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A family of self-described "wilderness rats" survived more than two weeks in a recreational vehicle that became stuck in the snow covered mountains of southwestern Oregon before being rescued late Tuesday.
The family — a husband and wife, two children and the husband's mother and stepfather — slid off a little-traveled road and became stuck in as much as five feet of snow. "The motor home turned into a snowplow," said Elbert Higginbotham, the stepfather, in an interview with an Oregon television station. "We had snow up to the windshield."
Pete Stivers, 29, his wife Marlo Hill-Stivers, 31, their children Sabastyan, 9, and Gabrayell, 8, along with Mr. Stivers's mother Becky Higginbotham and Elbert, set out set out from Ashland, Ore., across the mountains to the Pacific coast, a trip that normally takes about four hours.
The family ran into difficulties on the return trip, when it decided to take a scenic route back home, rather than more heavily traveled roads. "Every time we took a corner, it seemed like we took a wrong corner," Mr. Higginbotham said.
After the 36-foot vehicle slid off the road, about 3,800 feet above sea level, efforts to dig it out by hand were unsuccessful.
But the vehicle was well-equipped with dehydrated food, propane for heat and engine fuel to supply electric power. Water came from melted snow. The family was able to watch television broadcasts of the search for their location, but were out of range for cellphone communication.
Police searched the more heavily used routes searching for the family, but to the outside world it seemed as though they had just disappeared from the face of the earth.
Twelve days after they left home, the police in Oregon were calling the case "suspicious." Relatives noted that none of the family bank accounts had been accessed and wondered how the six could be traveling without spending money.
The police eventually called off the search, saying there were no leads to follow.
After 16 days, with cold weather making the snow firmer, Mr. Stivers and his wife decided walk out to seek help. "The snow was knee deep, rather than hip deep," Mr. Higginbotham said in a televised interview.
The two brought a tent, blankets, hand warmers and food. "The blankets were wool, so they could keep them warm even if they got wet," Mr. Higginbotham said.
After hiking for about 24 hours, they encountered workers from the federal . Bureau of Land Management and were rescued. Workers in vehicles designed to operate in deep snow were sent to pick up the four people still in the motor home and they were all reunited in Glendale, Ore., about 80 miles north of the California border.
Mr. Higginbotham said passed the time reading and talking. He said adults are experienced outdoorsmen. "We have lived that way in the middle of nowhere," he said. "We know how to live this way. We were lucky that nobody got sick or hurt."
A family of self-described "wilderness rats" survived more than two weeks in a recreational vehicle that became stuck in the snow covered mountains of southwestern Oregon before being rescued late Tuesday.
The family — a husband and wife, two children and the husband's mother and stepfather — slid off a little-traveled road and became stuck in as much as five feet of snow. "The motor home turned into a snowplow," said Elbert Higginbotham, the stepfather, in an interview with an Oregon television station. "We had snow up to the windshield."
Pete Stivers, 29, his wife Marlo Hill-Stivers, 31, their children Sabastyan, 9, and Gabrayell, 8, along with Mr. Stivers's mother Becky Higginbotham and Elbert, set out set out from Ashland, Ore., across the mountains to the Pacific coast, a trip that normally takes about four hours.
The family ran into difficulties on the return trip, when it decided to take a scenic route back home, rather than more heavily traveled roads. "Every time we took a corner, it seemed like we took a wrong corner," Mr. Higginbotham said.
After the 36-foot vehicle slid off the road, about 3,800 feet above sea level, efforts to dig it out by hand were unsuccessful.
But the vehicle was well-equipped with dehydrated food, propane for heat and engine fuel to supply electric power. Water came from melted snow. The family was able to watch television broadcasts of the search for their location, but were out of range for cellphone communication.
Police searched the more heavily used routes searching for the family, but to the outside world it seemed as though they had just disappeared from the face of the earth.
Twelve days after they left home, the police in Oregon were calling the case "suspicious." Relatives noted that none of the family bank accounts had been accessed and wondered how the six could be traveling without spending money.
The police eventually called off the search, saying there were no leads to follow.
After 16 days, with cold weather making the snow firmer, Mr. Stivers and his wife decided walk out to seek help. "The snow was knee deep, rather than hip deep," Mr. Higginbotham said in a televised interview.
The two brought a tent, blankets, hand warmers and food. "The blankets were wool, so they could keep them warm even if they got wet," Mr. Higginbotham said.
After hiking for about 24 hours, they encountered workers from the federal . Bureau of Land Management and were rescued. Workers in vehicles designed to operate in deep snow were sent to pick up the four people still in the motor home and they were all reunited in Glendale, Ore., about 80 miles north of the California border.
Mr. Higginbotham said passed the time reading and talking. He said adults are experienced outdoorsmen. "We have lived that way in the middle of nowhere," he said. "We know how to live this way. We were lucky that nobody got sick or hurt."
