Late last night, Chaffee County Search and Rescue-South assisted with an injured hiker on Mt. Shavano at around 12,800 feet.
The hiker was unable to descend after summiting the peak yesterday evening.
Search and Rescue South responded with a team of 2 members who hiked up the trail with warm layers for the possibly injured subject and her husband.
The team reached the subjects around 12:45 am and found them shivering and out of water. After providing warm layers, water and assessing the possibly injured party, no obvious injury was found but the subject was unable to bear weight descending.
The male subject was assisted back down the trail, while the female subject was safely transported by AIR REACH Helicopter to Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center at around 1:45 am this morning.
Chaffee County Search and Rescue reminds hikers in the Southern Sawatch Range that though daytime temperatures are warm and inviting, temps are still falling below freezing above treeline overnight. Snowfields that may have been easy to traverse in the morning or afternoon can quickly turn to ice as the sun sets. Always be prepared with extra layers, food, water and headlamps, flashlights.
