In mid-October, Vail Mountain Rescue (VMR) personnel along with a wild land fire crew from Eagle River Fire Protection District and a Backcountry Paramedic from Eagle County Paramedic Services rescued an injured 16-year old hunter on Grouse Mountain.
Vail Dispatch received a call around 6pm regarding an injured hunter on the north side of Grouse Mountain at an elevation of 11,900′. The on-duty Mission Coordinator was able to establish broken cell communications with the hunting party who reported a 16-year old male could not walk due to a severe back injury. The approximate location of the subject was verified with information from a SPOT Beacon and the hunting party’s cell phone position. The hunters had hiked 6.8 miles up the West Grouse Creek Trail from the Minturn trailhead. However, the VMR team planned on a much shorter alternate route, across 3.5 miles of technical terrain, from the top of Beaver Creek Ski area.
A hasty team of 11 personnel met in the base parking lots of the Beaver Creek Ski Area. The team members divided up medical supplies, a litter, a large litter wheel, a hypothermia bag, and a small cache of technical equipment. Beaver Creek Resort assisted with access through the resort to Ski Patrol Headquarters at the top of the mountain.
The team reached the subject around 11pm after a rough bushwhack through rugged terrain. His hunting buddies had placed the subject in a sleeping bag next to a fire. He was evaluated by the SAR Paramedic, provided IV pain medication, and packaged for transport in the hypothermia bag and litter. The large litter wheel was needed to aid with the evacuation due to the harsh environment. Within 30 minutes of arrival, the team and subject’s father, began a long carry out to Minturn. The team navigated to the West Grouse trail, as the direct route back to Beaver Creek was judged too rugged. A second team of 7 VMR members was organized to assist with the carry out and began their journey around midnight. After traveling by UTV as far as possible, they then hiked up West Grouse Creek to meet the main team.
The two teams joined around 3am and continued the carry out using the additional manpower. Teams of 6-8 people, with 1-2 assisting with obstacles on the trail, took turns guiding the litter until they reached the vehicles at 7am. A small team loaded the subject and his father onto the UTV and drove them to Meadow Mountain. They were then transferred to an ambulance for transport to Vail Valley Medical Center. The rest of the field team members hiked the remaining 1.5 miles of trail down to Minturn and were out of the field by 8:30am. Several members went home to catch up on sleep, some went directly to their work, and several stopped as a group for a quick breakfast.
This was a difficult mission. For several members it was a first exposure to the rigors of a long, all night, trail carry. Everyone worked together as a team, monitoring the patient and doing their best to provide a smooth ride. Even as fatigue became evident, team members worked together with a great sense of comradery to accomplish the tough mission, always with someone to step up when it was most needed.
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