Mt Whitney Zone Forums Trip Reports Harrowing Day Trip 7/29/11

Frediver,

You are right, you weren't there. I was with the group that called the Sheriff on 7.29.11.

Our intentions were to inform a party off the mountain about our situation. We simply called to tell them that we were with 15+ hikers that were stuck at the Lone Pine Creek crossing and most had appropriate clothing, food, shelter, etc but that there were 3 day hikers who were completely soaked through with no shelter or change of clothes. Myself and the other 4 I was with had decided to take them in if we needed to stay the night on the trail. We didn't expect rescue as most of us were prepared to stay the night, if needed.
As a SCUBA instructor and trained rescuer, I understand completely that you are always number one and before attempting any rescue, you must first assess the situation to see if you are even able to conduct the rescue. No one was late for work or expecting an immediate rescue. It was more of an informative call, especially after a young man had just run down the hill staing his father was "dying of hypothermia" and barely made it across the raging stream with no pack and one pole.

For the record, I had the following on my person:
-A full first aid kit including 2 space blankets
-Food for 2 people for 2 days
-32oz of water
-Jetboil stove with a large and full canister of fuel
-Completely dry clothing for 2 days as my pack was covered with a duck cover
-3 season tent
-Stormproof matches, emergency mirror and headlamp with 2 sets of extra batteries.

We were more than prepared for staying the night on the trail. Thank you for your obvious concern.