1. WWW.SLTRIB.COM Sunday, June 14, 2015 « UTAH & NATION A11
rescue in Pine Creek. A rescuer
on the opposite side of the can-
yonfiredtheropeoutofacannon
—kindofliketheT-shirtcannon
mascotsshootatsportingevents
— so rescuers could string a line
across the canyon and descend
tothepeoplebelow.
There are no quick searches
andrescuesinslotcanyons.
“Ifonegrouphastoberescued,”
O’Neilsaid,“thatmeansit’sgoing
tobedifficultforustogooutona
secondsignificantrescue.”
—
Preventive measures •The
parkserviceistryingtohelpyou
beforeyouneedhelp.
NearthebottomofPineCreek,
thereisanewanchorboltdrilled
into the rock. O’Neil said rang-
ersfoundsomecanyoneerswere
hurting themselves when they
jumped the last 6 feet down to
the bottom of the canyon. The
anchor was placed there so the
adventurerscanrappelthefinal
fewfeet.
Zion has taken other steps
tokeepvisitorssafe.O’Neilsaid
rangersinthepark’sbackcountry
programrecentlystartedspend-
inghalftheirtimeinthefieldand
theotherhalfatthedeskwhere
hikersgetbackcountrypermits.
Thatensuresrangersareknowl-
edgeable when people ask ques-
tions,O’Neilsaid,andcanwarn
visitorsofanydangers.
On a recent Friday, three
brothers and a fourth man pre-
paredtodescendintoPineCreek.
Astheywereputtingontheirgear,
arangerapproachedandaskedto
seethepermit.Thepermitwasin
order, but the ranger also made
sure the group had the prop-
ersafetyequipment.Afterafew
minutes, the canyoneers began
theirdescent.
Heggie calls such proactive
measures“preventivesearchand
rescue.”Thenotionisbecoming
morepopularintheparkservice.
Henotesinitiativessuchassigns
at the Grand Canyon warning
visitors what it will cost if a he-
licopterhastoflythemtoahos-
pital, or the blog started by the
search-and-rescue unit at Yo-
semite.
More has to be done, Heggie
said. He points to the Old Wag-
onTrailinCapitolReefNational
Park.It’sarelativelymodesttrail
in terms of distance and eleva-
tion.But,Heggiesaid,theplaceis
poorlymarkedandpeoplegetlost
onit.Thetrailneedsmoresigns.
Visitors also need more ed-
ucation on what the trails con-
tainandwhatittakestotraverse
them, Heggie said. In an exam-
ination of search-and-rescue
operations from 2003 through
2006,Heggieandhisco-author
found errors in judgment were
the most common reason peo-
pleranintotrouble(24percent),
followedbyfatigue(20percent).
While prevention might re-
ducethenumberofsearchesand
rescues,theproblemisn’tgoing
tobesolved.Youaremakingtoo
manymistakes.
Heggie’s research found 22
percent of everyone rescued in
theparkswereconsidered“saves.”
Inotherwords,theywouldhave
diedwithouthelpfromthepark
service.
So be warned: Your best res-
cuerisyou,andthedecisionsyou
make can get you into or keep
yououtofdanger.
ncarlisle@sltrib.com
Twitter:@natecarlisle
Continued from BLUNDERS, A10
Tips for staying safe in the na-
tional parks and the outdoors:
• Don’t overexert yourself and do
not let others overexert.
• Stay on marked trails.
• Wear shoes or boots with thick
soles and ankle support.
• Avoid jumps, even if it’s only a
few feet.
• Carry a supply of water even if
you’re not going far.
• Avoid being out in the rain and
lightning.
• If on a river or lake, wear life jack-
ets and follow proper boating pro-
cedures.
• Hike, boat or swim with other
people.
• Carry a cellphone, but don’t ex-
pect to have service if you have an
emergency.
• Do not get close to ledges, and
never walk backward toward a
ledge.
• Read each park’s wildlife litera-
ture and warnings.
• Never feed wildlife.
Safety measures cut deadly
descents at Angels Landing
Zion National Park •
Cheetah Platt works as an ac-
robat, but he’s hardly fearless.
Before he decided to hike
Angels Landing, he read ma-
terials online and the liter-
ature provided by Zion Na-
tional Park. They described
the plateau at the end provid-
ing spectacular views of the
park and southwest Utah,
but also the 1,500-foot eleva-
tion gain and the trail’s cliffs
and a narrow ridge near the
top.
When Platt and his fami-
ly hiked Angels Landing last
month, he was surprised.
“The chains up at the last
5 percent [of the trail] make
it really safe for any kind of
an athletic person,” said Platt,
who has worked for Cirque
du Soleil, Disney and Para-
mount Pictures, “and I was
impressed by the wide range
of people who were able to
complete the hike.”
Platt and his wife, Rhiann,
tweeted a photo from Angels
Landing in which he is hold-
ing her vertically and upside
down.
It was a glamorous pho-
to for a hike with a bad rep-
utation. The magazine Out-
side last year named Angels
Landing one of the deadliest
trails in the world.
That reputation is getting
a makeover. Angels Landing
has gone five years without a
death.
Safety began to im-
prove in 2011. That spring,
the National Park Service
erected a sign near the
trailhead warning Angels
Landing hikers — or would-
be hikers — that six people
have died from falls on the
trail since 2004.
“The route is not rec-
ommended,” the sign says,
“during high winds, storms,
or if snow or ice is present.”
The park service also in-
stalled more chains, which
hikers can grip like a stair-
way railing as they walk.
The park service also carved
more steps in the rock.
Ray O’Neil, a district rang-
er in Zion National Park, said
it seemed as if hikers were
too casual near cliffs. “We’re
trying to get people to recog-
nize the dangers of a misstep.”
The improvements may
provide a lesson for the rest
of the National Park Service,
said Travis Heggie, an asso-
ciate professor in the Tour-
ism, Leisure, & Event Plan-
ning Program at Bowling
Green University. Heggie has
delved into park service data
and published papers on ac-
cidents and searches and res-
cues in national parks. His
papers have urged the agency
to adopt a prevention strate-
gy.
Heggie likes the idea of
warning signs and railings.
“Anything that will prevent
it from happening in the first
place,” he said, “because it is
a lot more effective” than re-
trieving someone later.
The last recorded death
on the Angels Landing trail
was Regine Milobedzki, 63,
of Upland, Calif. She fell
from Scout Lookout on April
27, 2010.
O’Neil said Milobedzki
was seen sitting on the edge
of Scout Lookout. When she
stood up, O’Neil said, Mi-
lobedzki lost her balance. She
plummeted about 1,000 feet.
ncarlisle@sltrib.com
Twitter: @natecarlisle
Danger • No one has
died on the hike in
five years.
By NATE CARLISLE
The Salt Lake Tribune
AL HARTMANN | Tribune file photo
Hikers carefully pick their way down the Angels Landing
Trail, one of the premier hikes in Zion National Park — and
one of the more hazardous. Emphasis on safety and the ad-
dition of a chain along the trail have reduced injuries and
deaths.
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