Phoenix is home to dozens of hiking trails. Some are easy, some are difficult. And then there’s Camelback Mountain. Home to two extremely difficult trails-- Cholla and Echo Canyon-- Camelback Mountain saw more than 200 rescues performed by Phoenix Fire in 2015 alone.
Camelback is a tough hike for just about anyone, and when you have to transport another injured hiker off the mountain, it's even tougher. But that’s just what the Phoenix Fire Department does all year round.
"When you’re going down Camelback Mountain, which is our most common mountain to have to do rescues on, it’s a technical rescue, which means we have to set up rope systems and attach the patient to rope systems," said Captain Larry Subervi with Phoenix Fire. He said once someone gets beyond a certain point, that person can’t simply be carried down the mountain. They have to be secured by multiple points of attachment, and that can translate to a very long rescue operation with a lot of very heavy gear.
Matthew Nelson is a search and rescue volunteer and the executive director at the Arizona Trail Association. "Sometimes we don’t know what we’re getting ourselves into in terms of how far away they are or what the extent of the injury is maybe, so we go fully prepared. Typically my pack is 45-to-50 pounds," he explained.
Nelson said in his experience 90 percent of these rescues could have been avoided with proper planning. Which is why Phoenix launched its Take a Hike, Get it Right campaign. It gives hikers a simple checklist with items like bring water, dress appropriately, carry a cell phone and check the weather.
As for why there isn’t a "stupid hiker" law, Subervi says a law like that could actually cost more lives in the end because a person might not call 911 right away to avoid being cited or fined.
