A Victoria man who had been stranded since Christmas Day at the trailhead to the Comox Glacier was rescued by helicopter Tuesday, Dec. 27.
“This was a fellow who was planning on hiking the glacier, three different peaks, and really bit off more than he could chew, given the weather conditions,” said Paul Berry, manager/president of Comox Valley Ground Search and Rescue. “He got part way up on the glacier trail and found it too difficult to proceed, so he returned back to where his vehicle was.”
But the man was stuck because his vehicle was snowed in and high-centred, and there was no cell phone coverage.
“He pushed his personal locator beacon yesterday (Tuesday), and we responded to it.”
Berry said the man was prepared in terms of equipment — he had a tent — but not in terms of weather conditions, noting high winds on Boxing Day.
A total of 17 CVGSAR members were dispatched Tuesday around 1:30 p.m., most searching by snowmobile. But it was the helicopter team that located the man around 4 p.m.
“In the mountains, devices can reflect off of hillsides,” Berry said. “There was about a six-kilometre difference between where he said he was located and where he was ultimately located.”