Whether it was hikers who slipped into an icy couloir, someone having a medical episode in the backcountry or a trail runner who fell from a spiny ridge line known as “The Dragon,” Summit County Rescue Group was there to help in 2024.

The all-volunteer rescue group remained busy last year with 187 calls for service, Summit County Rescue Group President Ben Butler said. While less than a decade ago the rescue group received less than 100 calls per year, it has received more than 180 calls per year since about 2020, Butler said. The rescue group’s busiest year on record was 2021, when it received 217 calls for service, he said.

“The trends we’ve been seeing this year have been really similar to the last couple years, where we are seeing increased visitation, increased users in the backcountry,” Butler said. “I think folks are doing a great job communicating where they’re going and communicating when they expect to be back.”

In 2024, Summit County Rescue Group received about 50 calls involving people out day hiking, 22 calls for avalanches, between 10 and 15 non-avalanche related calls involving skiers and about 10 calls involving mountain bikers, Butler said. The 22 calls for avalanches represents a slight increase from prior years, he said. Luckily, there were no avalanche deaths in Summit County in 2024.

But anytime someone triggers an avalanche in the backcountry they should call local emergency services to report it, even if nobody was injured in the slide, Butler said. If the Summit County Rescue Group receives a report of an avalanche and doesn’t know whether someone could be trapped in it, volunteers may be dispatched into the backcountry to investigate whether someone could’ve been buried in it, he said.

“Summit County Rescue Group appreciates it when people call into dispatch either via the non-emergency number or 911 to let dispatch know that they were involved in an incident and hopefully everyone is OK,” Butler said. “It’s really helpful for us to know that folks were involved in an incident, they’re OK, and there’s no need for a response.”

Year ends with technical rescue

The Summit County Rescue Group ended 2024 assisting with a technical rescue in Park County, where an ice climber had injured themselves in a fall in a climbing spot known as Lincoln Fall, Butler said.

Around 11 a.m., Dec. 26, Summit County Rescue Group received the call for assistance in Park County. The ice climber, who was “pretty seriously injured,” had fallen on one of the main ice flows but was still at least one rope length off the ground, Butler said.

A good Samaritan who had been climbing the same spot was able to help lower the injured individual from where he had fallen to where first responders were waiting with a toboggan, Butler said. From there, Summit County Rescue Group helped lower the ice climber another 800 feet, he said.

“We ran the top two rope stations to lower him down through snowy, willow-covered, boulder-covered terrain and then — closer to the bottom — a team from Park County was able to take over,” Butler said. “It was some difficult terrain to navigate through, but we moved as quickly and efficiently as we could with safety in mind.”

When the injured individual reached the bottom, he was loaded into a Utility Terrain Vehicle that brought him to an ambulance that was waiting nearby, Butler said. Park County Search and Rescue, Flight for Life, South Park Ambulance District, North-West Fire Protection District and Red, White & Blue Fire Protection District also assisted.

Butler noted that the toboggan that rescuers loaded the man into had been donated over 20 years ago and left at the ice climbing spot, saving rescuers time and getting the injured party assistance faster. 

After the rescue, another ice climber who was on scene started a GoFundMe that raised money to replace the old toboggan with a new rescue litter. The fundraiser also raised money for a litter at the Vail Amphitheater, and the balance of the funds were donated to Park County Search and Rescue to share with Summit County Rescue Group, according to a Facebook post in the Colorado Ice Climbing group.

Satellite technology helped rescuers in busy year

In 2024, Butler said the Summit County Rescue Group saw an increase in satellite communication devices being used in the backcountry. In a handful of rescues throughout the year, satellite devices such as Garmin InReach and the ZOLEO satellite communicator allowed backcountry travelers to reach help even if they did not have cell phone service. The rescue group also received its first ever call from the new iPhone satellite SOS feature last year, he said.

“That technology certainly has been beneficial to people who need help but don’t have cell phone connection,” Butler said. “I think we will get more of those call types as people are in the backcountry and have that technology with them.”

While call volumes in the first few months of 2024 lagged behind recent years, calls soon picked up. In May, Summit County Rescue Group staged a technical, 8-hour mission to rescue two hikers who had fallen into a tight couloir on Quandary Peak, one of Colorado’s 14ers. Then, around the Fourth of July, the rescue group hit its busy season with calls for injured hikers, an ATV crash and unattended watercraft.

The summer season continued at a busy pace, especially over the Labor Day Weekend, when Summit County Rescue Group helped with eight calls in less than 72 hours. Then, in October, rescuers staged a 16-hour mission to help a hiker cliffed out at Quandary Peak.