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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Original Post - Aug 22, 2011 - 04:31pm PT
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I have created this thread to archive on-topic and other interesting incidents from www.nps.gov/morningreport
From Aug 9th, 2011
Grand Teton National Park (WY)
Rangers Conduct Simultaneous Rescues In Garnet Canyon
Rangers conducted two rescues in Garnet Canyon on the afternoon of Saturday, August 6th. The first incident was reported to the Jenny Lake Ranger Station at 11 a.m. that morning. Robert Martin, 70, of Birmingham, Alabama, was hiking down a snowfield near Spaulding Falls in Garnet Canyon when he slipped, fell and tumbled into piles of rocks. Two hikers in the area at the time helped Martin descend to the Meadows area of Garnet Canyon, where rangers eventually met the party. One hiker descended the canyon to get cell phone service and placed an emergency call directly to the ranger station. Martin was part of a private party that intended to summit the Grand on Saturday. After spending Friday night at the Lower Saddle, Martin and his son decided not to attempt the climb but hike out instead. An EMT and emergency room nurse, who were in the area encountered Martin and provided initial medical care until rangers arrived on scene at 11:45 a.m. Rangers determined Martin's injuries to be severe enough that he would not be able to safely hike out of the canyon, so requested that the Teton interagency contract helicopter fly him from a landing zone in the Meadows to the rescue cache at Lupine Meadows. He was met there by a park ambulance and transported to St. John's Medical Center in Jackson for further treatment. Martin did not have a helmet, ice axe, or crampons during his mountain trek. While on scene with Martin, rangers were notified just before 1 p.m. of another individual who needed medical assistance. Heather Hanamaikai, 34, of Rexburg, Idaho, had intended to summit the Grand with her party on Saturday, but started feeling ill and began a retreat from the base of the headwall of the Lower Saddle. Hanamaikai was descending on her own when the ER nurse who had assisted Martin encountered her and directed Hanamaikai to stop and wait for help. Given the nature of Hanamaikai's illness, rangers decided to stabilize her and assist her in hiking down to the Meadows in Garnet Canyon, where she was also met by the interagency helicopter and flown inside the ship to Lupine Meadows.
[Submitted by Jackie Skaggs, Public Affairs Specialist]
Edit: anyone can add reports, please do not alter them however. Unfortunately, the NPS no longer has their Morning Report archives available on the public web, I remember some real funny ones in the past like the people who ran Cataract Canyon in a canoe because somehow they MISSED the confluence of the of the Green and Colorado.
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Captain...or Skully
climber
or some such
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Aug 22, 2011 - 04:36pm PT
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That's sad. Folks really need to understand that it can get REAL in a hurry.
Hopin' for the best for all involved.
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 22, 2011 - 04:45pm PT
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Here's a funny one from today...
New River Gorge National River (WV)
Three Cited In Bath Salts Drug Case
On the afternoon of August 1st, rangers received report of a naked woman on a remote bank of the New River. She'd flagged down a passing party of private boaters, saying that she was being chased by someone. In short order, rangers were able to make contact and she told them she and two others had snorted "bath salts" the previous night. She also told rangers her friends were in the woods and that their car was parked somewhere in the area - but she was not really sure where. With the aid of a West Virginia Department of Forestry bloodhound, the woman's vehicle was soon located. It was found wrecked and stuck on a remote dirt road. As the search progressed, another woman and a man, both naked, soon emerged from the woods asking for help; both were under the influence of bath salts. All three of the people had spent most of the night wandering in the woods and were dehydrated and suffered from numerous cuts and insect bites. They were all transported to a local hospital by ambulance for treatment. Investigation revealed that the trio had driven to a remote part of the park the previous day and set up a "camp" by the roadside near Dowdy Creek. After ingesting the bath salts, they stripped naked due to the heat and then became separated from one another, wandering around in the woods until discovered by rangers. Rangers issued citations to the trio at the hospital. This is the second known bath salts incident handled by rangers during the summer. In both cases, subjects hallucinated and became paranoid under the influence of the drug, wrecked their vehicles, and were taken from their accident scenes by EMS. Ranger CW Mitchem was IC for the incident and is the case ranger.
