Lots of Rescues - Taking Stock

I must say, the events of this winter has given me an opportunity to take stock of my situation. I have grown up in the Whites. I have dabbled in Maine, Vermont, New York, and Alaska, but since I was four-years old I have been hiking, camping, backpacking, and skiing in the WMNF. I did a lot of solo hikes. Some with a dog, some without. Some with a group of up to six, often with only 2-3. More in the winter than in the summer. Other than a separated shoulder from someone in my party, never had any real issues to worry about. I have assisted with some lost souls a couple of times.

I don't always take my snowshoes. Sometimes I pack my winter tent (a 4lb. Bibler) on a day hike just in case. I've gone on hikes with only a fanny pack and wearing sneakers. Other times, I've had crampons, skis, snowshoes, and an ice axe.

Hiking isn't the passion it was for me twenty years ago, but it is still a hobby of mine. Seeing what has gone on this winter, I have had to look in the mirror, and I won't be throwing stones at any of the rescued parties. Or, any of those that perished.

I have done, or been in a situation, as almost everyone in the papers have. I've been scared out of my wits on Mt. Adams. Not being able to see anything and the wind literally knocking me down. I spent twenty minutes just sitting there and wondering "How the hell am I going to get out of here." I took a wrong trail into the wind leaving Mt. Jackson, and had to backtrack in February to catch up with the rest of my party. As a 7-year old, I got lost near Mt. Garfield (didn't even know I was lost) until an adult friend caught up to me and told me I was going the wrong @#$%# way.

I was minutes from being caught in an avalance in the Gulf of Slides that killed another skier. I have fallen 30' down the slide on Owl's Head. I have skied off into the woods too many times to count.

I have been turned back on peaks. I've summitted when I shouldn't have. I've had a tent blown off a peak. I've been caught in a torrential downpour wearing cotton jeans, a sweatshirt, workboots, and without hat or gloves on Bondcliff. I almost drowned my dog crossing the swollen Peabody River one rainy Sunday morning.

I have done a lot of really stupid things in those mountains. I have done almost exactly what everyone of those rescued hikers have done. I never gave it a second thought. I guarantee you, I will from now on. You could all just as easily be reading about me up there. And, I'd venture to guess, we could just as easily be reading about many of you up there.

I now have a two-year old daughter. I could not imagine perishing in those mountains knowing she was at home. What would those last thoughts be? Would she even remember me?


I have learned from someone else's lesson, and I am glad I did. Peace.

Well said, dug. Thank you. I'm sure most of us can relate to what you've said to some degree. I know I can.

dug said:

I now have a two-year old daughter. I could not imagine perishing in those mountains knowing she was at home.

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In my hiking life I have never had what I would call a dangerous close call. I turned back early from more than one summit attempt because I did not want to be late to take the wife &/or kids to some function. I have turned back because the dogs looked particularly uncomfortable. Of course, I did not always have kids or a wife (or dogs). I was young once and took some non-hiking related foolish risks.

I'd have to say, it is consideration of others, that makes me stop and ponder the risks of pushing onward.

It never seems to be that one event leads to disaster. In most cases, it looks like a series of small mistakes, bad judgement and lack of gear just add up and the hiker ends up over their head. The last few incidents on Franconia Ridge are an example of that. We all want to complete our planned hike, or reach a summit, but is it worth a life? I don't think so, the mountains aren't going anywhere. You can always come back another day.

There are occasions where an accident or serious injury comes up and hikers need help getting out. That can't be avoided. Take the necessary equipment, even if it never comes out of you pack. Stay safe out there.

Statistically speaking there is always a chance for accident. You can take precautions to lessen that chance although it is probably difficult and most likely counter-productive maybe even absurd to try and reduce the chance of accident to zero. It's kind of like your immune system which is like a great balancing act in your body -- too little you get sick, but an overly aggressive immune system is dangerous as well. Many precautions are easy enough. Being aware of your experience/limits is another thing -- when are you "outclassed" so to speak, either by the weather, the hike, the distance etc. Then again, you have to push your limits to achieve self-improvement, so how much do you push them?

The other thing that is important is what do you do after you've had an accident. If you can't avoid an accident there are things you can do (a balancing act again between over and under doing it) to hopefully ensure your survival after it occurs.

Of course, unfortunately, there are accidents that are sometimes fatal. It's a small, but sadly (as we've experienced with members of our community) harshly real and tangible possibility. There are probably times to stay home (forecast for 200+ winds maybe?) but even at home there exists a host of things (earthquake, fire, flood, asteroid, gas leak) that can gettcha.

-Dr. Wu

I once heard a quote, and do not know where it was from. Shoot, maybe I made it up, I don't know:

"A true measure of a man is what you do when the sh*t hits the fan."

Do you sit down and wet yourself? Or, like Beck Weathers, do you lie there for many hours and finally say "F-you. I'm getting out of here" and do it?

