The Wave Claims Another

[Bootboy]

That's 3 in a month. What's going on?


http://m.ksl.com/index/story/sid/26120165

[DOSS]

Darwin

[yetigonecrazy]

Well done, because going to the Wave in late July seems like such a good idea.....

Does the little dam in Sand Cove (the teeny slot below the wave) always have a little bit of water running out of it? We were there in February last time and it was dribbling out nicely. Seems like if I was hiking in July and needed a break I would just hunker down below that dam and wait out the sun.....

[Iceaxe]

The permit system is part of the problem. Folks go when they can get a permit, even when its not the best idea.

Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

[Bigfoot]

I agree with Iceaxe. Maybe the BLM needs to rethink their policy. Not everyone is equipped to handle the "wilderness experience" they are trying to offer. Seems like it would be safer if there was a developed trail and more people out there to help in an emergency.

[Bootboy]

Well done, because going to the Wave in late July seems like such a good idea.....

Does the little dam in Sand Cove (the teeny slot below the wave) always have a little bit of water running out of it? We were there in February last time and it was dribbling out nicely. Seems like if I was hiking in July and needed a break I would just hunker down below that dam and wait out the sun.....

The problem is that by the time common folk are aware that something is seriously wrong, it's too late to make these kinds of rational decisions.

Regardless of the BLM policy, you just can't get through to some people about being prepared. No matter how well adapted the policy becomes, no matter how explicit the warnings are, no matter how regulated it gets, there will always be a least common denominator that manages to get them selves killed.

[accadacca]

That just sucks. Unbelievable... :facepalm1:

[Scott Card]

So sad for her husband and two little boys.

[kiwi_outdoors]

Some tasteful but visible cairns woudl help a lot - the photo route system sucks (and I have been hiking for 40 years). And tell folks up fron that if temps are over xx degrees they get a rain check on the permit for next year (or sometime later). The location is not a secret - its on the web - give people a trail or cairns. But at the end of the day - if you get lost - your failed the test. That's harsh, but true. Our school system needs to spend more time on personal responsiblity, survival in real situations, and less on history.

[Iceaxe]

I'm against denying permits at any temperature. I often hike in the desert in 100+ degrees. It's not an issue if you are experienced in the desert. But like any other outdoor experience you are in trouble if you get in over your head.


Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

[Sombeech]

Better fill it with concrete

[jman]

I'm against denying permits at any temperature. I often hike in the desert in 100+ degrees. It's not an issue if you are experienced in the desert. But like any other outdoor experience you are in trouble if you get in over your head.


Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

I agree. I did BLM firefighting in St. George for a few years where the temps were 105+ easy, next to a 500-1000degree fire, wearing long sleeves, long pants, hiking up very steep terrain with no shade, sweating to death, and while carrying 30lbs of gear - just to name a few things. But we survived just fine - carried over 1 gallon 1/2 of water and Gatorade, carried numerous snacks, and took numerous breaks. And we never "pushed through" when we were physically exhausted or tired. Protecting land over someone's life isn't worth it. It's all about a balance when it comes to surviving the desert and heat.

People complain about hiking in 100degree heat but it's about proper planning, preparations and provisions. You can do numerous hikes in 100 degree heat and be fine provided you planned for it.

It's like what Kiwi_outdoors said above, it's about personal responsibility and survival. The outdoors isn't Disneyland - there are no personal protection guarantees - ever.

And just like Canyoneering - you can't assume that bolts or anchors/webbing is going to be there. Everyone in the group should know how to ascend, how to rappel safely every time, how to escape a pothole, how to tie a water knot and munter at the bare minimum.

This shouldn't happen

[erial]

a few more details: The Bureau of Land Management is evaluating safety options after Monday

[Scott Card]

One thing that is really understated or not stated at all is becoming acclimated to the heat before going out into it for an extended period of time. I know this because I am a desk jockey. Prior to going on summer desert hikes/canyons, I spend as much time out side in the heat of the day doing yard work, walking, etc. as I can for 3-4 days prior to the hike. My contractor buddies who work outside all the time have little trouble with the heat. I would suggest that almost as important as water is, is the need to acclimate to the heat before going out in it. Just my 2 cents.

[Slot Machine]

The permit system is part of the problem. Folks go when they can get a permit, even when its not the best idea.

