Golden Ears hiker ‘lucky to be alive’ after 200 foot fall: SAR

A hiker who fell more than 200 feet from the summit of Golden Ears on Sunday is “lucky to be alive” according to rescue teams.

Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue Search Manager Richard Laing says the woman managed to make it out with minor injuries after her fall.

“If the snow had been more compact and at all icy, she would’ve slid considerably more distance … it would have been enough to either cause her or significant trauma or kill her,” he said.

Laing explains that the woman and her hiking partner were following old flagging tape up into a steep snowy area when she slipped, tumbled over rocks, and went airborne before clinging to a patch of snow to stop her slide.

He says the hikers were well-prepared and had a satellite device that provided rescue teams with their exact location.

“We were able to plan right away for the type of rescue we were going to do, which was a long-line rescue,” Laing said.

Members Ridge Meadows and Coquitlam Search and Rescue worked together and used Talon Helicopters to airlift the hikers off the mountain and the woman was taken to hospital via air ambulance.

Laing says the woman escaped with minor injuries despite the distance she fell from, adding that this is a good example of hikers who were prepared and suffered a scary accident.

He says the pair were fairly well-equipped with their satellite device along with the right gear and clothing, and that preparedness is something he stresses for anyone heading out for this kind of excursion.