Rescue on the Ridge

On Sunday, August 17^th, 2014 our boss, Terry, invited us to hike with him in Lamar Valley so we could see some of Yellowstone’s standing petrified trees.  It was a beautiful sunny day, so we grabbed our packs, walking sticks and sun screen and prepared for another great day of Yellowstone adventuring.

The hike was steep. There were a couple of parts of the trail where we almost had to crawl up using our walking sticks and holding on to trees…but once we got past the first steady incline, the views were stunning.  We reached the top of the ridge and continued making our way further into the backcountry to the area where the petrified trees were standing.

We were just hiking and talking… and that is when James asked the magic question; “What happens if someone gets hurt up here? How do they get them out?”  Of course with his background in the Fire Service and training in particular, he was naturally curious about rescue operations. Little did we know, that we were about to experience a backcountry rescue firsthand.

We made our way to the standing petrified trees. They were truly amazing to see. After taking some photos and a break. Terry invited James to hike further down the hillside to see some trees that were not visible from the trail.  It was a very steep hillside, so I decided (being the cautious one) that I would stay behind and wait for the guys to hike down and take some pictures.

I sat and enjoyed the amazing view. I took some pictures of my own and watched some hawks and ravens in flight until the guys returned. When they got back, we gathered our packs and headed back to the trail for the return hike.  We made our way down the trail stopping to take pictures and look at the stumps of petrified trees on the hillside.

My View of the Valley 

Heading back on the trail after a great hike!

And that’s when it happened. 

I lost my footing on some loose rocks…slipped and fell. I came down hard on my right leg. POP!  I lay on the ground writhing in pain.  As I came to my senses I knew something was terribly wrong. We waited a few moments to see if it was just the shock of the fall.   James tried to splint my foot using a camp shovel and some gauze, to see if I could hike down.  But the pain was too great. I knew that the bone was broken…and that the steepest part of the hike was ahead. So we needed to get help.

James, being a paramedic, decided it would be best if he stayed with me in case I passed-out or showed signs of shock etc. So, Terry, our boss, hiked down the trail to the road to call for the rangers.
 

I lay on the ground on the exposed ridge with the wind blowing and the sun beating down. As I watched him hike down the trail out of sight, the severity of the situation started to become real.  The view that minutes ago was stunningly beautiful—now seemed to be filled with danger. What if a Bison herd were to walk up on us? Or a Bear?  What if the whipping wind brought in a thunderstorm? James and I were alone on a remote exposed ridge. The road was just a tiny line in the valley that we needed binoculars to see and it would be hours before help could arrive.

James started going through our packs to get us ready for the long wait.  First he gave me some Ibuprofin, then we put on some sunscreen to help protect us from the beating sun, and then he pulled out our rain jackets to help protect us from the whipping wind. I dragged myself to a nearby rock, and James used the pants from our raingear to cushion my back against the rock so that I could sit up. The waves of pain would come and go, and waves of fear would come and go, and all the while James would calmly keep me focused on my breathing and drinking water.  With the binoculars he could see Terry calling for help from the parking area and the entourage of ranger vehicles arriving from all directions. 

Help had arrived.

The first two rangers, a paramedic and EMT Team, hiked up the ridge in record time to reach us.  They began treatment right away.  The pain medicine provided a welcome relief from the waves of pain that would have me almost in tears. As they treated me on the ridge, Rangers started appearing from all directions on the ridge. They took a variety of trails to determine what the best option would be for getting me off the ridge.  After careful study and deliberation they decided that the best option would be to call for air transport. 

The amazing team of rangers that hiked up to help me!

With air transport on the way, they moved me into a rescue basket.  The ridge were I had fallen would not be a good place for the helicopter to land so they prepared to carry me to the next hill once the chopper arrived.

The 20 minute flight went smoothly and soon I was at the Bozeman Hospital and being prepped for surgery. The flight nurse and medic were terrific.  And even with the pain in my leg, it was hard not to marvel at the views of Yellowstone from above as we flew over the park, Paradise Valley and into Bozeman.

The X-rays had determined that I had a Tib/Fib Fracture that would require surgery to correct. A plate and eleven screws were attached to my Tibia to correct the diagonal fracture that completely severed the bone.  The Fibula was also fractured, but surgery was not needed. It would heal with time.

After I was flown out of the Lamar Valley, James made the hike down the ridge.  Terry, who had hiked down for help, was waiting in the parking area to drive James back to camp. We are very grateful to him for getting help so quickly and for helping us through this ordeal.

Once he arrived at camp, James grabbed some items and set out on the three hour drive to Bozeman. He arrived at the hospital while I was still in surgery.  The staff allowed him to wait in my room until the surgery was over. After such a harrowing day, it was wonderful to see him as I woke up from the anesthesia.

I am ever grateful to the amazing team of Yellowstone NPS Rangers for rescuing me from the ridge, and I am ever grateful to my wonderful husband who helped me through every step of this experience and continues to help me heal and get better every day.