[Submitted by Jeff West, Chief Ranger]
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Staples10
climber
Around the Way
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Aug 23, 2011 - 08:14am PT
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News from Grand Teton National Park:
August 20, 2011
<i>Just before dark on Friday August 19, Grand Teton National Park rangers rescued a 28-year-old climber after he became stranded near the top of the Grand Stand below the North Face of the Grand Teton. Jesse Selwyn of Florence, Montana and his climbing partner intended to climb the Black Ice Couloir on the northwest side of the Grand. Selwyn and his companion could not find the entrance to the Black Ice Couloir and got off route. They ended up on the Grand Stand instead.
At 4:55 p.m., the Teton Interagency Dispatch Center received notification from the Teton County Sheriff’s office that an individual had activated a SPOT rescue locator somewhere on the Grand Teton. Rangers requested a Teton Interagency helicopter to conduct a reconnaissance flight to assess the situation. A ranger inside the helicopter used a white board with the words “OK?” written on it to ask the climbers if they were alright. The climbers gave a thumbs down sign, so rangers responded by writing the words “rescue?” and the climbers gave a thumbs up, indicating they were in trouble and needed help.
Based on the climbers’ location, rangers flew inside the helicopter to a landing zone on the west side of Teewinot Mountain. From there, one ranger was inserted via short-haul to Selwyn’s location just after 8 p.m. Once on scene, the ranger prepared Selwyn for a short-haul evacuation off the mountain to Lupine Meadows rescue cache on the valley floor. Selwyn was uninjured and released soon after landing. Short-haul is a rescue technique where an individual is suspended below the helicopter on a 100 to 200 foot rope. This method allows a rescuer more direct and expedient access to an injured or stranded party; it is often used in the Tetons where conditions make it difficult to land a helicopter in high-elevation, steep and rocky terrain. Patients are typically flown out via short-haul below the ship with a ranger attending to them, as was the case for this rescue.
After rescuing Selwyn, the helicopter made one last flight to retrieve the other rangers from the landing zone on Teewinot. The ship landed back at Lupine Meadows at 8:47 p.m., just two minutes before it was required to stop flying due to darkness. This time is called the “pumpkin hour,” and is 30 minutes after official sunset.
By the time rangers reached Selwyn, his climbing partner had begun to backtrack the route in hopes of reaching the lower saddle before it got too dark to continue. After realizing it was too dark to safely backtrack across the Valhalla Traverse, Selwyn’s partner decided to spend the night on the mountain and begin his retreat again at first light on Saturday. The climbing partner reached the Lower Saddle of the Grand Teton just before 8:30 a.m. on August 20.</i>
Dear Jesse Selwyn,
Fvck you. You didn't take responsibility for yourself and risked the lives of the rescuers and wasted precious park resources. If your partner, who was clearly wearing his Big Boy pants, was able to walk out (across a traverse I know well; it's just as easy to traverse south as it is north), then you have no excuse unless you were bleeding from every orifice.
So, you are hereby directed to leave the mountains to the adults. I hope the Park Service sends you a bill. Jackass.
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 23, 2011 - 02:33pm PT
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So, you are hereby directed to leave the mountains to the adults. I hope the Park Service sends you a bill. Jackass
lol. It seems that GT has alot of "climbers" that don't know what they are doing...
