With respect to the clothing issues, it is true that they were
underequipped. However, having shopped for cold weather gear in an area
that doesn't receive cold weather, I am inclined to judge less harshly.
Those boots that were supposed to be the cat's pajamas can be annoying,
since you can't walk around outside as far as you planned, and the rest
of
the outerwear that you used incorrectly may cause you to "catch your
death";
but a bottle of wine and a long soak in the hot tub will probably cure
all
that ails you. OTOH, in the wilderness, a lot of incorrectly
recommended
clothing (or simply inexperience) is a severe handicap!


You don't need giant muk luks. A good hiking boot would have been a
tremendous asset. Hunting boots would have been better yet and snow
boots the best, With tennis shoes his feet were frozen 10 minutes after
he left the car. Any hat that covers the ears would have been a huge
difference. Any mittens or gloves likewise. To drive into the
mountains without those was reckless. To leave the car without those
was a death sentence.

I really don't know how stores are where the Kims lived, but in southeastern
Florida you can find a good deal of cold weather gear stocked for
recreational hunters and skiers. A lot of it is excellent for a particular
purpose--but far less versatile than a novice would suppose.

The problem is that you can find about as much missinformation as
information about what you might need, under what conditions, and why. For
example, by walking out into a drizzle, I earned that my highly prized down
parka (unlike holofill) wouldn't insulate when damp--I merely had to go back
indoors, so it was only an annoyance. I've learned a little more since
then, mostly to ask more questions of more people.

However, there are two main points that I feel compelled to make:
1) Most of us have made mistakes, which could easily have killed us, and
instead received the opportunity to learn. Mr. Kim's first mistake (or
series of mistakes) appears to have been his last.
2) Simply trying to be prepared is no guarantee of being prepared, and
even being prepared is no guarantee of success. Or in fewer words: "Stuff
Happens".

Peter