Orange County man stranded in storm uses makeshift snow shoes to get help
An Orange County man stranded in several feet of snow in the Cajon Pass had to channel his inner MacGyver to make it to safety.
Brandon Henson was offroading alone in Lytle Creek at the base of the Cajon Pass when a snowstorm surrounded his SUV in several feet of fresh powder, trapping it in place.
In the 12 hours that Henson hunkered down in his car partially buried in snow, there were only a handful of instances when he managed to send and receive messages.
"The cell reception was almost nonexistent there," said Henson. "As well as the radio that I had on me — hardly anybody on the channels."
Luckily, he was able to text his girlfriend his approximate location.
Henson's girlfriend and his father, who had already contacted SoCal offroad and recovery, relayed the information to crews. However, the intense storm made a rescue attempt nearly impossible.
As he waited for any kind of help, Henson stayed warm by blasting the heater in his car through the night.
"At one point, I fell asleep for an hour or two and then woke up and kind of realized 'Oh, I'm here still. It's not a dream,'" he said.
After being trapped for about 12 hours, Henson decided to channel his inner survivalist instincts to craft a pair of snow shoes with a plank of wood stashed in his SUV. He needed to get to higher ground to get a good cell signal to share his location.
"I put the board on my boots and had them tied on the paracord and made some makeshift snow shoes, and I was getting ready to walk off and try to get a signal," he said.
As walked off into the snowy landscape on Wednesday morning, Henson heard a helicopter flying above. It was the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Aviation Crew coming to rescue him.
Henson was grateful and relieved he survived but he admits he was a bit embarrassed.
"I got defeated this time, so it was nice to have them there of course," he said. "Nobody is going to say 'Oh I don't need your help, carry on."
Now home safe and trading in the snowy landscape for a sunny city view, Henson is grateful that he has some homecooked food to eat.
"We had leftover pasta and stuff," he said. "[Tastes] better than Cheetos and Gatorade."