Here's another, a Tale of Two Rescues
Grand Teton National Park (WY)
Two Climbers Rescued In Separate Incidents
Rangers twice last week rescued injured climbers from park peaks. A climber attempting to scale the Middle Teton on Tuesday required rescue by rangers after sustaining injuries from a fall. Steven Zaleski, 43, of Madison, Wisconsin, and two companions were on the approach to Buckingham Ridge, the southeast ridge of the Middle Teton, when Zaleski pulled off a loose block of rock and fell about 15 feet. The Teton Interagency Dispatch Center received an emergency phone call from a member of Zaleski's climbing party just after 9 a.m. A contract helicopter flew rangers to a backcountry landing zone in the South Fork of Garnet Canyon, and the rangers then hiked to Zaleski's location, arriving on scene at 11 a.m. They determined that Zaleski would not be able to hike out of the canyon on his own due to the nature of his injuries and prepared him for a helicopter evacuation. He was flown via short-haul to the South Fork landing zone and then taken to St. John's Medical Center in Jackson for further treatment. Zaleski and his climbing companions were unroped on the approach and scrambling on fourth-class rock. Each of the climbers had appropriate climbing gear; they were all wearing helmets and carrying ice axes and crampons at the time of the accident. On Thursday, rangers conducted a 1,200-foot technical lowering operation on the north side of Nez Perce Peak to rescue a 21-year-old climber who fell about 100 feet and suffered injuries that made it impossible for her to hike further. Laura Mason of Royal Oak, Michigan, was glissading a snowfield to the west of the Hourglass Couloirs when she ran into the rocks at the base of the snowfield. Rangers, who were assisting another hiker with minor injuries, received notice of Mason's accident at 11 a.m. Once they reunited the hiker with his party, they hastily made their way to Mason's location on Nez Perce Peak and arrived on scene at 11:30 a.m. After reaching Mason, rangers determined that high winds were not favorable for a helicopter short-haul operation. Two other rangers on routine backcountry patrols (one on Disappointment Peak and another between the South and Middle Tetons) were summoned to assist with a ground-based rescue. An additional ranger and three Teton interagency helitack personnel were flown up from the valley by contract helicopter into to assist in the technical lowering operation. Mason was placed in a rescue litter and rangers rigged ropes to carefully lower her down the snowfield to the Garnet Canyon Meadows landing zone. Rangers lowered Mason 300 feet at a time in four separate sets. The last set placed her at a location near the landing zone at the Cave Couloir in the upper meadows of Garnet Canyon. She was then flown to St. John's Medical Center in Jackson for further treatment. Mason and her four climbing partners intended to summit the Middle Teton. Two of her partners turned around earlier in the day, while the rest of the group continued up but strayed off route. After realizing they were in the wrong location, Mason and her climbing partners started descending in an attempt to find the correct route. Although Mason was carrying an ice axe, rangers do not believe she was wearing a helmet or carrying crampons on her mountain trek. This incident marked the third rescue this year involving a climber or hiker who received significant injuries while glissading down a snowfield.
[Submitted by Jackie Skaggs, Public Affairs Specialist
Imagine the thought process:
let's see, do I need an Ice Axe? Yes. If I need an Ice Axe, do I need a helmet and crampons? No, I guess not...do I?
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 24, 2011 - 03:03pm PT
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Finally, someone serving time for this....
Lake Mead National Recreation Area (AZ,NV)
Man Sentenced To Jail For Petroglyph Defacement
David Smith, 21, of Bullhead City, Arizona, has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $9,995 in restitution for defacing petroglyphs with paint balls in the Grapevine Canyon area of the park. Grapevine Canyon is considered one of the most sacred places by Colorado River Indian tribes, and the sentence followed a two-hour hearing in which members of six different Colorado River Indian tribes addressed the court. Smith, who pled guilty to a charge of unlawful defacement of an archeological resource, a felony violation of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act, was also ordered to serve a year of supervised release and to perform 50 hours of community service. Grapevine Canyon lies within the park just west of Laughlin, Nevada. The area contains over 700 petroglyphs and numerous rock shelters, and is listed on the National Register of Historical Places. Smith admitted that he passed signs at the entrance to the canyon saying that it contained cultural resources and that it was illegal to damage and deface them. He also admitted that he knew that the petroglyphs were important to Native Americans. Smith used a fully automatic paint-ball gun and oil-based pellets to shoot at the petroglyphs. Approximately 38 areas containing petroglyphs were defaced, and hundreds of paint balls were scattered and recovered from the Canyon. A ranger investigated after receiving a report that people were in the canyon with spray paint. Smith was with two other individuals, one of whom was a 12-year-old boy. Park staff, assisted by members of area tribes, removed the paint, but residue remains on the petroglyph panels. Colorado River tribes view the Grapevine Canyon area as sacred and believe it is the birthplace of many of their tribes. Archeologists believe that the area has been inhabited and used by humans for at least 1100 years.
