Caroline is just like every other mom in that she wants to always keep her son safe. After moving to Colorado to attend University, her son quickly became an avid and experienced backpacker. “Knowing that he was going out solo all the time really was the impetus for buying a SPOT Gen3 device, with us living in Pennsylvania, it was a way for us, even remotely to know his whereabouts when he was hiking.”When together, the family set up their SPOT device and tested it out in advance of her son using it on his own. “Admittedely, I wasn’t sure if it was working properly, but he took it from us, set it up on his own, and finally got to using it regularly.”
During a recent excursion, Caroline’s son came to a point while hiking where his path became increasingly rugged and ultimately impassable. It was a situation where he was unable to move forward, and unable to go back, with the only option being to traverse an area of canyon. “He ended up sliding down a ravine, losing all of his water and some of his gear in the process. Luckily, his SPOT Gen3 had remained hooked to his backpack, because he wasn’t able to get out of the ravine.”
Her son activated the SOS button, which alerted the GEOS International Rescue Center of his location coordinates. A search and rescue team was deployed, while Caroline received regular updates from the GEOS dispatcher throughout the day regarding the situation. “The updates gave me peace of mind, because I knew that help was on the way, and that he would be found,” she said.
Due to the nature of landscape and steepness of the ravine, transportation out of the canyon required rope pulleys and a harness to lift Caroline’s son to safety. “At this point he was deydrated and vomiting, but he did not sustain any serious injuries and was succesfully rescued.”
When talking about the situation, Caroline still becomes emotional saying, “When you are 20 years old, you don’t think about the potential for injury, I’m so thankful he had his SPOT with him. Anyone who is going out solo like this needs one.”
Caroline’s son remains an avid backpacker and always takes his SPOT Gen3 with him.