Tragic. And just before XMAS.

[h2co-pilot]

I have no survivor skills but I think (and I said think) I would build a fire. And then the smoke from the fire maybe would attract some attention and then someone would find me

Secondly, they didn't setup camp once it was realized that they were going no where fast. Utilize the car and anything else they could get their hands on to set up a camp where they could build a large fire that would radiate the heat and keep the car warm.

FWIW- They even burnt all their tires including the spare.

The family's ordeal began when they missed a Highway 42 exit from Interstate 5. They had eaten dinner in Roseburg, Ore., and were trying to make it over the mountains to the coastal town of Gold Beach where they planned to stay the night, Kati Kim told authorities after her rescue. Looking at an Oregon map, they decided to take Bear Camp Road out of Grants Pass instead. The road is primarily used in the summer by rafters on the Rogue River. The route isn't plowed in the winter.

While this sounds impossible, go ahead and check out MapQuest's directions from Grants Pass to Gold Beach. Yup, they include Bear Camp Road. Furthermore, take a look at Bear Camp Road on Google Maps (the road connects Grants Pass to Gold Beach)--it looks completely ordinary. Furthermore, drill down on the Google map satellite view, you can see how thick and vast the Cascade forest is directly off of Bear Camp Road.