[Submitted by Andrew S. Muńoz, Public Affairs Specialist]
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Aug 24, 2011 - 03:16pm PT
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It would be nice to at least call out each NPS report posted, that has "alleged" climbers. The reports are short, but often one can tell that they are hikers with overly ambitious goals for their skills.
Maybe a scale
1. likely a hiker
2. potentially inexperienced
3. climber caught in a bad circumstance
bummer about the archives. Clint Cummins turned me onto those. They were fascinating, but I always worried that the park service used the term 'climbers' too loosely and that they would then define their rescue policy about 'climbers' on these "climbers."
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Aug 24, 2011 - 04:49pm PT
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Maybe a scale
1. likely a hiker
2. potentially inexperienced
3. climber caught in a bad circumstance
There's always Tom Patey's scale:
1. A beginner. Someone (often dead) who should be kept away from the cliffs at all costs.
2. An experienced climber. Someone whose death was inevitable.
John
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 13, 2011 - 04:18pm PT
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From the 9-13-2011 report:
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (CA)
Injured Climber Rescued from Face Of Thunderbolt Peak
On the evening of August 23rd, park dispatch was informed of a mountaineering accident on Thunderbolt Peak in the North Palisades of Kings Canyon National Park. Thunderbolt Peak is a 14,003-foot peak with a popular Class 4 ascent route. Rangers began mobilizing that evening, with the first ranger on scene hiking through the night and arriving in the area before 6 a.m. That ranger was able to confirm calls for help coming from the mountain. Two additional rangers were flown to the area and conducted an aerial reconnaissance, locating the climber on a cliff face above the 13,000-foot elevation. He was on a small sloping ledge in otherwise completely vertical terrain. A possible short haul operation was dismissed due to unstable and increasing winds. The two rangers were flown to a landing zone near Barrett Lakes, where they began a 1,300-foot Class 4 and 5 ascent to the victim. They reached him in mid-afternoon and found that he was suffering from exposure and from open fractures to his right leg and left arm. As they were preparing to spend the night on the ledge with him and continue evacuation operations in the morning, there was a brief window of clear and calm weather. A short haul operation was begun and the climber was successfully removed from the ledge and taken to the base of the mountain. He was then flown to Bishop, California, where he was admitted into the hospital.
[Submitted by Ned Kelleher, District Ranger]
Yosemite National Park (CA)
Missing Hiker’s Body Found In Tent By Searchers
Tuolumne rangers received a report on September 2nd that Gene Hall, 69, of Olympia, Washington, was overdue from his solo hiking trip on the High Sierra Camp loop. Hall had made arrangements to meet his daughter for dinner after his trip on September 1st and had not been at the scheduled engagement. His rental car was soon located at a nearby trailhead, and an investigation revealed that Hall had last been seen at Vogelsang High Sierra Camp on either August 29th or 30th when he ate a meal there. Camp records showed that he had not arrived at Merced Lake as planned on the 30th. Since relatives indicated that Hall intended to climb Vogelsang Peak and possibly other nearby peaks, an air and ground search was begun. At that point, Hall had not been seen for several days, and the search area was extensive. Four other agencies assisted the NPS in the effort, which included 65 search personnel and a multidisciplinary incident command team assembled from within Yosemite. On the afternoon of September 3rd, a dog team found Hall's body in his tent off trail near Fletcher Lake. An investigation is underway but preliminary evidence indicates that he died of natural causes.
