GRANTS PASS -- A private rescue helicopter Monday plucked a California woman and her two young daughters from a snowy mountain road where they were stranded for nine days, spurring a frantic search into the night for her husband.

Kati Kim, and her two daughters were in good condition, smiling and waving when she arrived at Three Rivers Community Hospital in Grants Pass.

The discovery narrowed the search for James Kim, who left for help Saturday and faces his third night alone in below-freezing temperatures in a little traveled 3,500-foot mountain pass of the Siskiyou National Forest.

Their Saab station wagon got stuck in snow on a side road Nov. 25 about 30 miles west of Grants Pass as the vacationing family tried to find a way from Interstate 5 to Gold Beach. The family kept warm during freezing nights by running the car engine. When the gas tank went dry, they burned the car's tires. Searchers said the family had little food and the mother nursed her daughters.

Authorities said James Kim, 35, left his family at 7:45 a.m. Saturday to seek help and told his wife that if he didn't find anyone by 1 p.m. he would come back. He never returned.

At 1:45 p.m. Monday, a family-chartered helicopter spotted Kati Kim, 30, waving an umbrella. The pilot landed and picked up the mother and her daughters, Penelope, 4, and Sabine, 7 months.

"They're in remarkable shape for being nine days in the wilderness," said Josephine County Undersheriff Brian Anderson.

There was no sign of James Kim except for a set of footprints heading uphill toward Bear Camp Road, the main road through the area, and down a steep embankment toward Big Windy Creek.

Oregon State Police Lt. Doug Ladd said there was "a very reasonable chance" that Kim is alive and that the family said he had some outdoor experience.

On Monday night authorities were throwing everything they could into the search for James Kim. Two Jackson County sheriff's deputies tracked his footprints in the snow. An Oregon National Guard helicopter with heat sensing equipment flew overhead and searchers in Sno-Cats drove the roads.

Horseback teams, dog handlers and river rescuers were poised to head out at daybreak today.

"We will be out there all night and work 24/7 until we find him," said Mike Winters, Jackson County sheriff.

Kim is wearing blue jeans, a sweater, a light jacket and tennis shoes. He's carrying two cigarette lighters, and his wife thinks he may have taken a camera strobe with him, Anderson said.

The Kims left San Francisco Nov. 17, driving to Seattle to visit relatives for Thanksgiving. The day after Thanksgiving the Kims drove to Portland, where they visited friends, then on Nov. 25 headed south on Interstate 5. They had reservations that night at the Tu Tu Tun Lodge along the Rogue River east of Gold Beach, but never arrived.

A woman who was house-sitting for the couple called police Wednesday to report they were missing.

On Friday, family and police from more than six agencies started their air and ground search along four highways and dozens of rural roads between Interstate 5 and Gold Beach. The four main routes also intersect with dozens of county and Forest Service roads, some of them reaching 4,000 feet elevation.

Anderson said Bear Camp Road is only passable in warm weather. He said they rescue people every winter from the road.

"It's not a good way to go in winter," he said. "You can't make it."

Lt. Gregg Hastings, spokesman for the Oregon State Police, said Monday that the Kims drove up Bear Camp Road until they were stopped by snow and ice. They tried to back down, Hastings said, but couldn't, so turned the Saab down a side road hoping to turn around. That's when they became stuck, he said.

Last Friday, Curry County deputies from the west and Josephine County deputies from the east searched Bear Camp Road, but had trouble getting their Sno-Cats down side roads, Hastings said.

On Monday, 100 searchers -- including Carson Logging helicopters rented by Kim's family -- focused their search west of I-5 after authorities determined a family cell phone triggered two pings on a tower on Wolf Peak about 1:30 a.m. Nov. 26, the morning after the family was last seen.

"It was critical," Anderson said of the signal.

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James Kim is a senior editor at CNET, an Internet media company that provides reviews and other services about technology. Kati Kim is a 1997 graduate of the University of Oregon and oversees the two family-owned stores in San Francisco.

Friends and strangers have posted hundreds of messages on CNET.com, offering support and prayers for the Kim family. Lindsey Turrentine, executive editor for mobile reviews at CNET.com, said there was a mix relief and anxiety about the news that Kati Kim and the girls were found but that James Kim still was missing.

"We're obviously really happy and excited that Kati and the kids are found," Turrentine said. "We are taking that as a good sign and we're cautiously optimistic about James. And we're just waiting to hear the news.

"We're waiting for any news, and we're looking forward to good news."

Monday evening, Kati Kim's parents, Phil and Sandra Fleming were en route from Gallup, N.M., to Albuquerque to be interviewed on "Larry King Live." Sandra Fleming said her daughter and James Kim "have absolutely been heroes, keeping themselves safe and doing the right thing and being resourceful."

Yet, she said, the family can't relax until James Kim is found.

"We thank everybody who's out there that's trying to help us, but we are still absolutely desperate to find our James."

Hospital officials said Monday night that all three were in good condition, but that Sabine Kim was kept overnight for observation. Kati Kim and Penelope stayed in the hospital to be with her.

Chevy Fleming, Kati Kim's younger brother and only sibling, said he talked to his sister early Monday evening, and that she's "doing well, and she's in good spirits."

"Her children are just fine," he said. "They didn't even need medical attention. Apparently, she nursed them the whole time. She was hungry and cold, but other than that, she was fine."

Mark Larabee and Wade Nkrumah of The Oregonian staff contributed to this report.