A group of alert archery hunters and satellite communications on Wednesday led to the rescue of two missing Oklahoma hikers near Bear Creek Trail.
Montezuma County Sheriff Dennis Spruell reported that 911 dispatchers received an emergency call from the father of one of the missing hikers on Tuesday as Tropical Storm Nobert moved into the area. The father indicated that the missing hikers had camping equipment, but they were not prepared for the adverse weather conditions.
“The rain was pouring down, and the weather had turned cold,” said Spruell.
Thankfully, Spruell said, the missing hikers were equipped with a Spot Locator satellite-signaling device, which spurred the cry for help. The father had been receiving periodic texts indicating the hikers were OK. Then, just before 3 p.m., the father received several texts saying, “Urgent.”
“The use of a communication device such as Spot Locator can be a lifesaver,” Spruell said.
Located in Orphan Butte near Rico, the remote Bear Creek Trail tops out at 8,748 feet above sea level. Because of adverse weather conditions, an air search was not possible, so Montezuma United Search and Rescue were activated. The walk to the location of the hikers; however, would take a minimum of four hours, said Spruell.
To help facilitate the search, Spruell reached out to crews who recovered the body of avalanche victim Rob Yates this year. A short time later, Spruell said a Yates family member notified him that archery hunters were in the area of the missing hikers.
“The outfitter was contacted, who was able to communicate with his hunter’s base camp,” Spruell explained. “They were asked to be on the lookout for the hikers.”
The hunters reported seeing the hikers earlier in the day, and they indicated the hikers appeared healthy but not properly dressed for inclement weather.
At about 5:30 p.m., Spruell received a call the hunters had located the hikers, who were returned to the hunter’s base camp.
“Other than being very cold, they were reported as being OK,” said Spruell.
tbaker@cortezjournal.com