A Montana man with a penchant for challenging himself in Glacier National Park's backcountry is developing a growing reputation with park rangers...for seemingly biting off more than he can chew.
Richard Layne's latest adventure in the park entailed a wintry trek from the Polebridge Ranger Station into the backcountry, past Bowman Lake, through Boulder Pass, past Kintla Lake, and out the Inside North Fork Road to Big Prairie, according a park release. The 59-year-old's trip started May 10th, and he planned to be picked up by his wife on May 20th.
Mr. Layne told his wife to contact park rangers if he had not surfaced by May 25th. And she did.
"Most of these areas are in still in winter condition with extreme hazards," park spokeswoman Ellen Blickhan said. "Due to an impending change in weather expected on Thursday, rangers contracted Minute Man Aviation to fly Layne’s route. From the helicopter, rangers spotted tracks in the snow going over Boulder Pass that were consistent with human travel.
"In the afternoon Layne was spotted near Upper Kintla Lake waving his red jacket at the helicopter. Rangers retrieved him and brought him out of the backcountry, uninjured but very tired," she said.
While these arduous snowshoe treks are not new for Mr. Layne, who carries backpacks weighing upwards of 100 pounds, they are not recommended by park officials due to their ambitious nature in challenging conditions, said Ms. Blickhan.
“This is not the first time that Layne has been reported overdue,” said Incident Commander Gary Moses. “We are very glad for the successful resolution of the search and that Mr. Layne was uninjured. While he nearly completed his intended trip, the number of days he was overdue, the route itself through extensive avalanche terrain, the approaching weather front, and his history prompted our immediate response upon notification from his wife.”
Comments
Doesn't that kind of trek require permits issued by the park? I would think that on repeated incidents of this type that the park could refuse to issue the permit and prevent him from attempting this type of trip.r
While it is general policy not to charge parties for being rescued in the parks, park officials do have the prerogative to seek reimbursement, depending on the circumstances. Offhand, I can't think of any instances where they did.
In a canyoneering news group, someone raised the idea of the NPS charging a fee that's essentially SAR insurance. It apparently works well in Europe. If NPS charged a (hypothetical) $20 insurance fee for every hike that required a permit, it would at least make a dent in the SAR costs and would be underwritten by those most likely to require SAR services.
Our country is now a Debtor Nation largely due to military budgets and wars we
should/hopefully will learn to avoid. We are selling off our country at a rate of at least
one $billion per day to purchase oil we often waste to fuel energy inefficient vehicles.
Given the low priority of park budgets especially among Tea Party Republicans, it
is only common sense to charge all users of extreme outdoor activities a high annual rate
for potential insurance rescue costs which are often in the tens of thousands
of dollars. The NPS ranger establishment prefers not to charge simply to justify their
positions devoted for rescues, but our national dollar debt reality is finally overwhelming
that internal bureaucratic bais.
AnonD -- that sounds like a very good idea.
"The NPS ranger establishment prefers not to charge simply to justify their
positions devoted for rescues..." Amazing that someone would believe and say that.
Rick
As far as I know, nobody is specifically paid to be search and rescue personnel. I thought at NPS sites, it's typically volunteer assignments among NPS personnel as well as local law enforcement and private citizens. For example, Yosemite NP doesn't have its own helicopter. Whenever I hear about a helicopter rescue, it's either from the local sheriff department or the California Highway Patrol.
Most NPS personnel get paid to participate in Search and Rescue unless they are told beforehand that there is no budget for them. Most of the Park Rangers I know jump at any chance to make some extra money and help out someone in need. As far as Yosemite is concerned, there are a ton of paid SAR personnel, even if they have to bring in a helicopter from elsewhere for an evac.