[Submitted by Kevin Killian, Deputy Chief Ranger]
From the Sept 8th, 2011 report:
Grand Teton National Park (WY)
VC Evacuated Following Accidental Bear Spray Discharge
As a park ranger was greeting visitors for a morning program in the Colter Bay auditorium this past Tuesday, a man sat down on what was apparently his unsecured can of bear spray, causing the can to discharge its contents of highly irritating spray into the room. The irritating element in bear spray is oleoresin capsicum, the same element in the pepper spray carried by law enforcement rangers but with a higher percentage of the irritant. The ranger immediately recognized what had happened and directed all the occupants to the emergency exits. The visitor who accidently discharged the bear spray ran from the room and building. Park emergency personnel were notified of the incident, as the building's air handling systems moved the residual pepper spray into the main lobby. The first arriving units found approximately 20 employees and visitors in the main lobby coughing and experiencing other side effects from the pepper spray. Incident command was established and the building was evacuated, after which structural fire personnel in full PPE began ventilating the building and emergency medical staff evaluated both employees and visitors. All the affected individuals declined medical treatment. Visitor services were continued through the day at portable tables in front of the visitor center while cleanup was begun by facility management staff. Cleanup presented a challenging task, though, as the irritant is dispersed in an oil-based aerosol that attaches to any surface it contacts, including vinyl, plastics, carpeting, clothing and human skin. The cooperating association bagged and sealed many soft items, such as t-shirts and stuffed animals, for decontamination at a later date. Rangers were unsuccessful in locating the person who discharged the bear spray, but statements from the interpreter in the room and other visitors indicate that the discharge was accidental. The visitor center was reopened on Wednesday.
[Submitted by Patrick Hattaway, North District Ranger/Incident Commander]
From Sept 6th, 2011
Glacier National Park
Body Of Missing Seasonal Employee Found
Search personnel found the body of seasonal employee Jacob "Jake" Rigby last Friday afternoon. It was found on the mountain known as "8888" in the southern end of the park. The initial investigation indicates that Rigby may have fallen approximately 800 feet on the north side of the extremely steep mountain. Rigby's body was spotted by helicopter personnel during an aerial search of the high-probability area between Ole Creek and Park Creek drainages. The extensive search effort began on Monday, August 29th, after Rigby was reported overdue from a personal day hike in the park the previous day. More than 50 people helped with the search efforts. Personnel from Flathead Valley Search and Rescue and the Flathead National Forest assisted with the search. Rigby, 27, had worked for the exotic plant team at the park for the past three summers. He also worked at other National Park Service sites during the winter season.
[Submitted by Denise Germann, Public Affairs Specialist]
From Sept 2nd, 2011
North Cascades National Park (WA)
Climber Rescued From Mixup Peak
Around midnight on August 25th, rangers received a 911 call reporting that a climber had taken a 60-foot "leader" fall near the summit on the east face of 7,440-foot Mixup Peak. Two members of the group of six climbers went for help and reported that the injured climber had sustained a potential head injury and broken lower leg. Meanwhile, the three remaining climbers lowered the injured climber to a shallow, down-sloping ledge that was nearly 2,000 feet above the glacier below. Rangers organized a rescue for the next morning after a reconnaissance flight determined that a helicopter short haul operation was the safest and most efficient recovery method to use. Two rangers were short hauled to the site to stabilize and package the patient, who was then short hauled to an ALS ambulance at the closest trailhead. Kelly Bush, Wilderness District Ranger, was incident commander.
[Submitted by Kinsey Shilling, Chief Ranger]
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 13, 2011 - 04:19pm PT
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One more, from Sept 1st, 2011...
