For someone who does wheel alone, has gotten stuck, and who has made the choice to hike out, literally everything everyone on this thread is really great and solid advice.
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3. I pack and "oh crap bag" and an "oh shit bag". Both are packed ready to go all the time so I can spend more time if need be recovering my vehicle instead of wasting time packing a day or overnight bag. Also, a prepacked bag means you do not have to think about what you have to pack. If you are in a bad position and are having to make a decision to hike out, you are probably not in the best place mentally to pack a bag with EVERYTHING you need. In my situation I was able to work up until the last minute. I knew how far I had to hike, what the topo was like, and very important... When sundown is! This meant I had a hard stop and could just grab my bag and go. Also, don't forget water. I keep a jug in the truck all the time.
4. Some might disagree with me, but maybe try to get your vehicle stuck (with others around). This will let you know what both YOU and your vehicle are capable of. But don't try and damage your rig.
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Anyway, enjoy adventuring!
I actually think both of these points are great advice. Be prepared (the bag) and part of that is practice (if you can). Experience is often the best teacher. Going on a few shorter runs with other experienced folks is a great way to learn, and I'd even go so far as to suggest tell the more experienced folks why you want to go on a shorter run.
Choose a person's adventuring partners carefully though -- some folks break their rigs every weekend by making poor decisions, and so relying on learning from their 'experience' is a bit like learning how to not get bit by a dog by someone who breaks up dog fights for a living. Sure, they get bit a lot and have 'experience'....but I'd much rather learn from a Veterinarian who knows how to not get bit to begin with!
Sorry you had to walk out from your rig, but I'm absolutely not in the camp that you should 'never leave your vehicle'. Obviously
most of the time it's best to stay with the rig, but that's not all the time, and context matters.
A lot of the risks involved in offroading can be minimized by using common sense.
1. It is always a good idea to go with at least one other rig. This gives you another set of eyes and hands, a way to get pulled out of a bad spot, and at worst another running vehicle to drive into town to get help.
2. Always let someone know where you are going and when to expect you back. Let them know who they should contact if you don't show up. For example, tell them something like "If I'm not back by 10am on Monday call the El Dorado National Forest ranger office at xxx-xxx-xxxx and tell them I am driving a white F150 and am planning to camp near Utica Resevoir.".
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4. Avoid very remote or very dangerous areas. It's one thing to be stuck 50 miles down a little-traveled dirt road in the snow or in the middle of the summer in Death Valley. It's another thing to be stuck on a more difficult trail like Deer Valley, but where you can hike to a major road within 5 miles.
I think that this can be good advice but it depends on the kind of trips you are taking. I think it applies to 95% of folks who do this kind of travel, but not everyone.
I'm thinking of times where it's not always possible to go with multiple rigs and it's not always possible for a person to tell people where they will be each day, like in multi-week trips. On our run to Deadhorse, we were away for a month living out of our vehicle (Well, vehicles -- we did use the 'two rig' system in this case with the Jeep and a bike). Where we camped each day was very much a product of where we ended up, and the nature of the trip meant our specific plan was very fluid. But, we mitigated this by bringing a spot device, having two vehicles, and our work, family, and friends knew what day the following month where we'd be checking back in to let them know we were alive and in one piece.
For the last point, part of the adventure is the remote to us -- we like to go places well off the beaten path just to see what is there. I would suggest a friendly amendment -- "Do not go to remote or dangerous areas without an awareness of the risks and a decent plan in place, including tools, to mitigate that risk to your acceptable comfort level".
My two cents -- there's almost nowhere in CONUS where, barring a medical emergency, you can get in so much trouble that having a weeks' worth of food, water, and a reliable way to signal help won't see you rescued as long as you have a vehicle. Shelter is the most important part of wilderness survival and the vehicle provides that in spades. You occasionally hear of people led astray by their GPS who end up dying on a dirt road, but those people are always woefully under prepared. But, lots of folks outside CONUS can and do face risks that need to be mitigated and by virtue of where they are they are in a remote and dangerous area.
Again, though, I think your advice is very sound and correct for the majority of people, including myself on most of our trips.
