Hiker Left Behind on Mountain During Office Retreat

A group of office workers left for Mount Shavano’s summit on Friday morning, but only 14 returned.

According to the Chaffee County Search and Rescue Team, one individual was left behind on the summit and was forced to endure high winds and freezing rain as a strong storm passed through the area. He also fell dozens of times while trying to leave the mountain.

Search and rescue officials said the group of hikers were on a work retreat and had left the trail at sunrise on Friday morning, with one group heading up the mountain’s saddle and another trying to reach the summit.

After reaching the summit at approximately 11:30 a.m., however, one member of the group became disoriented while descending after realizing that the belongings they were using as trail markers had been removed.

Still, he tried his best to descend the mountain. However, he quickly got turned around and found himself on the northeast slopes. He immediately sent his location to the rest of the group, who had already descended down the mountain.

He was told that he was on the wrong route and that he would have to climb back up the slope to get back on the proper trail.

At approximately 3:30 p.m., the hiker who was left behind reached the correct trail. He subsequently notified his coworkers that he was back on course. Before he could descend, however, a strong storm hit the area with high winds and freezing rains, which caused him to veer off course. He also lost signal on his phone.

After waiting for several hours, the rest of the group, who had descended the mountain, notified local search and rescue teams.

The team arrived at around 9 p.m. and immediately began to search the area, working from the lost hiker’s last known location.

Due to the stormy weather, it was difficult for the search and rescue teams to reach the summit. The dispatched helicopter was also unable to find the lost hiker from the sky.

The following morning, additional search and rescue teams joined the operation.

Fortunately, the missing hiker eventually regained enough cell service to dial 911. He was subsequently located in a gully below Espirit Point, according to officials. He told rescue workers that he had fallen dozens of times while trying to escape the mountain and that he was unable to get back up after his most recent fall.

The man was successfully extracted from the gully and taken to the hospital after being stabilized. The extent of his injuries have not been made public.

Search and research officials said the man was ‘phenomenally lucky’ to have regained cell service when he did and was still able to call 911 after withstanding so many injuries. Without his call, they believe it would have taken them much longer to determine his location.