Bear Camp Road came into the national spotlight in late 2006 when James Kim, his wife Kati, and their two daughters attempted to reach Gold Beach via this route. Kati claims they missed an exit on Interstate 5 to their intended route, Oregon Route 42, and decided to take Bear Camp Road instead. Late on the night of November 25, 2006, they missed signs warning of possible snow and continued up the mountain road. At the intersection of Bear Camp Road and BLM sections of the road, they decided to turn into the BLM road and eventually ended up lost down a side road before stopping for the night. A snowstorm trapped them at this location.