Weather/decision making

Preaching to the choir, I guess. Oh well...

These three recent rescues have had one common theme. Bad weather. It sounds like the first couple people were caught up in major squalls with whiteout conditions and possibly up to hurricane force wind gusts if they were above treeline, though more likely in the 50-60 mph range. Still, nothing to sneeze at!
The latest group missing went up into the Presidentials during what I would consider one of the worst times, driving rain, temps in the 30s and low 40s, persistent cold wind, and then thick fog. I think it is a safe assumption that these guys got lost in the fog. Lets just hope they were prepared for any condition, because after experiencing hiking in 33 degree rain with winds of 35 mph, I'd rather hike in a driving snowstorm, thank you very much. Everything gets soaked, and you're constantly cold, and the risk for hypothermia seems to be higher, though I could be wrong.

I really don't get all caught up in the..."well they should have been more prepared" crap, because, as many have said in the past, we have all taken what we may think are calculated risks hiking. Sometimes the stories we hear are puzzling, but you just can't judge it, being an outsider. Though I must admit it is very difficult sometimes. I try to learn from every situation that comes up. These situations have reinforced in my mind...don't hike above treeline during the day of an arctic cold front, because you might get caught in snow squalls, and just don't hike above treeline in poor weather, period, especially solo. My experience level isn't high enough to play with fate like that.

My heart goes out to the people being rescued, and the rescuers. Not an easy job....I can't even imagine.

grouseking

Dug, the origin of your thought *(or perhaps its finest or most familiar expression) lies in the following poem by Rudyard Kipling.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

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G.

(Apologies to the moderators -- I well remember the little flap we had here some time ago over the posting of song lyrics. I will delete or modify this if requested to do so. G.)

I'm thankful every time I'm put into some sort of tricky situation during a winter hike - you can prepare all you want, but until you actually deal with a situation, it's hard to really react properly.

Last Monday night I did Keasarge North (during the bitter cold snap) and I had one of those 'stuff keeps going wrong' hikes - ie a well broken trail suddenly wasn't broken, my wet shirt suddenly froze when I cleared the trees, my gloves were inadequate one I summitted, my headlamp started to malfunction, my back/hip started to give me problems, and my Camelbak line froze. Fortunately, previous experience on the mountain helped me to locate the unbroken trail where the skiers had veered off, bring an extra shirt, bring two sets of gloves and one set of ultra-mittens, bring extra batteries for my headlamp, hike out with an injury affecting my stride, and bring an extra water source. I was also able to take a lesson learned from it, which was to carry a second, ready to go headlamp, so that I don't have to worry about fussing around with batteries in the dark or trying to find my backup flashlight.

Like most of us, I've reflected on the rescues this year, and was saddened by the loss and concern caused to the families involved.

During my own hiking/camping history I've tried to err on the side of caution; having several partners with me on trips, turning back if the conditions were bad, having gear for unforeseen circumstances. However, I've still been caught in situations that could have been worse than they turned out if just one other thing had gone wrong.

But then I think about choices that other people make everyday with their lives that have at least as great a likelihood of a bad outcome: cigarette smoking, motorcycle riding without a helmet (I may draw some heat for that one), or drinking and driving. These all can have effects on families and even on innocent victims, just as having to be the subject of a rescue can have.

The warning labels for smoking or drinking are on the packages, just as the signs are posted along the hiking trails. People choose to heed or not. When a hiker dies in the winter, there's public outcry about closing the trails, and other "big brother" attitudes. They lose perspective, maybe by the suddenness of the event. More than a quarter million people in the US die each year from the effects of smoking. I don't know the number of people killed in accidents where drunk drivers are involved, but I'm sure it's a large number.

The things we do in the mountains in winter have a level of danger, but they can certainly be controlled in a large part by our actions of preparation, and the decisions we make. Let's remember to keep things in perspective.

I was talking with an friend a few days ago who's a longtime winter hiker, and were in agreement that a key factor in all these incidents is that the Northeast is experiencing what was, up until about 10 years ago, a more 'normal winter'. The lack of snow and moderate temps may have created a new 'crop' of winter hikers who have not experienced the extremes of weather that can be produced in the Whites, Greens and ADK's. Whether this type of winter will return to being the norm is anyone's guess, but the scientists point out that as the earth warms, the storms we have are likely to be more intense. This might account for the intensity of snow/sleet/wind as squall lines move in during winter. These abrupt changes seem to be a factor in the two Franconia Ridge incidents. It also helps to know where in the mountains you're likely to experience special microclimates. In my experience these are on the Franconia's in NH, Jay Peak in VT, and Sugarloaf in Maine. There may be others.

Whatever the reason for intense storms, it behooves everyone, especially those who go above treeline, to carry appropriate emergency gear, and to carry snowshoes, even if the trail appears to be packed. In terms of emergency gear, if a bivy and bag seem too much, then do a search on this site and find a couple of threads which originated with Tim Seaver's initial post re: an emergency sleeping bag which can double as a waterproof bivy. It's used by the military and SARs units. The last time I checked, it was available from a medical supply company in Texas.

