Oct. 19, 2010-
Four hikers were rescued the same day last Friday in the Flagstaff area after a Search and Rescue Unit responded to two incidents, the Coconino County Sheriff's Office reported Tuesday.
The first call came in at 4:45 p.m. after two hikers reported they had lost the trail and had become disoriented. They started out at the Kachina Trailhead at Snowbowl and hiked their way toward the Weatherford Trail. The pair contacted 911 after they lost the trail on their return to the trailhead.
Search and Rescue volunteers were able to locate both hikers in good condition near First Gully and assisted them back to the trailhead.
According to a sheriff's press release, the second pair of hikers called 911 around 8 p.m. after they also could not find their way back to the trailhead and became disoriented.
Those hikers started out at Aspen Pike on Snowbowl Road. A deputy sheriff on Hart Prairie Road was patrolling the area when he used his siren and emergency lights to catch the hikers' attention. The hikers were then assisted by the deputy and Search and Rescue personnel to their vehicle on Snowbowl Road.
The Search and Rescue Unit urges hikers to be prepared for changing conditions, adding that there are areas in northern Arizona that do not have cellphone coverage. They recommend that hikers let someone know where they are going and what they will be doing so a search can be conducted if they do not return.
Question #1: Where is "Aspen Pike" on Snowbowl Road?
Question #2: How the pumpkin do you "lose" the Kachina Trail short of having a vision disability or a pretty good substance-abuse problem? Either way, hike downhill until you hit the Freidlein Prairie road. That trail is like pumpkin I-17!! This is not a situation that should require an emergency call.
I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.
Because of the nature of our biz and the fact we've had our gallery 41 years now, we do know a few folks that occupy their time doing such things, legally and otherwise.
Please understand my wife and I do not condone this activity, nor do we deal in prehistorics. So because of our network with many different folks the scuttlebutt came up more than once. We've all tried to wrap our heads around the fact that their story of why they were there was extremely weak, but never brought up in depth. Just that they got lost servicing soda pop machines.
@Alston NealMy comment wasn't directed at you, if that's what prompted your response. I recall your earlier discussion on this topic, so I didn't think anything was amiss in your doings.
Oh I know you didn't direct it to me, so thanks for posting that. Some folks believe that because we deal in Native art and like to hike to sites we're pot hunters. So I just don't want any misunderstanding from other members.
Thanks Mr. Load.
joe bartels wrote:judgement skills deteriorate quickly
This can't be emphasized enough. Most people cope fairly well with difficulty in their everyday lives, but loose their judgment altogether when the chips are down in an unfamiliar environment.
We in the western world have generally lost all ability to cope with the environment around us when taken away from technology and infrastructure. Many of these people strike me as standing there waiting for a magical voice to say: "in twenty steps, turn left for trail" just like their car does, etc.
joe bartels wrote:judgement skills deteriorate quickly
This can't be emphasized enough. Most people cope fairly well with difficulty in their everyday lives, but loose their judgment altogether when the chips are down in an unfamiliar environment.
We in the western world have generally lost all ability to cope with the environment around us when taken away from technology and infrastructure. Many of these people strike me as standing there waiting for a magical voice to say: "in twenty steps, turn left for trail" just like their car does, etc.
You'd be surprised how it is not all that uncommon for people to believe that relatively easy things in the "wilds" of our country are incredible feats or next to impossible.
joe bartels wrote:judgement skills deteriorate quickly
This can't be emphasized enough. Most people cope fairly well with difficulty in their everyday lives, but loose their judgment altogether when the chips are down in an unfamiliar environment.
We in the western world have generally lost all ability to cope with the environment around us when taken away from technology and infrastructure. Many of these people strike me as standing there waiting for a magical voice to say: "in twenty steps, turn left for trail" just like their car does, etc.
You'd be surprised how it is not all that uncommon for people to believe that relatively easy things in the "wilds" of our country are incredible feats or next to impossible.
Very true; I've encountered it even among relatively educated and worldly people...
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