WORN Washington Offroad Recovery Network

12/02/2025

This Giving Tuesday, we’re asking you to stand with the volunteers of WORN. With about 100 recoveries every year, every call is more than a stuck vehicle; it’s someone’s adventure, family trip, or safe return home. Together, we can make sure no one is left behind.

We’re raising $4,000 to fund the tools that keep our statewide network running strong. Every dollar fuels off-roaders helping off-roaders.

Donate today and share to spread the word!

10/12/2025

The Snow is HERE! Get ready for deep drifts and epic recoveries—Washington Off-Road Recovery Network is geared up and ready to roll! We've got the straps, the winches, and the know-how to pull you out of the worst winter mess. Adventure calls, and we answer!

06/21/2025

Happy Summer, Washington! We celebrated the longest day of the year yesterday by getting snow on the mountains. Classic. That’s right, we’ve officially entered “summer” and the peaks are getting a fresh coat of snow. Who had “June powder day” on their bingo card? Good thing the we live for these “four seasons in one day” shenanigans.

03/27/2025

Just a friendly reminder to our fellow hams: With the storm rolling in, now's a good time to disconnect those antennas! Lightning can cause serious damage. What other storm prep tips do you have? Share them below!
Let's keep our gear (and ourselves!) safe. 73!

03/25/2025

🌦️➡️☀️➡️🌨️➡️🌈➡️🌪️ (Probably)

Tomorrow's forecast is brought to you by a squirrel who's hoarding all the weather patterns and can't decide which one to drop on us! 🐿️💨

We have seen forecasts from everything from avalanche to tornadoes and everything in between.

Remember that time you packed for a sunny trail run and ended up building an igloo? Yeah, tomorrow's gonna be like that, but on steroids.

So, pack for ALL the seasons, bring your sense of humor, and maybe a boat, just in case. 🛶

If you see a weather pattern you've never seen before, snap a pic and share it! Let's document this meteorological madness together. We are very curious to see what actually happens. 📸

Stay safe, stay adventurous, and remember, in Washington, the only predictable thing about the weather is its unpredictability. 😉

03/01/2025

Late last night, and well into the early hours of the morning, WORN was called to assist a vehicle with a mechanical failure. One of the unique aspects of this recovery was the crucial role that radio service played.

The stranded vehicle was located in a remote area on the Kitsap Peninsula, where cell service was spotty at best. Fortunately, the owner had a GMRS radio and access to a popular repeater situated high above Issaquah. This repeater provides excellent coverage of the Puget Sound and the Seattle Metro area, reaching as far east as North Bend and west of the Hood Canal. There's nearly always someone monitoring this repeater.

A group of dedicated radio operators quickly gathered information and alerted WORN about the person in distress. One of our administrators managed to connect to the repeater, establishing direct communication with the stranded individual 50 miles away to coordinate the recovery efforts.

At around midnight, a local volunteer stepped up and headed out to assist, bringing a welder along to try and fix the vehicle. Although that plan didn't succeed, the volunteer went above and beyond. They secured a trailer and successfully towed the disabled vehicle out of the forest.

The image below shows the coverage area for the Oly-Comm3 (East Tiger) GMRS repeater. WORN is a strong advocate for radio use, be it amateur or GMRS. Both services have repeaters statewide that can help a person who has a problem outside of cellular range, and the radios are excellent tools for our teams as they coordinate recovery efforts.

02/20/2025

02/19/2025

Update: Owner found! Thanks for sharing.

Do you recognize me? One of our volunteers found this stuck vehicle in Snohomish County, and we'd like to help the owner get it back!

02/11/2025

Super Bowl Sunday had some unexpected action off the field!

While many were glued to the game, a dedicated team of volunteers sprang into action to rescue an SUV that had slid off a treacherously slick road. The SUV had skidded backwards and was resting against a tree, which claimed the back window but also prevented further disaster.

Thanks to a redirected winch pull from a tree across the road, the team managed to safely get the SUV back on track. With chains in place and one recovery vehicle turned around, everyone took turns skillfully navigating the vehicles down the hill.

Kudos to these everyday heroes for their swift response and teamwork!

01/01/2025

And that's a wrap for 2024. After every recovery we ask the volunteers to share a little about what happened; from this data we can now look back on the year. Thank you to the 94 volunteers who have donated over 906 hours of their time and drove over 18,715 miles this year responding to 92 requests for help. The estimated financial contribution of all this time and transportation is $50,000!

Some other 2024 stats:
❄ Our busiest week was the week of January 15th with 7 recoveries.
📍 Our busiest area was Zone 10 (Kittitas & Yakima Counties) with 35 recovery requests. The next busiest area was Zone 1 (Olympic Peninsula) with 12 requests.

We'd also like to thank the 8 volunteers who help run WORN by moderating our social media, coordinating recoveries, and providing technical expertise.

12/06/2024

Are you interested in getting your amateur radio license? Many of our volunteers are licensed ham radio operators, and it gives our teams expanded communications abilities such as repeaters to extend range and APRS tracking so our admin team can stay up to date on an ongoing recovery.

The first photo provides info for online classes, and the second photo is an APRS track from last weekends recovery.