The CRUX: True Survival Stories

February 28, 1987. Miller Cave, Iowa.

Five college students, their geology professor Kathy McCluskey, and staff member Mike Price descended 112 feet into a vertical shaft in an Iowa farm field. What should have been a routine winter caving trip became a fight for survival when a storm shifted direction and water began pouring into the cave.

Student leader Chad Blietz (now Chad Darby) shares his firsthand account of climbing through freezing spray in complete darkness while battling severe hypothermia—making impossible decisions when conditions turned deadly.

Seven people entered Miller Cave that day. Only five would make it out alive.

This episode explores the technology limitations of 1987, the split-second decisions that determined who lived and who died, and the survival lessons that matter today: trust your gut, avoid sunk cost fallacy, and respect how quickly conditions can change in the wild.

We honor the memory of those lost that day.

Hosted by Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen

️ Contains descriptions of hypothermia, drowning, and death.

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0:00 Welcome to The Crux: True Survival Stories

2:12 Miller Cave, Iowa, 1987: The Sinkhole That Became a Death Trap

4:04 Meet Chad Blietz (now Chad Darby) and the Grinnell Outdoor Recreation Program

7:06 The Haunting Breakfast: Plans and Futures

7:51 Inside Miller Cave: 112 Feet Down, 42°F, and Vertical

11:00 Prepared But Vulnerable: 1987 Gear and Technology Limits

17:22 Water on the Rope: The First Sign of Trouble

18:36 Chad's Climb: Total Darkness, Freezing Spray, and Hypothermia

22:05 Four Still Trapped Below: The Crisis Escalates

24:00 Mike Price's Climb and Chad's Impossible Choice

28:37 Survival in a Chimney: Bart and Stone Wait in Rising Water

30:20 No Cell Phones: Racing for Help in a Snowstorm

32:09 The Rescue: 75 Responders, Bodies Recovered

34:52 Aftermath: Guilt, Media Scrutiny, and Panic Attacks

40:03 The Thin Margin: Leadership, Intuition, and Split-Second Decisions

41:22 Chad's Second Chance and Final Lessons

43:48 Closing: Trust Your Gut, Honor the Lost

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On February 10, 2008, Fred Frederickson and James Osborne started what should have been a routine winter day hike on New Hampshire's Franconia Ridge. Within hours, conditions changed catastrophically—temperatures plummeted to single digits, winds reached seventy miles per hour, and both men were fighting for their lives on an exposed mountain ridge. As night fell and the storm intensified, rescue teams mobilized for a desperate search in some of the most dangerous conditions imaginable. This episode explores the cascade of small decisions that turned a beautiful Sunday hike into a tragedy, and the extraordinary efforts of the rescuers who risked everything to bring them home. A story about friendship, survival, and the unforgiving nature of winter in the White Mountains.

00:46 Welcome to The Crux + Listener Shoutout

01:25 Eyelids Frozen Shut on Little Haystack

02:17 Meet Fred & James + The Franconia Ridge Loop Plan

04:47 Overdressed, Sweating, and Wet Layers

05:46 The Forecast They Missed: 70–100 MPH Winds Incoming

06:40 Above Treeline: The Storm ‘Switch’ Flips

08:48 No Shelter, No Fire: Hypothermia Signs and the Fight Back to Haystack

11:12 Night in a Rock Cave: Deep Hypothermia and Rewarming Basics

15:24 Missing from Work: Search Teams Mobilize in Brutal Conditions

17:37 Found on the Ridge: Black Hawk Night Landing Rescue

19:07 Hospital Battle: ‘Warm and Dead,’ Rewarming, and Frostbite Losses

20:58 Aftermath & Lessons: Hike Safe Tips

27:14 Final Takeaways + Book Rec 

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References:

Boston Globe, September 15, 2008 - "Hiker recounts horrific struggle for survival on icy N.H. ridge"

Boston Herald, February 18, 2008 - "Hub hiker escapes death"

New Hampshire Public Radio - "Author Ty Gagne on The Last Traverse: Tragedy and Resilience in the Winter Whites," December 31, 2020

