The story of James Kim’s death rattles everyone, it seems. A young man with a young family should have had many years ahead of them. Instead, they got lost and then stranded. He then tried to find help, walking miles, apparently with a map, but only a state map. We’ll never know if he knew where the car was stranded or where he was hiking, was but reports indicate he probably did not.

This was an educated man, a CNET senior editor, who apparently misread a map at least once. He knew electronic gadgets but lacked one gadget that might have helped him – a navigation system in his car. Could better map-reading skills have saved Mr. Kim? One can only speculate.

Some reports, including this one from MSNBC, speculate the Kims used an online mapping service to determine their route that took them off the main roads. While an online mapping service might have directed them to the chosen route, authorities in the area are saying that route is not safe during the winter.

I know the area where Mr. Kim got lost. Having lived in Oregon, I was awed by the beauty of the terrain but also grew to respect the roughness of it. There are lots of roads to nowhere and many are narrow with tight curves and other hazards. Winter travel on the main roads can be risky. Taking side roads there, even in summer, is risky. Unfortunately, the Kims did not realize the risks. While they might have printed some online maps, one must wonder if they researched the geographic attributes of the area and winter travel issues.

Reports don’t mention cell phones, but they might have been out of range since they were in a remote area. We should use this sad incident and loss of life to reassert the importance of geography and map skills. These should be considered basic life competencies everyone needs. Also, one should be prepared for potential emergencies when traveling. Life change and survival expert, Cheryl Perlitz expounds on that here.

Lastly, people need to understand the limitations of online mapping services (as well as vehicle navigation systems) and use them as guides, not as complete truth. The incident suggests the need for local authorities to work closer with the online mapping and in-car navigation service providers to improve route suggestions.

Perhaps something good can come out of this very sad death; we need more traveler awareness and preparedness as well as improved education involving maps.