Grand Canyon National Park (AZ)
Body Discovered Near Tanner Beach
A ranger at the Mather Campground on the South Rim received a report of a hiker possibly in distress on the Tanner Trail last Sunday morning. The backpackers who made the report told the ranger that they ran into a hiker on the Tanner Trail on Friday and that he appeared to be exhausted and had abandoned his pack further down the trail. The pair, who were also feeling heat-stressed, provided the hiker with additional water and told him they didn't think he could make it out. They urged him to go with them down to the river. He refused, saying he wanted to continue up the trail. On their way to the river, the pair passed the man's abandoned pack. On Saturday, as the pair began their return journey, they again passed the abandoned pack, took note of the permit information, and looked for the distressed hiker as they continued to their next campsite. They were carrying an extra gallon of water in case they ran into him again. On Sunday, they finished their backpacking trip without again seeing the distressed hiker. Concerned for his welfare, they reported their encounter with the hiker as soon as they returned to the rim. After receiving the report and determining that the hiker's car was still parked at the trailhead, rangers called for the park's helicopter to fly the Tanner Trail in an effort to quickly locate the man. Late in the morning, the helicopter's crew reported spotting a body in a wash just above Tanner Beach. Rangers who arrived at the scene confirmed that the body matched the description of the hiker that the backpackers encountered on Friday. The body was prepared for transport then flown to the South Rim by helicopter and transferred to the Coconino County medical examiner. The Tanner is a rugged, exposed trail. High temperatures over the period from Wednesday through Sunday ranged from 103 to 108 degrees at the Colorado River.
[Submitted by Shannan Marcak, Public Affairs Specialist]
Comment: I wouln't want to do the Tanner trail in the summer!
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 14, 2011 - 03:51pm PT
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Some items from today's (9-14) report
Joshua Tree National Park (CA)
Flash Flood Causes Significant Damage, Closures
Torrential rains caused widespread flash flooding in the Pinto Basin and Cottonwood Spring areas of Joshua Tree National Park yesterday morning. Extensive flood damage occurred to Park Route 11 - the Pinto Basin Road - with loss of pavement in numerous areas. The Cottonwood Visitor Center was flooded and parts of the Cottonwood Campground were washed away. Until further notice, Park Route 11 is closed from the entrance of White Tank Campground to the park's south boundary at Interstate 10. The Cottonwood Visitor Center and Cottonwood Campground are also closed. No visitors or park employees were injured during the flood event and no vehicles were damaged. It is estimated that at least three inches of rain fell during the morning storm. Park crews are continuing to assess the full extent of the damage though it may be some time before complete damage estimates are available.
[Submitted by Joe Zarki, Public Information Officer]
Colorado National Monument (CO)
Body Of Apparent Suicide Victim Recovered
Rangers responded to an apparent suicide just after midnight on Friday, September 9th, when a visitor called 911 to report seeing a woman run and jump off the edge of a cliff near Cold Shivers Point. Units from Glade Park and Grand Junction Fire Departments responded to assist the rangers. Due to darkness and hazardous terrain, search and recovery operations were suspended until first light. The body of a 24-year-old Grand Junction woman was located and recovered below Cold Shivers Point on Saturday by the Mesa County Technical Rescue Team. The recovery involved an approximately 300-foot technical raise from the base of cliff. The Mesa County Coroner's Office assisted with the investigation and notifications to the family.
[Submitted by Karen McKinlay-Jones, Acting Chief Ranger]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Sep 15, 2011 - 11:22am PT
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Did the smell go away after the tasing?
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Elcapinyoazz
Social climber
Joshua Tree
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Sep 15, 2011 - 12:38pm PT
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Shenandoah National Park (VA)
Disoriented Hiker Found After Multi-Day Search
Last week, a DC area hiking club contacted the park and reported that a member of their group had become separated from the party on the Lower Hawksbill Trail. The missing 53-year-old man had just joined the hiking club for the first time that morning, so the person who called had limited helpful information. Moreover, no one actually saw him with the group once they started on the trail. The parking area they started from serves numerous trails that go off in virtually every direction.
With no information to work with, only hasty searches of the extensive trail system could be conducted on the following day. Those hasty searches did provide one lead, a possible witness who reported seeing someone along the Appalachian Trail above Timber Hollow with the one identifying feature of the missing hiker - he hiked with an ice axe, something not normally seen in Shenandoah in August. But the man was described as very disoriented and frustrated. This piece of information led to a more focused search of the area around the possible point last seen, although no clues were discovered during the second full day of searching. The investigation however, led to a better understanding of potential problems this hiker may have been experiencing. He was described as an alcohol user who had a history of seizures that would leave him mobile but disoriented for hours at a time.
