An Adventure : Packing Howdt

Part 4 of the series

The search and rescue came onto the scene about another hour later. Eight volunteers arrived to transfer the old poet to a wheeled stokes board and pack him over the narrow trails. The device acts like a cart, where the patient is strapped down and rolled/lifted to the destination. The steepness of the path made the crew shift the number of people carrying from time to time.

A decision was made to take an extra two mile hike rather than to try to cross the river at the parking area. Both the ambulance and the search & rescue rig were alerted to the move by walkie talkie. The old poet was sedated and the crew slowly made their way to the rigs.

At this point, lemme and the cosmic sailor took off down the road. About an hour into the drive, the ambulance flashed by, so that we were able to meet them at the hospital. The old poet was battered by the experience, a full six hours between the fall and getting to the care. They stabilized his condition, updated the meds and then began the wait for the medical doctors to do their part.

In all, there were 16 people involved professionally in the team that took the old poet off the mountain. The barriers to access caused a long delay by extending the packing time - if there was a way of crossing the river, the total time would have been four hours shorter. The crews that came out did their best, err on the side of caution was the motto as things were done totally by the book.

Wilderness rescue does not happen often enough to justify the costs of having all the necessary supplies on-hand locally. The time delays are part of the cost of doing business. By the time lemme got home at 11:00 pm, the events of the day had him tuckered howdt. The old poet seemed okay in his hospital bed - but that is a tale of a different adventure.