Union Leader, November 29, 2020 - "A tale of life and death on Franconia Ridge"

Conway Daily Sun, January 17, 2021 - "The Last Traverse chronicles wintry search-and-rescue mission"

SkinnyMoose.com, February 12, 2008 - "Missing Hikers Found In Franconia Notch – One Dead"

WhiteBlaze.net forum discussion, February 2008

VFTT (Views From The Top) forum, September 14, 2008 - "James Osborne & Fred Fredrickson Follow-up Story"

Boston Globe, December 23, 2024 - "White Mountains, New Hampshire search and rescue data"

Mount Washington Observatory weather archives

NH Fish and Game Department rescue reports

Nashua Telegraph, September 14, 2008

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On a snowy Black Friday in November 2024, a 22-year-old experienced hiker from Quebec set out alone to climb one of the most remote peaks in New York's Adirondack Mountains—a challenging 18-mile journey he expected to complete in a single day. When he didn't return as planned, what followed was one of the most extensive search operations in Adirondack history, involving dozens of elite forest rangers battling brutal winter conditions for over a week. This is the story of Leo Dufour, a university student studying to become a teacher who had already conquered 32 of the legendary 46 High Peaks, and the extraordinary efforts to find him in a wilderness that doesn't always give up its secrets. It's a reminder that even the most prepared among us are never more than one wrong turn away from the unforgiving power of the mountains.

00:00 Introduction to Disaster Strikes

00:42 Leo Dufour's Quest in the Adirondacks

03:00 The Challenge of Allen Mountain

07:09 The Search and Rescue Efforts

12:47 The Aftermath and Lessons Learned

24:37 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Listen AD FREE: Support our podcast at patreaon: http://patreon.com/TheCruxTrueSurvivalPodcast

Email us! [email protected]

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thecruxpodcast/

Get schooled by Julie in outdoor wilderness medicine! https://www.headwatersfieldmedicine.com/

References:

"New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Statement on Recovery of Missing Canadian Hiker Leo DuFour." DEC Press Release, May 10, 2025.

"Update: State Police seeking the public's assistance in locating a missing hiker in the town of Newcomb." NYS Police Press Release, December 2024.

Lynch, Mike. "Remains of missing Canadian hiker found." Adirondack Explorer, May 2025.

Lynch, Mike. "Missing hiker: What we know so far, as search enters 5th day." Adirondack Explorer, January 22, 2025.

Lynch, Mike. "Search for Canadian hiker shifts to recovery." Adirondack Explorer, March 28, 2025.

"DEC: Body of missing hiker Leo DuFour found May 10 off Mt. Allen Mountain trail." The Adirondack Almanack, May 12, 2025.

"Due to treacherous conditions, search for Leo DuFour transitioned to recovery mission." The Adirondack Almanack, December 10, 2024.

"Extensive search underway in the Adirondacks for missing Canadian hiker." NCPR News, December 4, 2024.

"Rangers had to divert resources during Allen Mt. search to rescue solo searcher." NCPR News, December 10, 2024.

"DEC: No signs of missing hiker Thursday." Adirondack Daily Enterprise, December 5, 2024.

"Hikers find body of missing person on Allen Mountain." My NBC5, May 2025.

"Body of Missing Hiker Is Found 5 Months After He Vanished in the Adirondacks." The New York Times, May 29, 2025.

The Globe and Mail (Canada): "U.S. authorities find body of missing Quebec hiker in New York state's Adirondacks." May 11, 2025.

Advnture: Clarke, Julia. "Body of 22-year-old Canadian hiker found 5 months after vanishing on snowy Adirondacks mountain." May 2025.

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In this unflinching episode of the Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen delve into one of history's most harrowing survival stories. On October 13, 1972, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 slammed into the Andes Mountains, leaving 33 survivors stranded at 12,000 feet in subzero temperatures. For 72 days, they battled avalanches, frostbite, and starvation. When their meager supplies ran out, they faced an unthinkable decision: consume the dead or die themselves. This episode chronicles the psychological torment, the impossible moral choices, and the superhuman trek of two survivors who walked ten days through the frozen mountains to find rescue. A raw testament to human resilience and the terrifying price of survival.

