday, the last day of the season, they had not gotten their elk, they were a long way from camp, in unfamiliar country and they found themselves in what seemed to be a precarious situation. A mentally edgy condition and you can't blame them for making conservative decisions.
On a route, by the way, that OnX, their nav app, indicated as an improved road.
Angie intends to place signs at both ends, which is actually a cool route - I lead a group from HDC up it a few years ago - that say: "Non Maintained Road, Enter at Your Own Risk."
Meeting them at the ranger station they had quite the story: Leaving their rig in a precarious situation Wednesday evening they hiked six miles to pavement and caught numerous rides arriving at their camp 30 miles away on forest roads, well after midnight. The next day they drove their other truck all the way to Espanola where they bought a receiver hitch-mounted winch and some straps. Back to camp where they loaded an old-school ATV on a trailer and drove the 30 miles to the bottom of the road in question. They hauled everything up the six miles of 4x4 road to the stuck rig. Imagine two men, tools and and a 9,000 pound winch on a quad. Maybe they made multiple trips, I should have asked. They worked all afternoon winching, strapping and digging before giving up again. This morning, facing defeat, they stopped at the Ranger Station to ask their friendly neighborhood (unpaid) federal employees for help. Having only a skeleton crew and no one to spare Angie called me knowing I'm always up for an adventure.
Not knowing what to expect exactly, I grabbed some hand tools, extra straps, winch extension line, the dog and my neighbor, Ted. After talking with the hunters at the station and getting a location pin I realized they were on a very narrow shelf road hacked out of cliff with no turn-arounds and no way to pass their truck. (The road is on a 100 year old railroad grade). Not having enough data to determine my best approach, from above or below, we decided to split up and arrive from two directions. Them on the ATV, which involved a highway drive and staging the trailer and us in the 460 coming down from the top.
Airing down, Ted and I arrived at the truck an hour later and well before the hunters coming up from below. We were astonished at what we discovered! A nice, lifted quad cab 4x4 Chevy 3/4 ton pickup parked in the road with a clear, non obstructed path forward. Yes, the location is sketchy, a sharp bend around a deeply-incised washout from a steep side drainage. And indeed, this spot has given me pause in the past - one must negotiate an uncomfortable off-camber climb while keeping your rear end from falling into the void. But it's really just a perceptual thing and a good line.
The hunters clearly did not have the necessary perception and they worked very hard at arriving at a visual they were comfortable with. In addition to all the angst and expense they'ed already suffered, they worked at winching the back of the truck, mounted in the receiver hitch and hooking to an iffy boulder, to gain a better alignment. They also spent time hacking away at the uphill road bed with a shovel to reduce the camber.
None of their efforts were really necessary but they did succeed in greatly improving the situation. But they still did not recognize this.... to the point of giving up for a second day.
It took some word smithing on my part to convince the owner that all he had to do is get in and drive. After some more coaxing and spotting five seconds later he was on safe ground. All rather anticlimactic. Clearly relieved, we helped them load up their gear and we followed them back down to the other truck and trailer after spotting them around a couple of other tight spots.
They were, of course, very grateful even though all we did was provide a little coaching and encouragement. Ted and I felt bad for them after all they had been through. It also made me realize how important experience is in understanding risks, vehicle capability and everything else that we take for granted. It was also late in the day for them, Wednesday, the last day of the season, they had not gotten their elk, they were a long way from camp, in unfamiliar country and they found themselves in what seemed to be a precarious situation. A mentally edgy condition and you can't blame them for making conservative decisions.
On a route, by the way, that OnX, their nav app, indicated as an improved road.
Angie intends to place signs at both ends, which is actually a cool route - I lead a group from HDC up it a few years ago - that say: "Non Maintained Road, Enter at Your Own Risk."
The satellite phone is a good idea. Climbing a mountain to use a cell is unappealing.