A particularly risky shoulder season in the mountains continues as North Shore Rescue saved a woman who slipped and injured herself near St. Mark’s Summit on Sunday.
The team was called to the Howe Sound Crest Trail around 4:30 p.m.
“At the time, we knew she had a back injury and was unable to walk,” said Dave Barnett, search manager. “Whenever you have a back injury and someone’s in that kind of pain and can’t move, we take an abundance of caution.”
Barnett called for a Talon Helicopter and a flight team, including one of North Shore Rescue’s volunteer doctors.
It was a relatively simple operation to lower the team down to her for a medical assessment, load her into a stretcher and fly everyone out, Barnett said. By the time they handed the woman over to BC Ambulance Service paramedics at the Cap Gate SAR station, it did not appear she had any serious spinal injuries, Barnett said.
Spring tends to be a busy time for mountain search and rescue teams as people enjoying warm weather at sea level underestimate the amount of snow and ice they’ll encounter on the trails at higher elevations.
Meteorological conditions with freezing temperatures at night and warm temperatures during the day make that snow especially slippery.
“Don’t assume the snow is gone. There is still snow up in the higher elevations, so people should be prepared,” Barnett said. “When the sun warms that snow or ice in the mornings, these trails can get really slippery, so micro spikes and poles are very useful.”
On April 20, a 28-year-old woman fell to her death after she slipped on a steep slope on Mount Seymour. The weekend before, North Shore Rescue was called to the same Mount Strachan cliff ledge four times, all for people who slipped.
The woman rescued on Sunday was lucky the weather was co-operating, Barnett said, adding that thanks are owed to Talon and the paramedics who were critical in getting the woman to hospital as quickly and as safely as possible.
“Had there been cloud, she could have been there overnight so hikers should be prepared to be staying longer than they might plan on being out,” he said.
The Howe Sound Crest Trail is a popular destination for hikers because it has a reputation for being relatively easy, but it is the second most frequent location for rescues in all of B.C., according to the team.
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