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DOWN WITH THEM TODAY REPORTER: FORTUNATELY, THE CAR IS BRAND NEW. UNFORTUNATELY, MOM WASN’T THERE TO NAVIGATE. >> IF MY WIFE WAS THERE SHE SHOULDN’T HAVE ALLOWED ME TO CONTINUE THIS KIND OF ROAD . REPORTER: DATTU ADMITS IT WASN’T HIS FINEST HOUR. THE BURLINGTON FATHER LEFT BRETTON WOODS WITH HIS 3 SONS, THEIR COUSINS AND BROTHER-IN-LAW SATURDAY EVENING. THEY WERE TRYING TO MAKE THE 45-MINUTE JOURNEY BACK TO THEIR HOTEL IN THE FAMILY MINIVAN USING WHAT THEY THOUGHT WA RELIABLE GPS. >> THE GATE WAS OPEN AND WE THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE A SHORT DISTANCE SO LET’S TRY IT OUT. REPORTER YOU THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE A SHORTCUT? >> YES. REPORTER: IT TOOK DATTU 2 AND HALF MILES TO REALIZE IT WAS NOT. IT WAS A SNOWMOBILE TRAIL. >> WE COULDN’T FIND ANY STABLE GROUND TO MAKE A U-TURN. IT WAS DRIVE IN THE REVERSE OR KEEP DRIVING STRAIGHT. REPORTER: THEY’LL ADMIT THAT AT THIS POINT, THERE WERE NERVES, AND THEN, THE CAR FELL INTO A DITCH. WITH NO CELL SERVICE, THEIR ONLY HOPE WAS THE SOS BUTTON ACTIVE BECAUSE THE CAR IS BRAND NEW. >> WE ASKED THEM WE NEEDED ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE. REPORTER: IT WOULD BE HOURS BEFORE A TOW TRUCK REACHED THEM, AND HOURS MORE BEFORE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WITH A SNOWMOBILE. BY 2:00 A.M. ALL 7 MEMBERS OF THIS STRANDED FAMILY REACHED THE MAIN ROAD FROM WHICH THEIR VENTURED OFF. WHEN HE WOKE THE NEXT MORNING, DATTU’S GREATEST CONCERN WAS INFORMING HIS WIFE. >> WHAT LESSON YOU LEARNED? >> DON’T TRUST YOU. REPORTER: THIS FAMILY IS FOREVER INDEBTED AND GRATEFUL FOR THE TOW TRUCK AND FIRST RESPONDERS AND YES, THEY WILL BE BACK TO BRETTON WOODS

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They can laugh about it now, but a Massachusetts family wasn't laughing when they were stranded for nearly seven hours Saturday on a snowy road in New Hampshire. The family from Burlington, who asked that their names not be used, are avid skiers who were trying to get back to their hotel after a day on the slopes at the Bretton Woods Ski Area. The father was driving with his three sons, their cousins and his brother-in-law in the new minivan. He said the GPS directed him to turn onto Jefferson Notch Road, which is a snowmobile trail in the winter. He traveled about two and a half miles down the road before realizing it was a snowmobile trail. "We saw a sign that the road is not maintained for winter," he said, "but we didn't see anything that says, 'No vehicles allowed.'"New Hampshire Fish and Game officials said the family tried to turn the minivan around, but slid off off the icy trail and got stuck in a ditch."We were worried and the kids were also worried and we all realized it wasn’t the right path to go," he said. A photo shows they tried to get out, but the minivan was stuck."(We tried a) rug under the wheel to give some extra traction. Some wood, branches. But there was no way we could get out of that place," the father said. Officials say there was no cell service so the driver used his van's roadside assistance feature to call for a tow truck. The towing company took several hours to locate the vehicle, which was 2.4 miles up the trail. It took specialized equipment to access the trail and pull the van out.Fish and Game officials used an ATV to shuttle the children and one of the adults back to Base Station Road. No one was hurt.By 2 a.m., the family and the vehicle were all safely back on the road and on their way back to the hotel in Gorham.Officials remind drivers that Jefferson Notch Road, like many seasonal New Hampshire roads, becomes a snowmobile trail during the winter. They say there was signage indicating that it was a trail at the beginning of the road so the driver was cited for operating a conventional vehicle on a snowmobile trail.The family said they are grateful to the first responders who participated in the rescue and added that the experience will not deter them from future ski trips.