In March of 2003, Eric LeMarque was snowboarding on Mammoth Mountain in California when a storm approached and Ski Patrol started to usher people off of the mountain. Eric decided to ignore the Ski Patrol because he wanted to go for one last ride. He began to ride down into a fog, and as soon as the fog hit, he took a wrong turn and headed towards the wilderness. He was lost and had to stay the night there. Eric went to drink from a river when the ledge gave way. The next thing he knew he was in an environment where it was freezing cold and he was soaked. He removed his clothes for a while and then put them back on, still damp. He then realized he couldn't feel his feet anymore, and they were black and purple. Eric attempted to hike up the mountain, farther and farther each day. Eventually he was dragging himself up the mountain, and could only go about 10 steps before his body could go no longer. His parents had gotten worried and his father went to the mountain to find out what was going on. They confirmed that he was missing. Eric refused to give up and kept pressing on, but he kept falling asleep during everything he was doing. He realized that he was dying of hypothermia, because he just wanted to fall asleep and stay asleep. He heard a chopper above his head, and after 8 days, he was found. His body temperature was 86 degrees; he was severely dehydrated, had lost 40 pounds and both feet had to be amputated. The biggest lesson in this story is to never give up. Even though he was tired and nearly dead, he never gave up, and that is what saved his life.
Lessons Learned:
Always Keep Batteries With You
Purify Water Before Drinking
Try to Stay Warm in Cold Situations
Try Not to Panic
Leeches Will Go Into Open Wounds and Durastically Slow You Down