A Highly Experienced Solo Hiker Saved by SPOT in Colorado

Allison Stegner is a paleontologist, and currently is an intern for the Bureau of Land Management surveying the Bears Ears National Monument for fossils. As a paleontologist and ecologist, Allison works in remote parts of Utah and has relied on SPOT since 2013. Recently, Allison was surveying an area littered with dangerous slopes and sandstone blocks.

Jim Adkins, a pilot and avid hunter, purchased his SPOT Gen3 for hunting season so that his family could track him. Two weeks later, Jim had to use his SPOT for the one thing he hoped he would never have to. Jim was elk hunting with his son in Eastern Oregon when his son suffered an accidental gunshot wound. 

Cam Villeneuve is a recreational pilot from the Thompson Valley Sport Aircraft Club in Kamloops, BC who loves to fly year-round. He has even installed skis on his small aircraft so that he can "land everywhere, on land, on hill sides and on lakes."

In the mid-afternoon of February 1st, 2016, Villeneuve was returning to Blair Fields Airport, wrapping up a 45-minute flight. It was a beautiful sunny day and he was having fun landing and taking off from frozen lakes on the south side of Kamloops. On his approach to the landing strip, at a distance of about 3 miles, the aircraft "became very unstable and hard to control" says Villeneuve. "All of a sudden I was looking straight down at the ground from about 400 feet."

On August 12, 2016, father and son, Ed and Elias Stratton, were making a normal trip to the local lodge to get some groceries that were being delivered to the area with a friend. Traveling down the Skwentna River was a trip they had made countless times in their airboat. This particular day, they decided to visit with friends at the lodge after picking up their supplies before heading home.

Conquering the mountainous North American Pacific Crest Trail is no walk in the park, but that never stopped Deb Fuller, a 63-year-old great-grandmother of six, and her husband Rick from taking on the trek. The seasoned outdoor enthusiasts were determined to scratch the 2,650 mile trail off their bucket list. Luckily, with experience comes safety-consciousness, so the couple brought their SPOT Gen3® Satellite Messenger along for their adventure.

Alfred Moore, an outdoor aficionado from Southern California, has been riding motorcycles for four years, on average 3-5 days a week. He and seven of his buddies recently went on a three-day weekend camping trip in the Los Padres National Forest. On the second day, Alfred and one other were tailing at the end of their group when he hit a switchback in the soft sand and took a hard fall.

While elk hunting in northern New Mexico, SPOT user Larry Reeves became a part of a real-life rescue scenario when another hunter frantically reached out to him for help for his partner.  “A fellow hunter from another camp raced in to my camp saying his partner had a broken leg after being thrown from a horse.  He was going in and out of shock.”  After assessing the hunter’s injuries and wrapping his leg as best as he could, Larry realized that trying to move the injured hunter would only cause additional trauma.  With limited resources and no access to immediate medical attention, Larry knew the best option for this injured hunter was to press the SOS button on his SPOT device.

While hiking alone south along the Talgar River, Matthias Uhrlandt ran into dangerous terrain. Heavy rocks and boulders, loose sand and forceful river water were just a few of the elements fighting against Matthias. "After one day of constantly risking my life, I thought I reached a point of no return." Determined to continue on his way, Matthias trudged on, continuing his journey until he could go no farther. "I reached a big cliff, but without any equipment and a helping hand, it was absolutely impossible." Not being able to climb the difficult cliff or get to the other side of the river to safe land, Matthias was trapped.

Garrett Atkinson and a friend were hiking the Four Pass Loop near Aspen, CO separated by the trail head by over 13 miles in all directions. On the second night, Garrett spent the entire night coughing up blood and fighting his every breath. The next day he tried with all his might to walk out but continued to fall after several attempts. "I was extremely dizzy and nauseated," Garrett remembers. In that moment he knew there was no chance of making it off the trail alone and pressed the SOS button on his SPOT device.

On a Tuesday morning in June, experienced hiker Stan Reese set out on a solo 4 day hike in the mountainous area outside of San Bernardino, California. Everything was going great until day three of his hike. As Reese started to hike towards San Gorgonian Mountain, he looked over his left shoulder to the north and saw heavy smoke. Being a southern California resident, he knew that meant a wildfire had broken out and he would need to abandon his plans immediately.

While on a seven day hiking trip in Tasmania, Australia, Han Strating and his girlfriend were near New Pelion when they came across another hiker experiencing heart problems. Realizing the man was in need of serious medical attention; Han quickly pulled out his SPOT Gen3® and pressed the SOS button.

Matt Oliver and four friends picked a beautiful day for snowmobiling in Steamboat Springs, CO. They set off on their ride around 10 AM and traveled a familiar route. A few hours into their ride, they decided to take a different path back to their vehicles. The new path led them to a creek ravine and they realized they were getting into dangerous avalanche terrain. They began strategizing the best way out.