North Shore Rescue recovers injured hiker from Coliseum Mountain trail

A hiker was rescued from a popular North Shore trail late Sunday afternoon after she slipped and sustained multiple injuries.

The experienced hiker, a woman in her 50s, was on a trail leading to Coliseum Mountainwith a friend when she fellabout five metres, resulting in a head injury anda broken wrist.

North Shore Rescue said they received the callshortlyafter 4:30 p.m. PT from someonewho had come across the injured hiker.

"It's an accident. They didn't do anything wrong," saidNorth Shore Rescue Search ManagerJeffYarnold.

"It happens all the time out there ... That's what we're here for."

'You can't rely on your cellphone'

Yarnold said it was difficult to find the woman on the steep, rugged trail. The passer-by who called them had rushed down to Norvan Falls to get cellphonereception.

"That's a challenge we have back there is people travelling just with cellphones for communication," said Yarnold.

"You can't rely on a cellphone back there, you're in the wilderness and there's no cell coverage."

Yarnoldrecommends personal safety beacons instead, as they allow rescue teams to pinpoint a person'sexact location.

He said the rescue team waslucky to have found the hiker before dark, thereby avoiding a more complicated recovery.

"If not, it would have turned this into a lengthy, lengthy ground rescue for her," said Yarnold.

Once the hiker was located, she was taken by helicopterto an ambulance waiting nearby.

Yarnold said it's been a busy holiday weekend for the team; on Saturday four rescue operations kept them busy until midnight.