On the third day of search, teams were sent down into Timber Hollow below the AT, where it seemed likely he may have stumbled or otherwise entered - terrain described as some of the worst in Shenandoah. Almost immediately one team found clues believed to be associated with the missing person, including an empty bottle of vodka. Shortly before noon on the third day, another team found the missing man at the bottom of Timber Hollow, lying in Hawksbill Creek. He was suffering from hypothermia with a body temp of 94 degrees and had a significantly altered mental state.
He was littered to the boundary, where he was picked up by an ambulance that took him to a hospital. The man ultimately spent four days in the hospital, being treated for significant chemical imbalances among other things. Once he regained his mental alertness, he was able to provide some details of his experience. He had started with the group on the trail but was the last in line. He then experienced a seizure shortly into the hike. When he came to, he began to search for his party, but was still somewhat disoriented. The weather had deteriorated, with thick fog and heavy rains.
He remembered meeting the man who had provided searchers with information on the point where he was last seen. After talking with him, he was hiking the AT when he stumbled off the trail and tumbled down the steep slopes, ending up well below the trail. He was injured from the fall but otherwise still able to move. He did not want to climb back up to the trail, so he walked across the slope, hoping the trail came down to him. He ultimately found the drainage and decided to follow it down. He then spent the first night near the bottom of the hollow, and on the following morning continued to look for a way out but started having difficulty with his legs going out. He ultimately just stopped and sat down. He had no memory of what happened on much of the second day. He spent about another 48 hours in stormy weather until the search team found him.
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 15, 2011 - 04:54pm PT
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Another one from today, and another who is lucky to be alive!
Canyonlands National Park (UT)
Rangers Find Injured Man Crawling Across Desert
On Friday, September 9th, rangers in the Island in the Sky District began looking into circumstances surrounding a campsite at the Willow Flat campground, which appeared to be abandoned and unoccupied. The investigation led to a search for Amos Richards, a 64-year-old visitor from North Carolina. Details led staff to believe that he may have been in or around the park's Maze District. A search was begun for Richards two days later. He was spotted from a helicopter around 2 p.m. in the area of Little Blue John Canyon, just outside the park's boundary, and was flown to Moab Regional Hospital, where he was treated for leg fractures, internal injuries, trauma, and dehydration. Further investigation revealed that Richards attempted to hike in and out of Lower Blue John Canyon via the entry/exit route between West and Little Blue John Canyons. He fell approximately 10 feet trying to gain the wash bottom, suffering extensive leg trauma in the process. Richards couldn't bear weight on his right leg, so spend the next four days and three nights crawling across the desert in an attempt to get back to his car. He had no overnight gear, warm clothes or a map, but did have five liters of water and two power bars with him. No one knew where he was or what his plans were. It rained on him several times as he crawled across the desert. Richards is expected to fully recover. Matt Jenkins was IC for the search.
[Submitted by Denny Ziemann, Chief Ranger]
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 15, 2011 - 05:01pm PT
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Ha-ha, Horton2U...where'd you get that one?
Perhaps they should have used pepper spray instead
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Sep 15, 2011 - 06:30pm PT
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Crafty troll.
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Cain J Waters
Mountain climber
Ithaca, NY
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Sep 21, 2011 - 11:56am PT
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Yosemite National Park (CA)
Crisis Negotiator Successfully Intervenes In Suicide Attempt
Monday, September 19, 2011
Park dispatch received a call on the evening of September 9th from a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, regarding an at-risk student. The 31-year-old man had been in cell phone contact with UC Berkeley Health Services throughout the afternoon and had reported that he was on top of a mountain and intended to kill himself. He did not provide a specific location, but, based on conversations in the past, the professor presumed that the student was on top of Half Dome. Rangers stationed in Little Yosemite Valley were directed to the top of Half Dome to attempt to locate the man. Special Response Team members, including ranger and crisis negotiator Rob Lewis, were also dispatched. While responders were en route, a hiker stopped one of the rangers to let him know about a friend of his who was threatening suicide on top of Half Dome. A telephone interview was conducted with the hiker, and Lewis used the information obtained to conduct a crisis negotiation with the man via text message. After a lengthy text message exchange, he called 911, said that he was okay, and asked for help. By this time rangers were arriving on the summit of Half Dome and they were able to secure and hold him while waiting for additional responders to assist in getting him safely down the cables. The man was escorted out of the backcountry, transported to an area medical facility, and held for evaluation. Statements he made during the hike out indicate that Lewis' text messages had caused him to change his mind about jumping. After interviewing the man, a doctor at the medical facility said that he was surprised that he hadn't jumped.
