Austin D. is a 33-year-old experienced backpacker from Glenwood Springs, Colorado.
On December 7, 2025, he was on the second day of a solo 20-mile hike along the Hayduke Trail in Arches National Park, Utah.
He stepped onto what looked like solid ground in Courthouse Wash canyon, but his left foot sank.
When he shifted his weight, his right leg plunged knee-deep into quicksand and locked in place.
Austin was stuck at a painful 45-degree angle in temperatures that dropped into the low 20s.
He spent 30 minutes trying to pull himself loose.
His trekking poles sank to the handles, every hole he dug refilled instantly.
He was not getting out on his own.
Austin reached for his cell.
Zero service. No signal of any kind.
He tried to connect his Garmin inReach satellite messenger through his cell’s Bluetooth.
But that connection failed too.
So, Austin typed out an SOS message one letter at a time on the tiny Garmin device with frozen, numb fingers.
Miraculously, the message went through.
Grand County Search and Rescue received the satellite signal at about 7:15 in the morning.
They launched a drone to find him and sent a team with shovels, ladders, and traction boards.
After roughly two hours trapped in the quicksand, Austin was pulled loose.
He warmed up and hiked out under his own power.
Austin later wrote online, “Without them I would have been stuck there until nightfall. My family would not have called it in until I was overdue at 6 PM. I would not have been found by luck.”
Most importantly, a satellite messenger that retails for a few hundred bucks stood between Austin and 12 or more hours trapped in freezing quicksand overnight.
As this story shows, your cell is not a communication plan.
It is a convenience that can easily fail when you need it most.
Whether you are in a remote canyon or sitting in your living room during a major outage, cell service can vanish without warning.
The 2026 Verizon outage proved this when over 100,000 users lost service in just two hours.
And here is the part most people do not realize:
AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile share tower infrastructure.
When one tower fails or loses power, multiple carriers go down at the same time.
Which means, switching carriers will not rescue you.
So, you need a backup communication plan that does not depend on cell towers.
This is how to build one.
Pick up a set of FRS or GMRS radios:
These handheld radios work without towers, without the internet, and without any subscription.
They communicate directly from radio to radio within 2 to 20 miles depending on terrain.
Simply pick a primary channel for your family such as Channel 12 and a backup channel such as Channel 18.
Steer clear of channels 1 through 7 because they are usually overcrowded.
Keep offline maps and emergency contacts stored on your device:
When cell service fails, cloud-synced contacts often will not load.
Download an offline map in Google Maps covering a 25-mile radius around your residence.
Take screenshots of your five most important contacts and keep them in your photos.
Include your spouse, your kids’ school, your workplace, a neighbor, and one out-of-state family relative.
That out-of-state contact can relay messages when local networks are jammed.
Carry a portable power source:
A drained device is useless when you need it most.
Keep a 20,000 mAh portable charger in your vehicle or bag.
That is enough to fully recharge most devices three to four times.
Pair it with a dual USB-C cable so you can charge two devices at once.
Set a monthly reminder to recharge the portable charger so it is always ready.
Drawbacks to a backup communication plan:
Radio range restrictions:
FRS radios have restricted range, especially in cities or hilly terrain.
Buildings, mountains, and dense forest reduce your signal.
Test your radios at the distances your family would actually use them before counting on them.
Requires practice and commitment:
A communication plan works best when everyone in your family knows it and has practiced it.
Set two daily contact times such as 8 AM and 6 PM.
If someone misses a contact window by 30 minutes, activate your backup comms right away.
Print your plan, laminate it, and give a copy to every family relative.
Austin survived because he had a backup device on his hip when his cell showed zero bars.
He has since announced he will carry two satellite communicators going forward because relying on a single device no longer feels safe to him.
Your family’s communication plan should follow the same thinking.
Build layers.
Have backups for your backups, and test everything before you need it.