Uh, not really. 50-100 people would go a day if there was no permit system, no matter the conditions. Perfect weather? Imagine Delicate Arch type traffic.

However, The Wave is much different than Delicate Arch, it would get f-ed up in a big hurry with that kind of traffic. It's really nice to be there with a small crowd, a special experience for sure. That's different debate, for a different day...

We took our son there when he was 4 months old. It was August and easily 100 degrees. The people in the permit office give you a huge map, with some 20 waypoints on it, including color photos and GPS coordinates for each waypoint. Before they issue the permits, there is a serious meeting with the lucky permit winners about the risks. They stop just short of buying you a GPS and taping it to your hand.

So we took our gigantic permit map, and headed out with our GPS. Did anyone else from the pre-hike meeting bring a GPS? Hell no! :facepalm1: On the way back I guided a dozen lost tourists through the desert, like I was Moses. :haha:

My point? The permit office does a fine job warning people. People are in denial and don't take the warnings seriously. Bringing a navigation device would have saved every person so far this year, and the guy that fell into Buckskin Gulch (and died) the year we went.

:soapbox:

Just for fun, a photo of Steph, Grandma Lupe, and John:

68043

[Byron]

Excellent post, Scott. Indeed, as I paint houses for a living and run around in shorts, tank top, hat and bandana around my neck for 6 straight months I understand how being acclimated to the heat is so important. People say to me frequently, "How can you work in these temperatures?" Well, I mainly follow the shade around the house and when I can't...I soak down frequently. Plus, I'm "used to it".

Most of these folks would be seriously hurtin' puppies if they had to walk a mile over 95 degrees. I would imagine there's a WHOLE LOTTA DRAMA occurring on that route to the wave that we never hear about. Hell, anywhere that's a "tourist spot" that requires more than a half hour of walking out in the blazing sun.

If anyone has a description of the young woman who died...I'd bet she was considerably overweight or otherwise in poor health. But then again, athletic folks have cooked themselves as well...hyperthermia.

I'm like a friggin' camel...but I wouldn't walk out there in this heat. It's just too uncomfortable. This time of year, it's either high elevation or lots of water nearby.

[brettyb]

Very sad for the family members she left behind. It's hard for me to believe that a woman of her age, from a very hot area no less, succumbed to heat alone. Maybe there were other health issues? I did the hike several years ago, and didn't find navigation hard at all. I seem to recall cairns along the route, but I'm told the BLM tries to knock them down.

[kiwi_outdoors]

I'm against denying permits at any temperature. I often hike in the desert in 100+ degrees. It's not an issue if you are experienced in the desert. But like any other outdoor experience you are in trouble if you get in over your head.


Tap'n on my Galaxy G3Well - you ain't no citified tourist, and neither am I.. But some folks are. And that is not reason enough for them to die.

[BruteForce]

Heat will do this to you regardless of fitness level. I just experienced this ~2 weeks ago with my wife. In 98-102F temps, without warning or any indication, her eyes rolled back in her head and she fell down, unconscious. Lack of water intake, sweating or soaking down and just about anybody can succumb to the heat.

Very sad, though regardless of reason..

[mzamp]

So we took our gigantic permit map, and headed out with our GPS. Did anyone else from the pre-hike meeting bring a GPS? Hell no! :facepalm1: On the way back I guided a dozen lost tourists through the desert, like I was Moses. :haha:

My point? The permit office does a fine job warning people. People are in denial and don't take the warnings seriously. Bringing a navigation device would have saved every person so far this year, and the guy that fell into Buckskin Gulch (and died) the year we went.


A map is a navigation device. However, you need to know how to use/read it. I never use a GPS.

[Iceaxe]

Uh, not really. 50-100 people would go a day if there was no permit system, no matter the conditions. Perfect weather? Imagine Delicate Arch type traffic.

And the problem with that is????

I have no problem with the traffic at delicate arch. It's nice that the folks that it belongs to can actually visit it. If you want a primative experiance perhaps you should choose a destination other then delicate arch or the wave.

[blueeyes]

I have hiked the wave twice. I am sorry I don't really know how to use a compass and map or trust a GPS unit and typically I don't take off on a trail I don't know or don't have someone along who does. However the opportunity does not come easily to see this unique feature. When I saw the BLM directions I was confident we would find The Wave without issue (watch our video to see us consulting this massive paper with directions
http://youtu.be/DEtAgILMx7U).

