I know this sounds morbid, but I have seen so many friends die, (some of them are sitting in a cremation box at the local funeral home because their relatives cannot afford to have them buried), that I have bought my own cemetery lot.

Also I am working on having a headstone made (without the final date of course). I do not want to burden my relatives with these things after I die. Of course hopefully I will not die before my time.

I felt physically ill hearing of his tragic situation. Perhaps this is a lesson to those who say this generation has been desensitized because of the internet etc. That could be furthest from the truth. The outpour of heartfelt sympathy is clearly being displayed all over the net.

As for now, I only hope his wife is able to move forward in such a fashion that keeps his spirit alive. I hope that cnet continues to honor his name, he appears to have been a great man. rip James, you have accomplished what you set out to do. You saved your family. You were a brave man.

Still, I don’t see the popular irony in his lacking “gadgets that could have saved him”. For example, I know too well how a GPS can be rendered totally useless driving through a national forest – let alone one during a heavy snowfall. That kind of “tech-coulda-saved-him” thinking is just more hubris that gets us into trouble in the first place.

When I first heard about James Kim, my heart went out to their family. Learning of his death was sobbering. I am so sorry for the loss they have suffered and the cold they endured. As a mother now, I know what drove James to seek help and I see him as a hero. They are all heros.

I am sorry for your loss as well – the loss of a friend.

A whistle too. The universal back country distress signal is three blasts on a whistle. Any rescue team that hears it will head towards it. Lives have been saved because someone had a whistle. Put it on a string and wear it around your neck.

If you must walk for help, stay on the road or trail. Going cross-country may get you lost and makes you much harder to find.

If you stay where you are, mark out a big SOS on the ground with rocks, branches, etc. that can be seen from the air. This is also a universal signal.

I hope that his memory is a blessing to you, Chris, and that you take his dedication to family with you on your wedding day.

I have posted to a few friends on Leoville who archive everything for a picture of you on call for help with James. will email you if I get any pictures.

I cannot say what steps could have been done to prevent this tragic conclusion, but I hope that we can remain focused on what can be said of the events. James remained with the car for a week, before setting-out to find help. In his situation, watching the life slowly slipping away from his family, and rescue doesn’t seem to be guaranteed…I would have done exactly what he did. As for the other survival tips, those also work best with the benefit of hind-sight. How many of us travel on the roads under the assumption that we’ll need enough fuel, food, and water to last indefinitely? Please let us focus our attention on the man. He displayed the highest ideals of what a husband and father would do under the most extreme conditions imaginable. Facing almost certain death to give his family a better chance at surviving represents the kind of man each of us should aspire to be…and the type of man women should want to call her partner through life. One need not make the ultimate sacrifice in devotion to our beloved family, but we can demonstrate that commitment in so many other ways. This should be James’ legacy…a call to be better to those we cherish. I never met James personally, but I still felt as if I knew what was important to him. He never failed to take the opportunity to show the countless pictures of his family…especially his oldest daughter. It is clear the he would have done anything to secure his family’s future. Let us not spend our time and energy second-guessing James’ problem solving skills. Even if he was taken too soon, one day the Kims will be able to reflect on his courageous actions, and feel proud to have had such a man in their lives.