An Accidental Adventure

The weekend of December 11th we took the kids up Fall Creek road to go sledding. We took the Wilson entrance and followed it up past Red Top Meadows. Parts of Fall Creek are unmaintained in the winter due to heavy snow, steep hills and the lack of necessity to plow it. We of course didn't let a  foot or so of snow stop us, so we kept on going, and headed for the infamous sledding hill that is somewhere between the Canyon and Red Top Meadows. We made it all the way to the base of the hill and then got stuck. It wasn't too bad and with a few minutes to clear out some snow and some heavy pushing on Kevin's behalf we were free. Until I turned the wheels of the truck too sharp and promptly parked the truck in a ditch. On my behalf I didn't know there was a ditch as the four or five feet of snow had filled it in. Alas with that we started our inadvertent adventure.
There was a small burm where the truck was parked so we sent the kids down it a few times on the sled. After a few minutes of discussion we decided to hike and get a cell signal. So we loaded the kids in the sled all bundled up, grabbed a bottle of water and some snacks and headed out. The kids didn't last long in the sled, apparently they like the snow, and running and playing in it is no problem as long as there is a path and they don't have to dig through it. So we walked and looked for a signal.

Yes thats the kids way out in front!

After we hiked for about a mile or two and still had no signal, the kids and I stopped and took a break and Kevin climbed a hill to see if he could get better reception. I stayed and hung out with the kids, which I have to say was much preferred to Kevin's task. After about 45 minutes he came back with the unfortunate news that he was unable to get service. At this point we had some tough choices to make. 1. We could all keep on hiking until we had service, 2. One of us could keep hiking on, the other stay where we were with kids or 3. One of us goes on, the other takes kids back to car.

We decided that option three was the best, so the kids and I went back to the car and Kevin walked on to find help. Kevin and I had decided when I got to the truck I would start a fire to keep warm, instead of using the heater in the truck and wasting all that gas. So when the kids and I arrived back at the truck we settled in a willow patch and I made a fire.

The next four hours wasn't all that eventful. The kids and I hung out at the fire, they played house and dug and made snow figures, never once complaining or whining about being stuck on the side of the road in the dead of winter.  I spent the entire time finding dry willow branches for the fire, not an easy feat keeping a fire roaring with only willow twigs for fuel.  All in all I was successful, and I'm proud to say the fire didn't die once. (I would have used actual wood if any was near by, but I was not comfortable letting kids out of my site to go find real wood, so I made do.) Eventually the kids got tired and bundled up on the sled in front of the fire, then  somehow drifted off to sleep.  I had considered moving them to the truck but they were warm and weren't complaining so we just stayed out in the cold by the fire. Once we heard some howling that was most likely a coyote, but we never saw what it was.  he only true scare came when I mistook Emma's snoring for the sounds of a hoofed beast snorting.


I can't really say what Kevin did for those four hours besides walk. He said he was nearly to Red Top Meadows (10 miles from us) before he got a signal, and instead of calling and walking back he kept going in hopes of maybe finding someone to help before the tow truck found him. Unfortunatly he was unsuccessful, the first cars he ran into were a pair of State Troopers that AAA called, to alert them to our situation. About 30 seconds behind them was the tow truck. It was about 8:00 when the tow truck and Kevin emerged from the darkness and came to our rescue. The truck was pretty stuck and it took an hour to get out, at this point I was grateful that we chose to stay by the fire, having the kids in the truck while trying to get it out wasn't an option. To have moved the kids once they were asleep in a warm truck, and then toss them out into the cold winter night would have been.   As it was we stayed safe, warm and dry while the two tow truck people and Kevin rescued the only thing in need of help, the truck.

 As a side note, being stuck on the side of a deserted road in winter with three kids is never fun. But being prepared and using reasoning skills and thinking through things, versus just acting, and reacting without thought makes a world of difference. We just stayed positive, keeping our spirits up and never letting ourselves doubt the possibility that all would end well. As a testament to the absolute difference preparation can make Lulu has asked the we "go camping again where we got stuck" for her birthday as it was the most fun she has had since Washington! There mere fact that our our four year old considered this unexpected an unplanned adventure "camping"  and wants to do it again for her birthday makes me both proud and humble.

Until next time, Be Safe & Be Prepared!