The first time out I did load the coordinates into a GPS. However I never needed it...not once did I feel lost. There were plenty of carins and only one of the photos was hard to tell what you were looking for. I will admit on the way back we did have a little confusion as where to turn to head back but it didn't take us long to find the correct spot. Which both times was marked. And my assumption is that is where they lost the trail. I feel for this family but I do not think for one second the BLM needs to change a thing about what they are doing. It is not their responsibility to make sure people don't get lost or are properly prepared for a hike like this.

There is so much information on The Wave on the internet. Best times to go... what conditions are like in the summer. Even that older couple passing away shortly before this young women. Did they not stop to think that maybe starting at 8AM was not a wise choice? Any given day, any given place you can check the hourly weather forecast and know approximately what temps or weather you will be dealing with. How much water did they take? Did they have a bandanna to wet down to help keep the body cool? Were they dressed appropriately? Did they have extra electrolytes either in their water or in the form of gels? Where was their GPS unit? I may not trust one but I didn't go without it the first time.

Just sad. My heart goes out to her children.

[Slot Machine]

A map is a navigation device. However, you need to know how to use/read it. I never use a GPS.

I too have used these paper navigation devices. :2thumbs: Most of the time they are adequate.

However, there is a problem with using a map at The Wave. It is quite easy to get from your car to The Wave with a map, but VERY easy to get lost on the way back. There is a ridge that stands between the parking area and The Wave. One must choose the correct saddle at the top of the ridge to travel over. There are several saddles, and they all look rather similar. When we were there, just eyeballing the route, me plus 12 other people guessed the wrong saddle.

So, I recommend a handheld global positioning system (sometimes referred to as a GPS navigation device) for everyone, even those skilled with using paper maps. :mrgreen:

[Slot Machine]

And the problem with that is????

Oops! Left out the most important part...

The Wave is different from Delicate Arch in that it consists of thousands of fragile sandstone fins, which would be destroyed by huge crowds. Imagine a smooth, black trail worn through the middle of The Wave.

I've always assumed that is why traffic is restricted. :ne_nau: So that sand, water, wind and time can erase the micro-damage to the stone.

??? Please correct me if there is another reason for the permit system at The Wave. :popcorn:

[Absolute Gravity]

... On the way back I guided a dozen lost tourists through the desert, like I was Moses. :haha:

Didn't Moses lead them around in circles for like 40 years? :haha:

[Slot Machine]

Didn't Moses lead them around in circles for like 40 years? :haha:

He must have had a paper map. :bootyshake:

Correction: "like I was Moses with a GPS." :lol8:

[Iceaxe]

??? Please correct me if there is another reason for the permit system at The Wave. :popcorn:

Photographers bitching about tourists ruining their pictures I believe was the straw that finally broke the back of the permit camel. The same bitch you often hear at Delicate Arch.

As for Delicate Arch it was you that pick that comparison. My point is does 20 people a day really make a difference over 25 or 30 per day? I highly doubt it.



Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

[Iceaxe]

I'm happy to see the BLM is considering dumbing the hike down to the lowest common denominator in the human gene pool.... har har..

I'd just like to know when letting nature occasionally thin the gene pool became a bad thing......

Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

[Slot Machine]

Photographers bitching about tourists ruining their pictures I believe was the straw that finally broke the back of the permit camel. The same bitch you often hear at Delicate Arch. As for Delicate Arch it was you that pick that comparison. My point is does 20 people a day really make a difference over 25 or 30 per day? I highly doubt it.

25 or 30? No way. 48,000 people applied for permits in 2012. Perhaps you underestimate the popularity of this hike?

When I applied, in person, there were 56 other people in the permit office. It was a weekday. Almost everyone applying was from another country. The Wave was popularized in a Geman documentary, Faszination Natur, so it is high on the European bucket list.

There was a guy in the permit office from Austria that had flown to the U.S. five times to hike The Wave. He was very unlucky, and never got a permit. It was his 15th application for Christ's sake! :eek2: He did get lucky and draw out while I was there. Never seen such an excited photographer. :mrgreen:


The permit system is part of the problem. Folks go when they can get a permit, even when its not the best idea.