I think the cold, driving rain is the hardest to prepare for. Even with the layers I carry, it wouldn't be long before everything was soaked through.

I used to feel guilty about cherry-picking my hiking weather, like I should be out there regardless. Not so much anymore.

SAR Stats?

It does seem that the rescues this year are more numerous and more intense. Can any of the people in the know comment?

I'd hate to see any of Wu's modest proposals come to pass (http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=20644&page=9&pp=15), and I suppose one could check out the official responses in the past. I remember Nicholas Howe's "Not Without Peril" included a case with court involvement. I wonder what new regulations have gone into effect following heavy SAR seasons.

Each case has been different. The one in the DAKs (http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=20653) seemed to involve otherwise qualified hikers in okay shape who simply couldn't communicate with each other. The one involving a fatality on Franconia Ridge is still somewhat unexplained. I'd like to hear in-their-own-words accounts from the ones not yet heard from.

--M. said:

It does seem that the rescues this year are more numerous and more intense. Can any of the people in the know comment?

I'd hate to see any of Wu's modest proposals come to pass

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I would too.

I would be careful to extract statistical significance from an increase in rescues or even deaths in the Presidentials and Franconia Ridge because the numbers are typically low, and rescues and especially deaths are shocking and tragic. But an increase from 0 or 1 to 3 or 4 may not hold any real meaning* because there is always some variation.

Some statistics that might be more significant or at least a little more interesting are things like weather data: # snow events; # days below 0 F; # days with winds about 75 mph etc; # winter days w/ freezing rain etc. Compare that, along with other factors such as snow depth and whatnot to the historical record. You can probably make an assumption that there are a number of people that are well prepared, a number of people that are not well prepared and a number of bozos entering the woods and those numbers might not change from year to year. But, poor weather conditions and so on may contribute to an increase in the likelihood of an accident, which by the way, is still probably very low (though not non-zero) -- particularly for those that are well prepared.

And again, people will have different meanings for "well prepared." There is probably such a thing as being over prepared: gluing tank armor to your body may reduce the risk of puncture wounds but the increase in weight could be a balance hazard as well as an exhausting agent. I, personally, am usually fairly cautious: map, compass, extra liquid and food, snow shoes etc but not so much so that my pack weighs 75lbs.

-Dr. Wu

* when I say "real meaning" I mean statistically; people getting lost and especially people dying definitely has "real meaning"

dr_wu002 said:

I would be careful to extract statistical significance from an increase in rescues or even deaths in the Presidentials and Franconia Ridge because the numbers are typically low, and rescues and especially deaths are shocking and tragic. But an increase from 0 or 1 to 3 or 4 may not hold any real meaning because there is always some variation.

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Agreed.

IMO, we have the coincidence of a deep snowpack*, a holiday weekend, and some bad weather. And maybe some bad luck.

* How many posts have you seen from someone asking if he can leave his snowshoes behind?

Doug

DougPaul said:

Agreed.

IMO, we have the coincidence of a deep snowpack*, a holiday weekend, and some bad weather. And maybe some bad luck.

* How many posts have you seen from someone asking if he can leave his snowshoes behind?

Doug

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As I discussed w/ Wu earlier, how many of these rescues can be attributed to gear? Or, lack thereof? The two on the Presi Traverse today appeared to have it all, had experience, and still got into hot water.

dug said:

As I discussed w/ Wu earlier, how many of these rescues can be attributed to gear? Or, lack thereof? The two on the Presi Traverse today appeared to have it all, had experience, and still got into hot water.

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Anyone that goes hiking is going to run into an element of risk. You can probably decrease your risk by adding things such as adequate gear, experience in a variety of dangerous situations, common sense etc into the equation. And there are probably precautionary measures that would actually increase your risk such as carrying a 400lb pack brimming with "safety gear." however, short of staying home, you cannot reduce your risk to zero.

That doesn't mean that given a finite amount of time you'll have a major accident, which is probably why a lot of have not had one. But there is always a possibility and if you were able to hike indefinitely (ad infinitum) you'd eventually have an accident and eventually a fatal one. It's an absurd argument because most of us won't hike forever as the aging process is likely to get us before hiking will. The big problem is not snowshoes, it's aging.

-Dr. Wu

dr_wu002 said:

The big problem is not snowshoes, it's aging.

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I'd certainly rather be snowshoeing than aging!

Tom Rankin said:

I'd certainly rather be snowshoeing than aging!

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I just bought new snowshoes, so I can't age this year, OK? I'll let you know when I get around to it...

dr_wu002 said:

The big problem is not snowshoes, it's aging.

-Dr. Wu

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Wu - I am not sure I understand this comment given the recent rescues. Please explain further.

Thanks, Marty