Stranded On A Mountainside

My partner, daughter ( who was about twelve at the time), and I were on the road after spending Christmas in the USA in a winter wonderland. We planned to head off to Death Valley as we had never been there in the winter months. We thought it might be more pleasant temperature-wise than on previous trips when the sun beat down on us mercilessly and totally sapped us of energy every time we left the comfort of our car. We have experienced these fierce temperatures here in Australia during our travels and personally, I don’t enjoy scorching in the searing sun. However, if you want to see our amazing world you have to suffer discomfort sometimes.

We stopped the night in Beatty and it was threatening snow. Our intention was to travel to Death Valley the next day, but rather than take the main highway, we decided to drive along Titus Canyon Road that brings you to Titus Canyon, and then into Death Valley.

As we drove off the main road onto the unsealed road, we noticed a sign advising that a high clearance vehicle should be used or after certain types of weather conditions a 4 WD would be advised.

The very start of the drive was not particularly challenging but as we progressed in our 4WD vehicle, the terrain became steeper and it was a rough, jolting ride. The road is unsealed with hairpin bends and fortunately, it is one way, however, I had heard that it is possible to encounter a car, usually, a sedan, coming towards you, once they realised their vehicle was not suitable for the terrain and they had found somewhere to turn around. I could not imagine trying to share the road with another vehicle coming the opposite way. As we ascended, the road twisted and turned and in parts was very narrow causing me to involuntarily grip the seat. As we wound our way slowly up the steep road, we could see a white shape high up on the road but we were too far away to identify what it was. We wound our way carefully around the narrow bends up to Red Pass which is around 5,500 feet elevation.

As we came around a particularly challenging blind corner which was so rough our bodies were being jolted from side to side, we noticed what appeared to be oil all along the road. My partner, a man who knows his way around the workings of engines commented that it looked like sump oil. His words were, “I hope this is not what I think it is!” We crawled slowly along navigating the precarious bends for quite a while and we could see more and more oily marks on the road. Then all was revealed when we came around a corner at one of the highest elevations. There was another 4WD parked, blocking the road and in front of that vehicle was a very large motor home that was not going anywhere. That was the white shape we could see from way down the mountain. We could not believe what we were seeing. My thoughts were that surely no one in their right mind would attempt to drive such a vehicle over this terrain of rough, very narrow unsealed road, switchbacks and steep drops to the valley below.

A couple in the 4WD that had pulled in behind the motor home was standing surveying the situation. We pulled in and approached them and then we saw the elderly couple who emerged from the motor home, looking rather sheepish but understandably perturbed. My partner suggested it was the sump and the driver of the motorhome confirmed that there was a hole in the sump as a result of driving over the rugged terrain. There were a number of problems that had to be overcome to help this poor, stranded couple. There was no mobile phone reception there and nobody had a satellite phone which the elderly man had been hoping would be the case.

The first thing to do was to get the motorhome off the road as no one could pass. Fortunately, at this precise spot where the rocky side of the mountain formed the edge of the road, there was a small area that was like an indentation in the rocky wall where soil and rock had been eroded so it was possible to roll the motor home into this area. Being such a large vehicle, it still extended out onto the road and left very little room for our vehicles to pass.

We realised it was going to be a hair-raising experience as the edge of the road looked crumbly and the drop down into the valley was terrifying. We knew that our wheels would be right on the edge but there was no other way out of the situation. There was no place to turn around and as for the motorhome, this was another problem altogether.

The man’s wife was not happy, to say the least. I got the impression that she was probably against tackling this mountain pass in their motorhome right from the start. There was serious tension between the two of them. We decided that the best solution was to firstly get our vehicles past the motorhome and hopefully not end up in the bottom of the ravine. We suggested to them that they travel with us to Furnace Creek in Death Valley where they could see the ranger and get help. The man wanted his wife to stay with the motorhome and she refused vehemently to stay there by herself. Personally, I did not blame her. I could not see his point as there was no way someone could steal the vehicle. We suggested it was a better choice for them both to come with us or with the other couple.

For some reason, the husband decided it was a better choice for them both to stay with the motorhome and wait for help after we notified the authorities.

