Dehydrated Hiker on Skyline Airlifted to hospital

[Cy Kaicener]

A dehydrated hiker was airlifter to hospital at the 4000 ft level on Skyline today. I bet he had a late start.
http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a ... 1/80517003

He should have been at least half way before the sun came out, or better still waited for a cooler day.

[Perry]

I did Skyline this morning, and it was rough. Warmer than I expected, even with a 6:46 am start.

[KathyW]

Sounds like it was pretty warm out there today, National Weather Service's Palm Springs forecast is pretty warm for tomorrow too:

...NEAR RECORD BREAKING HEAT WILL CONTINUE SUNDAY..

STRONG HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT WILL CONTINUE TO BRING NEAR RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURES TO MANY AREAS AGAIN ON SUNDAY. HIGHS WILL BE NEAR 100
DEGREES IN THE VALLEYS AND FOOTHILLS...AND NEAR 110 IN THE LOWER
DESERTS. THE COOLEST WEATHER WILL BE IN THE MOUNTAINS ABOVE 6000
FEET AND ALONG THE IMMEDIATE COAST WHERE HIGHS WILL BE IN THE MID
70S TO MID 80S.

PEOPLE PLANNING OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES SHOULD TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION
THE VERY HIGH TEMPERATURES AND ADJUST ACTIVITIES ACCORDINGLY. AVOID
PHYSICAL EXERTION DURING THE HOTTEST PART OF THE DAY. WEAR LOOSE
FITTING LIGHT WEIGHT CLOTHING AND DRINK PLENTY OF WATER. TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF SHADE AND AIR CONDITIONING IF AVAILABLE. NEVER LEAVE
PEOPLE OR PETS IN ENCLOSED AUTOMOBILES. THE HOT...DRY WEATHER WILL
ALSO INCREASE THE FIRE WEATHER HAZARD.

[Whitney Mike]

A small group of mine and I will be doing C2C on May 31st. To allow plenty of time to reach the summit, and mainly to avoid the extreme heat, is why we will be leaving the museum at 12:30am. As Cy mentions, you want to be well up in elevation by sunrise to avoid the high temperatures. With our planned start, we should arrive at Flat Rock a little after sunrise. Whitney Mike

[halhiker]

I know it's often tough for people to change plans but if it gets as hot as it was this past weekend do everyone a favor and go somewhere else. There are plenty of hiking options around. I don't get this dedication to doing this trail when the conditions are (edit: NOT right) . I won't climb a mountain when avalanche conditions make the ascent too risky so why should anyone try to do this trail when the heat is extreme?

When the temperatures are over 110 the low is often over 80 and it can be over 95 at midnight. The hike is not fun in those conditions and it's not going away so why not come back another time?

[scottmac]

Weather forecast later this week - high/low - in Palm Springs:
Thursday: 82/62, Friday: 80/61, Saturday: 83/61.

[halhiker]

Weather forecast later this week - high/low - in Palm Springs:
Thursday: 82/62, Friday: 80/61, Saturday: 83/61.

THIS will be a good weekend to go!

[FIGHT ON]

I know it's often tough for people to change plans but if it gets as hot as it was this past weekend do everyone a favor and go somewhere else. There are plenty of hiking options around. I don't get this dedication to doing this trail when the conditions are right. I won't climb a mountain when avalanche conditions make the ascent too risky so why should anyone try to do this trail when the heat is extreme?

When the temperatures are over 110 the low is often over 80 and it can be over 95 at midnight. The hike is not fun in those conditions and it's not going away so why not come back another time?

halhiker



Joined: 16 Oct 2006
Posts: 193
Location: La Quinta, CA

PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:13 pm Post subject: Safety is so boring. Reply with quote
A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.
Lao Tzu

The more you know, the less you need.
Yvon Chounaird

Maybe I enjoy tempting fate but I don't have enough foresight to do check lists and such because I almost never really know where I'm going until I start going. Even then my plans change depending on what I find and how much my curiosity leads me astray. I also never take more than five of the ten essentials. What I do carry, though, is an intimate knowledge of the wilderness and a wealth of experience in all climates. Sure, there are times when I've froze my ass of because I didn't want the weight of a tent or when I stumbled out in the dark because I was dehydrated but that's part of the adventure.

I think a lot of this talk about safety is on account of Ellen's mishap and that's good but people knew where Ellen was, she used her skills, knowledge and will to survive an incredible ordeal. The one thing she could have possibly done differently is to have a partner along and she tried to get one. OK, she could have brought a phone.

Don't get my wrong. I'm all about being safe. I have a beautiful wife and two wonderful kids I want to come home to every night. I own a minivan. But there's a certain pull that draws me toward going places that no one else goes and going places within myself that I've never been. To go to those places I have chosen to accept a certain amount of uncertainty and travel light. And maybe, just maybe, it's not the places I go but the risk--and overcoming it-- that's my biggest reward.

All this talk about safety is making me want to move to a country club and live behind a guarded gate. And it's making me sleepy.

How about some more threads on someone's latest adventure?

I think my wife might give me her permission to have one in the coming weeks and when she does I'll let you know about it.

Good night!
Hal
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[Mountaingoat]

Dear Fight ON,

I COULDN'T AGREE MORE WITH WHAT YOU SAID, AND YOUR WRITING IS AWESOME AS WELL.

BERNE METTENLEITER

RANCHO BERNARDO/ SAN DIEGO

[Rick M]

HalHiker wrote

I know it's often tough for people to change plans but if it gets as hot as it was this past weekend do everyone a favor and go somewhere else. There are plenty of hiking options around. I don't get this dedication to doing this trail when the conditions are right. I won't climb a mountain when avalanche conditions make the ascent too risky so why should anyone try to do this trail when the heat is extreme?

When the temperatures are over 110 the low is often over 80 and it can be over 95 at midnight. The hike is not fun in those conditions and it's not going away so why not come back another time?

I couldn't agree more! I used to prospect in Riverside and Imperial Counties and solo hiked in the summer as part of my job but would never have considered hiking something like Skyline "for the Hell of it" in such temperatures if I didn't have too. Could I have? Sure. I've taught desert survival for years, been with desert rescue and now with mountain rescue for years. I haven't seen it all and I learn something everytime I go out. I too, will not go out during avalanche conditions or when the heat is extreme except when called out to risk it all for the rescue someone who did.

Yvon Chounaird may have said

The more you know, the less you need.

but that would have also included not going out into places or situations where survival is questionable because of what you know. I don't believe he has lived as long as he has by taking unnecessary "risks" in his climbing career and other outdoor adventures.

For the Skyline last weekend nasty conditions to have gone, this weekend great conditions to do it if you're in condition. Your decision to go or not go also affects so many others (like SAR and their families). A wise person also thinks of others and not only of themself.[/quote]