00:00 Welcome and Housekeeping

01:25 Introducing the Podcast

01:48 Setting the Scene: The Andes Flight Disaster

02:08 The Crash

03:11 Immediate Aftermath

04:05 Struggle for Survival

15:55 The Search is Called Off

18:16 Facing the Unthinkable

20:06 The Grim Reality of Survival

21:01 A Desperate Decision

23:35 The Psychological Toll

25:44 Avalanche Strikes Again

27:18 A Daring Escape Plan

28:38 Journey Through the Mountains

35:36 Rescue and Aftermath

39:22 Legacy of Survival

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Check out our website! www.thecruxsurvival.com
REFERENCES

Primary Sources:

Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors by Piers Paul Read (1974)

Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home by Nando Parrado (2006)

Out of the Silence: After the Crash by Eduardo Strauch (2019)

Technical Documentation:

Official Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 accident investigation reports

Medical journals documenting survivors' conditions upon rescue

Geographic surveys of crash site location

Aviation records and flight data

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When a routine test flight goes catastrophically wrong, Army Air Forces Lieutenant Leon Crane parachutes into the Alaskan wilderness in the dead of winter—alone, with no survival gear, and temperatures at 40 below zero. The city kid from Philadelphia has never spent a night outdoors in his life. What follows is one of the most remarkable survival stories of World War II: 84 days in the Arctic, a 120-mile trek through brutal terrain, and a series of decisions that meant the difference between life and death. This is the story almost nobody knows about—the man who refused to die on a frozen mountain.

Time Stamps:
00:00 Escape Ads with Patreon

00:46 Introduction to Crux True Survival Stories

01:10 Leon Crane's Harrowing Fall

02:48 The Crash and Immediate Aftermath

03:48 The Struggle for Survival Begins

04:19 The Fateful Flight Details

06:12 The Plane's Descent and Crash

09:48 Crane's First Night in the Wilderness

14:14 Days of Waiting and Desperation

17:38 The Decision to Move

20:38 Finding the Trapper's Cabin

23:27 Recovery and Reflection

26:10 Surviving the Wilderness: Rationing and Isolation

28:04 A Glimmer of Hope: Discovering the Map

30:06 The Desperate Journey Begins

31:09 Battling the Elements: Falling Through the Ice

34:11 Miraculous Rescue: Finding Shelter

35:58 The Final Struggle: Marching Towards Survival

38:05 The Unbelievable Reunion

42:34 Aftermath and Legacy

47:25 Lessons from Leon Crane's Survival

48:03 Closing Thoughts and Acknowledgements

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Email us! [email protected]

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Get schooled by Julie in outdoor wilderness medicine! https://www.headwatersfieldmedicine.com/

REFERENCES

Wikipedia - Leon Crane

Military.com - "How This Airman Survived 3 Months in the Alaskan Wilderness After a World War II Plane Crash"

Anchorage Daily News - "Lost in the wilderness for 81 days: The tortuous tale of Leon Crane's first Christmas in Alaska" by David Reamer

Adventure Journal - "Leon Crane Survived a Terrifying Plane Crash, Then 80 Days Alone in an Alaskan Winter"

Air & Space Forces Magazine - "Valor: Alone in the Arctic" (April 1997)

Heroes, Heroines, and History - "A WWII Pilot's Incredible Survival Story in Alaska's Frozen Wilderness" by Mary Dodge Allen

National Park Service - Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve documentation

Murphy, Brian. 81 Days Below Zero: The Incredible Survival Story of a World War II Pilot in Alaska's Frozen Wilderness

Valor Friday - This ain't Hell military history blog

Amazon.com - 81 Days Below Zero book listing and reviews

Hachette Book Group / Da Capo Press - 81 Days Below Zero publisher information

Goodreads - 81 Days Below Zero reviews and ratings

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