FREMONT - Around 10:37 p.m. Monday night, 19 Fremont County Search and Rescue members responded to assist three Utah snowmobilers who became stuck in a snowy drainage, on the Northeast side of Sawtelle Peak. A 46 year old man, his 15-year old son, and a 27-year old man, were snowmobiling Monday evening, when they dropped down into the drainage. Due to poor snow conditions, their snowmobiles became stuck and they were unable to make it back out.

Search Commander, Brett Mackert, established cell phone communication and after gleaning information pertinent to the search, he suggested that the father call 911 in an attempt to acquire the Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, from the county’s 911 system. When that did not work, the father was instructed to set off the 911 feature on a Spot Personal GPS Tracker, that they had with them.

A 12 member Primary Search Team was constructed and equipped with avalanche ABS backpacks, beacons, probes, shovels, first aid kits, GPS, compasses, snowshoes, walking poles, and two-way radios.

A backup search team was placed on standby at base camp. Under the guidance of the search commander, the primary search team navigated a suitable route to the immediate vicinity of the three individuals.

At that point, the team separated. Two search & rescue members rode their sleds within 150 feet of the stuck snowmobilers, while the other 10 members gathered wood and started a fire. At 2:30 a.m., a visual confirmation was made on the subjects’ snowmobile headlights and the two searchers walked toward them. At 2:35 a.m., voice contact was established and within five minutes the two search members had reached the three individuals. After a thorough assessment, all seemed to be in good condition.

The snow had set up so the search members helped free the stuck snowmobiles and the three attempted to ride them out. After nearly an hour and a half of trying and failing to navigate out of the drainage, the search & rescue members drove the subjects’ sleds up to where the search & rescue snowmobiles were.

At 5:00 a.m., everyone was packed up and ready to ride out to Red Rock Road. Some of the unit snowmobiles were overheating due to snow surface being frozen and so hard that it could barely be scratched; consequently, the snow didn't’t effectively lubricate the track. Several Hyfax runners melted on the way back, which prolonged the arrival to base camp. The search & rescue members returned to town, fueled, and stowed the equipment in preparation for the next call. All clear at 7:45 a.m.

A reminder to anyone traveling backcountry areas whether skiing, snowmobiling, hunting, fishing, camping, boating, ATVing, trail-riding, biking, or hiking:

- Remember the time of year, exercising all back country cautions.

- Take necessary equipment and survival gear when venturing into the back country. If you have a GPS and cell phone, be sure to take them with you, but do not rely on them entirely for a safe rescue if you find yourself in trouble or stranded. Avalanche transceivers and equipment, knowing what the avalanche conditions are, and knowing skills to save lives are a must for everyone entering back country riding or traveling.

- Plan ahead. Make sure you know the area you are heading into before heading into it.

- If you find yourself in trouble, stop, take a look around you, and do not go any farther. The farther you go the more complicated and dangerous it is to get yourself to safety, also making rescue efforts more difficult and dangerous. Make mental notes in relation to any physical features or landmarks that would assist in your rescue.

- Make a plan, stick to your plan, narrow the riding area, and most of all let someone know where you are planning to go and when you are to return!

To check avalanche conditions, here are three sites to look at.

http://www.islandparksnow.net
http://www.mtavalanche.com/current
http://www.jhavalanche.org/scripts/avalanche.php?action=forecast&area=teton