Brendan Shoemaker, 23, of Fullerton, California was riding Mt. High Resort Tuesday afternoon February 17, 2009 when he slide down a 40-foot ice chute and ended up spending the night out-of-bounds, according to the LA Times.
Rescuers in a helicopter spotted Shoemaker about 7 a.m. today and lifted him to safety, Bonsall said. Shoemaker told KTLA-TV that he made a “wrong turn and just ended up way out of bounds.” He told the TV station he tried to light a fire to keep himself warm overnight, but his lighter was out of fluid and the brush was not dry enough to ignite. So he dug a cave in the snow and huddled up inside his jacket to keep warm.
Digging a snow cave: smart. Getting lost and having to spend the night in a snow cave: not so smart.
[Link: LA Times]
