Rescue Near Monkeyface Falls
Monday, September 20, 2010 at 22:28 Jeff Lehman
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Two hikers were attempting a climb of San Bernardino Peak via a ridgeline between Frustration Creek and Monkeyface Falls. One of the hikers fell several feet into some dense brush, and his partner hiked two hours out to summon help. The RP could not identify the exact location of the fall, so in the afternoon of September 13th members of San Gorgonio SAR and Valley of the Falls SAR (Team 1) were inserted at the 6800' level to begin a search downhill. Later that evening additional SAR teams responded to assist in the search, and a second team (Team 2) composed of members of the Cave & Technical Rescue Team began the climb up the hillside from Highway 38.
After an arduous climb, uphill through the heavy brush, Team 2 made voice contact with the missing hiker, and arrived on scene about one minute before Team 1, to find the missing hiker alert, but injured. A litter was ordered, and the teams began the search for an LZ for evacuation. At approximately midnight, the hiker was moved to the LZ making use of a number of tree belays. Team 2 spent the night with the hiker, and assisted in the helicopter evacuation at approximately 0700 hrs that morning. Rather than waiting an hour for the helicopter to return, they decided to hike the 40 minutes back to the highway.