Fresno backpackers near the popular Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park late last week were unlikely to miss the sound of a helicopter in the area. Today's National Park Service Morning Report provides details about a multi-day search for a missing backpacker that culminated with a midday rescue on Saturday, September 11. Mike Arends was uninjured and in good condition when he was located, and his own self-rescue efforts and perseverance were keys to his rescue and safe return.
According to Kari Cobb, a public affairs officer who submitted the report, Arends was one of a group of experienced Southern California backpackers who began a three-day wilderness trip on September 4 in Tuolumne Meadows. The group exited the wilderness on September 7, but Arends had stayed behind to spend one more night in the wilderness and complete a day hike to Grand Mountain. Grand Mountain is a 9,491-foot peak in the Ten Lakes area south of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River. Arends had arranged to rejoin the other members of his group on September 8, and when he did not arrive as scheduled, they reported him overdue.
Search efforts
Rangers began to search for Arends the same afternoon he was reported missing. Finding no signs of him, they launched a more extensive search the next day that included aerial coverage in the Grand Mountain area where Arends had intended to hike. While rangers were searching, Arends was hiking. Realizing that he had lost the trail, Arends began to navigate toward a ridge that he believed lay near Half Moon Meadow, a prominent landmark on the Ten Lakes Trail.
Arends hiked for 11 hours, leading him not toward Half Moon Meadow but deeper into the backcountry toward the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne. Finding himself in the rugged Cathedral Creek Drainage, Arends realized he was lost and in a survival situation and, according to the report, began to ration his food and water supplies.
Survival and self-rescue efforts
At some point Arends observed the search helicopter in the area and realized that rangers were looking for him. He laid out a green tarp and used large, white rocks to spell out the word "SOS" for aerial searchers. Arends also started a signal fire to mark his location. Search and rescue personnel spotted the signals midday Saturday and were able to land and retrieve Arends and return him to Tuolumne Meadows.
Arends spent three nights in the wilderness beyond his intended exit before being rescued, which is nothing short of an ordeal with a limited supply of food, the cold nighttime temperatures in the Sierra late last week and the uncertainty about location and rescue either by self or by others. Surviving this kind of situation requires the ability to stay calm and positive and think clearly.
Perseverance, adaptability and the ability to make a signal fire are some of the qualities of an experienced backpacker that can contribute to survival and rescue. By knowing and implementing basic measures of wilderness survival, lost backpackers can assist themselves and their rescuers in scenarios such as this one.
Yosemite Valley is 94 miles from Fresno via Highway 41 North. Tuolumne Meadows is an additional 55-mile drive northeast from Yosemite Valley.
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