Skip to content

North Shore Rescue hikes out lost mountain biker

North Shore Rescue is issuing a warning about afternoon trips to the backcountry after hiking a lost mountain biker out of the bush in the dark. North Vancouver RCMP paged the team of volunteers around 4 p.m.
nsr
North Shore Rescue

North Shore Rescue is issuing a warning about afternoon trips to the backcountry after hiking a lost mountain biker out of the bush in the dark.

North Vancouver RCMP paged the team of volunteers around 4 p.m. Sunday, alerting them to a man stuck on the edge of Mosquito Creek on Grouse Mountain.

The subject was riding the Executioner and Dream Weaver trails when he lost his way. Making the search somewhat easier, the mountain biker was armed with a cellphone and GPS system and North Shore Rescue members got to the area quickly. "Although we had voice contact, it did take quite a bit of effort to actually locate him because he was in very thick forest and he was in very steep terrain," said search manager Doug Pope. "He had taken a fall in his ordeal and he was well off-trail and lost but otherwise he was in good shape." The team loaned him a pair of hiking boots and

helped him carry his bike out, straight up the creek bank to the base of the Cut ski run. From there, Grouse staff helped the man back to civilization.

But by the time they made it out at 6:30 p.m., the sun had already set, requiring the last 30 minutes of hiking to be done with the aid of headlamps.

Backcountry adventurers need to pay closer attention to the earlier sunsets before heading out, Pope said. "It is getting darker, quicker. Make a route plan and let people know where you're going. Part of that route plan is looking at what time sunset is and planning your hike accordingly so you can get out before dark," Pope said. "That's the most frequent type of call we're getting this time of year - people starting their hike too late and then getting stuck in the dark." Headlamps and flashlights are highly recommended for anyone going into the backcountry. Night searches are more challenging and put rescuers and subjects at more risk, he added.