HikeArizona.COM

June 3, 2015
PHOENIX -- A 58-year-old Tucson hiker was rescued early Tuesday after getting lost near the Arizona Trail and surviving three to four 100-plus degree days without food and water.

Read more here ...
(dead link removed)

rwstorm wrote:

azbackpackr wrote:you don't know Jim. He's always kidding around

This excuse is getting a little old.

I should drink more, and have a better excuse, then? I'm dead serious here, Randy.

chumley wrote:

azbackpackr wrote:He's always kidding around

This is true. He actually loves Flagstaff. And Kayenta. And Alamagordo. And wind. And cold. And heat. And rain. And... :roll:

The professional snark strikes again?

chumley wrote:He actually loves Flagstaff. And Kayenta. And Alamagordo. And wind. And cold. And heat. And rain. And...

... and hiking early, Subaru's, Subaru dealerships, Subaru Tires, Kittens.

Sredfield wrote:How irresponsible!

Unless of course we can all take this as notification that when you don't come back, it is your expressed wish that no one is to come looking. And you have also notified SAR and other appropriate authorities not to risk life and equipment in their official duties? And the administrative and legal cleaning-up of what is left of your existence--you've got that covered?

The trauma of coming upon your carcass will just be whoever's bad luck. "Really? Other than that, how was your hike?" But they can take heart, you did it your way. I'm sure everyone will understand.

There are many reasons to use these devices, protecting one's sorry pumpkin is a ways down on the list.

Overreact much?

Sredfield wrote:How irresponsible!

While I fully understand your point of view, sorry but I don't agree...

There is simply no way one can be prepared for all the possibilities that could happen just by living, let alone going out hiking alone.

I have a feeling the majority of folks here on HAZ don't have an up-to-date will. So whether we lose our life in the car on the way to a hike (much more likely) or lose our life DURING a hike (less likely), without a will there most likely will be an administrative and legal mess.

That said, how far should one go to cover every scenario before getting out of bed every morning?
(rhetorical question)

Personally I don't even think about the possibility of not living out the next 24 hours, I try to live each day to the fullest.

Shawn - WTF?

“There are several springs along the trail,” said Sergeant Rodney Cronk of the Gila County Sheriff’s Office. “He found a couple of them, but didn’t like the quality of the water he saw … he apparently didn’t have a water filter.”

Ultralight is getting ridiculous. AZT needs to tell people to at least carry some Katadyn Purification Tablets. They weigh bupkis (a technical term meaning next to nothing) http://www.amazon.com/Katadyn-Micropur- ... ikearizona

I have drank some bad water in my time. Even to the point of gagging. :yuck: I have drink pond scum to survive and then took the antibiotics to save me when I was done. But I didn't need 2 DPS choppers to medevac me. Maybe my generation is just bad pumpkin and these 58 year old youngsters are wussies. Get these wussies off the trail - through education or embarrassment. :SB:

I don't care how old you are, it's not the years it's the miles and the experience. Some people have 12 years of experience and some people have one year of experience 12 times. Don't think you have experience because you have the years.

I have drunk some bad water that I put bleach into. 4 drops per quart, tastes like a crowded swimming pool on a hot day in July. (Oh, yes, I'm old school. I carry quarts, not pumpkin liters! ;) ) I have filtered some bad water, too, and boiled it, too. I have to agree, in general, with Mr. Al_Hikes that there's an experience level here that's missing. Not an age thing.

There are a number of factors here. If the guy was section hiking he should have known the weather forecast (and maybe stayed home due to heat forecast) and have also put out a water stash for himself if he didn't think he'd want to drink skanky water.

Section hiking with no water filter, what did the guy expect, a water cooler at every trailhead?

@azbackpackr, tastes like a crowded swimming pool on a hot day in July. (Oh, yes, I'm old school. I carry quarts, not pumpkin liters! ;) )
I spent most of my life in the Northwest. And I was wonder what Crowded swimming pool water taste like in any month not just July.

@azbackpackr, tastes like a crowded swimming pool on a hot day in July

Pretty icky, like drinking bleach with a lot of other stuff added in for "flavor."

Al_HikesAZ wrote:“There are several springs along the trail,” said Sergeant Rodney Cronk of the Gila County Sheriff’s Office. “He found a couple of them, but didn’t like the quality of the water he saw … he apparently didn’t have a water filter.”

Maybe he was already addled when he made those choices, although that shouldn't explain lacking water treatment of some sort. I hope he makes the most of his do-over in life.

It would be great to know the whole story. I hesitate to accept what we hear in the press beyond basic details.

Like my USAF survival instructor told me long ago -- They can cure giardia, but they can't cure dead. I always have 2 methods of making water safe any time I am on the trail for more than a few hours.

That's it I'm not hiking anymore. So really water is important and in of all places Arizona, the Seattle of the Southwest!
Btw nice thread save.

AZ Wandering Bear wrote:... They can cure giardia, but they can't cure dead. .....

Good advice!

Kinda like....