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Gold Hills Posse 4×4 Club · Folsom, CA

Worried Dad Moment

  1. BLTJeep Member Joined: March 2012
    #13 Mar 2017, 5:06 AM

    So last Sunday, Logan took his quad up Wentworth Springs with a friend in a stock Toyota to "Play in the snow". He said he would be back early. Early to me is before dark. I get home from wood cutting around 8:30pm and Logan is not home. I send him a text, and can tell it does not go through. Wife is taking her dad to emergency, as he fell in the garage looking for the chainsaw (which I had). He banged his arm up pretty good and was bleeding, so off to the ER they go. I head out in the Dodge as my Jeep rear diff is still wide open in pieces. Now the Dodge is on bald tires, and the cable to engage the front axle if broken. I slowly proceed up to Stumpy Meadows and find Logan's truck where he unloaded the quad. Knowing he is up higher, and it is now after 10:00pm, (worried dad moment) I turn around to find a cell signal to call for search and rescue. Heading down to Quintette, I loose traction and cannot make it up the long hill just before town. I headed out on foot, in the snow to get to that sweet spot with 2 bars of service. Soon as I got close, my cell lit up with a dozen messages.

    Logan called my wife from Uncle Tom's Cabin (land line) to let her know he was ok. She texted me a bunch of info... Flat on the quad, buddy's truck was dead. Good, he is safe (stop worried dad moment). Now, how am I going to get home. Just then, Logan drives up behind me with buddy's in his truck. Someone that was up there gave them a ride down and was waiting at my truck to help me to the top of the hill...

    After following Logan home, I took one of his friends home to Placerville and got back home myself after 2:00am. Spent Monday morning putting my rear diff together in my Jeep, towing a car dolly up to Quintette, driving in to Uncle Tom's Cabin to tow the broken down Toyota out while Logan loaded the quad in his truck. Got the Toyota loaded on the dolly, and rear tires wanted to spin opposite directions. Transfer case would not go into Neutral. Spent two hours removing the rear driveshaft and slowly got it down to my place.

    I do not like worried dad moments.

  2. Jeff_R Member Joined: October 2016
    #23 Mar 2017, 8:26 AM
    BLTJeep said     I do not like worried dad moments.  

    Wow, glad everything turned out okay! My son who is now 25 has done a lot of backpacking, much of it solo. He goes on seven to ten day trips. On his first trans Sierra hike we bought him a Spot GPS device so we could track his movement. It has helped with those worried mom and dad moments. We always try to know his route and plans and when he is planning to go in and come out. It was not always easy getting him to comply and take his Spot device until one of his hiking buddies got high altitude sickness. They went in near Bishop and we agreed in advance that if there was a high altitude emergency on the opposite side of the Sierra's, one logical exit point would be Florence Lake. Based on his intended route we could tell something was wrong when we saw him heading towards Florence Lake. On this trip were both of my sons and four their friends. As soon as we determined from GPS tracks that they were trying to exit at Florence Lake, I jumped in my truck and drove six plus hours to Florence Lake. It turned out that the group got separated and my two sons had to hike their buddy with high altitude sickness out on the opposite side of the Sierra's from where they parked. They had to carry all of his gear because he was having difficulty breathing. They called me from a satellite phone at the store at Florence Lake. By then I was about two hours out. Fortunately I had oxygen with me so I drove him back to his home in Sacramento and he and wife later decided to go to the ER. He spent several days in the hospital.

    Moral of the story, let others know where you're going and what your plans are. It sounds like your son, as did mine, used good judgment and handled the situation as best he could. This kind of experience is a test and can teach them valuable survival lessons. None the less, once a parent, always a parent and we can't help but worry about our kids!

    Jeff and Kathy Root
  3. Gregulator Member Joined: February 2012
    #36 Mar 2017, 12:31 AM

    Those gps units are nice as well as a sat phone.

    Jeff, was that the son that we met this weekend?  I love backpacking!!

    Um...what?
  4. Jeff_R Member Joined: October 2016
    #46 Mar 2017, 4:40 AM
    Gregulator said Those gps units are nice as well as a sat phone. Jeff, was that the son that we met this weekend?  I love backpacking!!  

    Greg, yes it was him (Brian).

    Jeff and Kathy Root
  5. Josh Subscriber
    #56 Mar 2017, 1:23 PM
    BLTJeep said

    I do not like worried dad moments.

    Hey Brian. Don't forget to ask for help if you need it. I would help you out if you had an emergency. I know other club members would to.

    Semper Fi

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