A missing mother and her child were found in deep California forestland recently by rescuers who located them after following a trail of notes the woman had left behind, authorities said.
In another unmodern twist in this rescue tale, searchers also got help from ham radio.
The Calaveras County volunteer search and rescue team received a report Saturday that the woman and her 9-year-old son had not returned from a trip the day before to Camp Wolfeboro, a children’s summer camp near the Stanislaus National Forest, according to the county Sheriff’s Office. A deputy was dispatched to begin an investigation while the team conducted a search on the ground.
The pair was traveling by car, and the mother had become lost after using a GPS unit that provided directions on remote roads in addition to common routes, the department said in a news release. As she traversed deeper into a remote forested area, she lost her signal entirely, and they were unable to retrace their original route.
In an effort to get help, she and her son made several efforts to make themselves more visible, deputies said: The mom posted notes on their trail, her son periodically blew a whistle three times in quick succession — an international signal for help — and, as they waited out the night in the dark, the woman turned on her vehicle’s hazard lights.
Authorities obtained a general location for the pair because, before they went missing, they’d shared their location via app with the reporting party. The search and rescue team then used four-wheeled utility terrain vehicles to hunt through a “labryrinth-like” network of interconnected roads in the area, according to the release.
Amid the search, a deputy and a Forest Service law enforcement ranger received another report from campers who described seeing a vehicle on Friday that matched that of the missing people, deputies said. The location was in the same area so they knew they were on the right track.
Then, early Saturday evening, the search and rescue team came upon a handwritten note posted along a Forest Service road that implored authorities to assist the mother and son, who had become stranded, according to the release. Rescuers followed the road and found another breadcrumb, a second note with additional information — such as the names and telephone numbers of the missing individuals
“Help. Me and my son are stranded with no service and can’t call 911,” one note posted online by deputies said. “We are ahead, up the road to the right. Please call 911 and get help for us.”
The woman and her son were found in their vehicle a mile farther down the road, deputies said.
The team wanted to communicate as quickly as possible that the missing boy and his mom had been found and what their next steps were. But dense forest and tree canopies made cellphones and conventional radio frequencies useless. They resorted to a frequency used for amateur radio — commonly known as ham radio — to broadcast an emergency alert.
Listening in on his home ham radio setup was an El Dorado County retiree, a former communications supervisor. He heard the alert and made contact with authorities to relay the message, according to the release.
Deputies said in the release that the woman and boy had done a couple of things that were instrumental in aiding rescuers.
“Of importance in the successful outcome was their pre-trip notification of telling someone where they were going and when to expect them back,” deputies said.
