An office retreat that involved hiking a Colorado 14er took a turn for the worse over the weekend when one hiker was left to summit alone and ended up spending the night lost on the peak in freezing rain.
According to a Facebook post, which you can view below, Chaffee County SAR South received the report for an overdue hiker on Mount Shavano at around 9 p.m. on Friday night. That's around 15 hours after the group had reportedly set off. According to the post, the group of 15 hikers split into two teams taking different routes. Somehow, one hiker got left on his own.
"In what might cause some awkward encounters at the office in the coming days and weeks, one member of their party was left to complete his final summit push alone," writes the SAR team in their roundup of events.
The solo hiker reportedly made it to the summit at around 11:30 a.m. then became disoriented on his descent, when he discovered that personal belongings left in the boulder field as navigation markers had been collected by other members of his group on their descent. The hiker ended up in a steep boulder and scree field before communicating his location via pin drop to his coworkers who told him he was off-route to retrace his steps.
At nearly 4 p.m., the man texted his colleagues again to say he was nearly back on the trail when an afternoon thunderstorm – a common occurrence in Colorado – rolled in.
"Shortly after that message, a strong storm passed through the area with freezing rain and high winds, and he again became disoriented, losing cell phone signal as well."
It's not known why the man's colleagues took another five hours to contact mountain rescue, but teams immediately scrambled for an overnight mission that was hampered by the challenging conditions and the fact that the missing hiker was dressed in all black.
"During the course of the night, teams encountered high winds and freezing rain, which made reaching the summit unsafe, and presented many difficulties for the drone operator."
The following morning, the subject was able to regain cell service and make contact with mountain rescue, revealing that he had taken numerous falls overnight.
"He reported being very disoriented on his descent, and falling at least 20 times on the steep slopes below Espirit point toward the North Fork. After the last fall he was unable to get back up."
The man was extracted in a technical rescue involving rope lowers and transported to the hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, his rescue team took the opportunity to point out some of the mistakes this group of hikers made, and remind all hikers of the following safety advice:
- Always hike with a partner – if your partner wants to turn back, go with them.
- Pack some bright clothing to make yourself searchable.
- Remember to pack the 10 hiking essentials in your daypack, including a light source to attract rescuers' attention.
In this case, they believe that if the hiker hadn't had the good fortune to regain cell service, and remain conscious, it would have been some time before teams made it to his location.
The Facebook post garnered some well wishes from the public, with one user suggesting the man also make some big life changes when he recovers, writing: "I'm so sorry you had to hike alone. That is not OK. I hope you recover quickly from your long hike and find a new job."