Reluctantly, we agreed to leave them, and then it was our turn to attempt to pass them. The other couple’s 4WD was in front so they had the unenviable task of being the first ones to go. Their vehicle was a little more narrow than ours but they got past with the wheels right on the edge of the road. I had my heart in my mouth watching them. When it was our turn, I asked our daughter if she wanted to wait until we got past rather than get in the vehicle. She said, “Well I don’t want to be stuck on a mountain with no parents if something happens.” I could have cried when she said this. We very slowly edged past, our wheels right on the edge of the road with that steep drop into the valley that would surely be the end of us if we went over. I could hear the road surface under our wheels closest to the edge crumbling. I can remember how I could not breathe and my heart was racing as I clutched the seat. I prayed during those moments and with massive relief, we edged past and suddenly our wheels were back on safe ground. We said goodbye to the elderly couple and assured them that we would arrange help but as it was getting late in the day, and being winter, the days were shorter so we offered again to take them and pointed out that they may not get rescued until the next day. We told them that we were concerned that it would get very cold overnight at this altitude and it was threatening to snow. As the sump oil had leaked out, they would not be able to start the vehicle so therefore they would have no heating. They were determined to stay there so we set off for Furnace Creek. .

The final part of our journey before we arrived at Titus Canyon was spectacular but required careful driving and concentration as there were extreme hairpin bends and the road was right on the edge of the mountain with a dizzying drop into the valley below. The road was bumpy, rutted and bounced us around which was disconcerting when you are navigating a hairpin bend. The landscape was spectacular with earthy red, yellow, brown and orange hues.

I must admit, it was a relief once we reached the Titus Canyon. Its limestone walls become quite narrow as you drive through but I felt more relaxed after our journey of twenty- seven miles of very nerve-wracking bends, rough jolting surfaces and roads just too close to the edge for my comfort. I could not stop thinking about the elderly couple stranded on the mountain and I truly wondered, if they were able to have the motorhome repaired up there by a rescue team, how would they ever navigate the treacherous road that we had just done. We were in a 4WD, but I could not see that it would be possible in a motorhome. The last part of the road was far more challenging than the area where they damaged their vehicle.

It was an enjoyable drive through the canyon with its limestone walls that in parts were just wide enough for a vehicle to drive through. There were lots of rock formations and we could see petroglyphs along the way. We did not waste time in getting to Furnace Creek as we were very concerned about the elderly couple on the mountain.

As we headed towards Furnace Creek in Death Valley, the weather turned nasty. A wind came up and there were tumbleweeds rolling across the desert and in front of our vehicle. The sand was blowing and as it was already dark and visibility was not ideal. We arrived at Furnace Creek, planning to stay overnight and report the stranded couple to the ranger. We inquired at reception about a room for the night but everything was booked out. We are not the type of people who book ahead. We just trust that there will be accommodation and sometimes we get caught out. When we had been to Furnace Creek before we had always just turned up without a booking. This was not an ideal situation on this particular night because we were right in the middle of a sand storm and tumbleweeds blowing everywhere.

We caught up with the other young couple who we had met up on the mountain and they told us that they had reported the incident to the ranger.

We then had to make a decision, so we decided to head back to Beatty where we had set off from that morning but this time we took the main, sealed road. It was difficult driving through the storm in the darkness. Eventually, we left the sandstorm behind but then it started to snow. Fortunately, it was not too heavy at the start and we were on a sealed road.

By the time we arrived at Beatty, it was very cold and snow was falling over the town. We checked into a motel and then my partner headed off to the police station to report the stranded couple, even though the ranger at Furnace Creek had been informed. The police said that they would deal with it the next day.

Walking back from dinner it was freezing cold and we discussed how these two elderly people would handle the cold night ahead of them at above five thousand feet. We hoped they had plenty of warm blankets and doonas. As I lay in my bed that night they were constantly on my mind because I just had no idea how the rescuers were going to get the motor home off the mountain.

We never did find out the end of the story and to this day, I often wonder how it turned out for them. In the stress of the situation when we were trying to move the motorhome off the road, then trying to negotiate our way past the vehicle dangerously close to the edge of the road, we forgot to get some contact details from them.

All I can say is that they will have a great travel story to tell and I dare say they learned a good lesson about taking notice of warning signs regarding what vehicles are suitable for certain terrains.

I thought that the husband would have received a good roasting from his wife afterwards judging from her demeanour at the time. I often think of them and wonder how the people involved in the rescue got that vehicle off the mountain. I do hope that they got rescued and continued to have adventures in their motorhome in the future.