[Submitted by Kevin Killian, Deputy Chief Ranger]
Props to Rob Lewis, Cal faculty and health services and the hiker who reported his friend's possible attempt at suicide.
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 28, 2011 - 03:49pm PT
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Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Joshua Tree National Park (CA)
Some Flood-Damaged Facilities Reopen, Others Remain Closed
A section of Pinto Basin Road, damaged in a severe flashflood on September 13th (click here for the initial report), will reopen to the public on Friday. The segment of road that will reopen extends from the present closure at White Tank Campground for approximately nine miles southeast to the Ocotillo Patch pullout. This will allow public access to the popular Cholla Cactus Garden. Also opening on Friday are all park campgrounds and campsites that were closed for the summer due to low visitation. This means that for Friday night all park campgrounds except Cottonwood Campground will be fully open for normal visitor use. Cottonwood Campground will remain closed due to flood damage. The following park areas remain closed due to flood damage:
Cottonwood Campground
Cottonwood Visitor Center
Cottonwood Springs
Black Eagle Mine Road
Old Dale Road
Pinkham Canyon Road
Thermal Canyon Road
All hiking trails originating at Cottonwood Springs
Future updates on repair of recent park storm damage will posted on the park website (www.nps.gov/jotr).
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 29, 2011 - 03:21pm PT
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Yosemite National Park (CA)
Austrian Climber Rescued From El Capitan
Yosemite rangers made a complex, high-angle helicopter rescue of an Austrian climber on El Capitan on the afternoon of Monday, September 26th. The climber and his partner were ascending El Capitan on The Nose Route, a popular and difficult climbing route on the 7,569-foot-high granite monolith in Yosemite Valley. After two days of climbing, they were approximately 1,000 feet below the summit. In mid-afternoon, the lead climber fell, losing his thumb when a secondary rope wrapped around the appendage and severed it. The thumb fell about 80 feet and landed on a two-foot by one-foot ledge, where his partner was able to retrieve it. The climbers then called the park for assistance. Just before 4 p.m., the park's contract helicopter, piloted by Richard Shatto and carrying helitack crew members Jeff Pirog and Eric Small and rangers Jeff Webb and Dave Pope, flew from Yosemite Valley to assess the situation. Although the weather was favorable, impending darkness was an issue and Eric Gabriel, district ranger for Yosemite Valley and IC for the incident, made the decision to attempt to extract the climber via short haul. Gabriel, who had consulted with the park's medical clinic, knew of the short window of time in which the thumb could successfully be reattached and felt the complex mission was worth pursuing. The helicopter hovered near the climbers and Webb and Pope were successfully short-hauled to the injured climber, who was flown back to El Capitan Meadow. He was then transferred to another air medical helicopter to be flown out of the park. Webb remained with the partner overnight and was raised approximately 1,000 feet to the summit the following day using traditional rock-rescue techniques. Later that evening, the injured climber underwent surgery at the California Pacific Medical Center's Davies Campus in San Francisco, where his thumb was successfully reattached. "This was an incredibly technical and complex rescue mission with a lot of inherent risk," said Gabriel. "However, knowing that the thumb could be reattached, coupled with the confidence I have in my team, I made the decision to attempt this rescue. I was relieved and thrilled that this ended successfully and we were able to make a positive difference in this person's life."
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