I helped ferry an open cockpit biplane from Colorado to the Chicago area with more or less basic VFR equipment - compass and maps. (We did have a handheld GPS... which did not seem to stay connected) Eight hours of hand flying was a wild change of pace from the normal equipment we were use to. Started 'chasing' the compass when my co-pilot wanted a course modification... and I had missed our heading while already in turn. Embarrassing. It had been a long time since I actually tried navigating with an actual compass, and had to pay attention to mentally adjusting for compass errors in acceleration and turns.
With a plane and engine like you were flying, if you were getting low on fuel and flying over a highway with little traffic, could you have successfully refueled at a roadside reststop?
In this video from Alaska they land at a roadside gas station and refuel in a fuel emergency. In an in-flight emergency you can deviate from any rule... still poor planning by the pilot.
Not OP, but my guess is that their fuel requirements are different than automotive gasoline. Doesn't mean it won't work, but might not work as expected...