Does this argument not imply that people are being forced to go on hot days, when they otherwise would choose cool days? If so, it is one of the reasons I compared it to Delicate Arch. The heat scares nobody away there.

(My second argument is it would get trampled, while Delicate does not.)


:mrgreen:

[Iceaxe]

:roll:

And 7300 permits were issued last year.... my point is you could issue 15,000 permits a year and it wouldn't hurt anything in the grand scheme of earth history... I mean really.... it's nothing but a big ass rock you are walking on. It's not frickin' rice paper...


http://www.uselessjunk.net/customavatars/avatar23945_10.gif

[yetigonecrazy]

I think the easy way to solve this is.....

show your passport, prove you are American, and you go straight the front of the waiting list! :bandit:

[oldno7]

Well--I for one, am not going back in there until they get a paved golf cart path to the base of the wave.

It's just not worth the risk....

[Slot Machine]

And 7300 permits were issued last year.... my point is you could issue 15,000 permits a year and it wouldn't hurt anything in the grand scheme of earth history... I mean really.... it's nothing but a big ass rock you are walking on. It's not frickin' rice paper...

Noooooo! Put my mom down! :lol8:

Yes, they could double the number of issued permits, and it probably wouldn't change the experience much. :nod:

However, that particular big ass rock does have a 'rice paper' quality to it, and would suffer damage if subjected to high amounts of trafiic. Maybe it already is being damaged? ... Not sure... it' just nice that it doesn't seem to be getting loved to death at 7,300 permits per year.

Maybe a selfish thing to say, but I hope they leave the limit the way it is. It's a great experience to share with a small group.

You should try it sometime. :haha: :bootyshake: :lol8:

[Iceaxe]

You should try it sometime. :haha: :bootyshake: :lol8:


Been there... done that.... never bothered to get a permit...

:stud:

[Jolly Green]

I'm baffled how people are getting lost. When I did it I thought up this insanely crazy plan on the hike in of looking back where I had just walked for landmarks. I hope that didn't just blow everyone's mind. No problems getting out with the picture map provided.

[mzamp]

They should get input from the Sierra Club...then do the opposite. :wink:

I read that, "The deaths have prompted federal officials to consider seeking an outside investigation of the dangers posed to hikers who make the trek." :facepalm1:

Sounds about right - let's spend more tax dollars to find out what we already know. :angryfire:

My prediction is further restrictions. Probably causing closures when the temp goes above xxx dgrees.

[Sombeech]

I have no problem with the traffic at delicate arch. It's nice that the folks that it belongs to can actually visit it.
My thoughts exactly.

In Arches, especially Fiery Furnace, we had to sit through an instructional video regarding the Crypto soil and how fragile it is. This soil is throughout multiple national and state parks and for the most part remains in decent shape, even in areas with minimal surveillance or patrol of the area.

[Iceaxe]

In Arches, especially Fiery Furnace, we had to sit through an instructional video regarding the Crypto soil and how fragile it is.

I have no problem with the Fiery Furnace video, I bet I have sat through it 30 or 40 times. But I know my kids really took that video to heart and do everything they can to avoid the crypto, including when hiking outside of Arches.... education is the key to good ethics.

The Fiery Furnace is a fragile place on par with The Wave, getting an opportunity to see it is pretty easy if you are a little flexible and plan ahead. You certainly don't have to fly over from Australia 5 times and walk away empty handed. Anyone planning ahead a week or two can certainly visit the Furnace.

Perhaps the BLM should consider adding ranger guided tours to The Wave in addition to the self guided tours similar to The Fiery Furnace. The BLM could take rather large groups and charge a fee to more than cover the cost of hiring a ranger to escort guided groups. Ranger guided groups are also easy to control and monitor and most tourists would be more then happy with that setup.

:soapbox:

Even better.... perhaps American Canyoneer should work on improving access to The Wave and not waste resources on trying to become SUWA Lite.

:nod:

[Iceaxe]

In response to heat-related deaths at The Wave, BLM will enact safety measures

BY ERIN ALBERTY
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

New safety measures are being enacted at The Wave rock formation near the Utah-Arizona border after the deaths of three people in this summer’s high temperatures.

The Bureau of Land Management will do the following:

• Translate brochures and videos into languages other than English.

• Revise BLM websites for Arizona and Utah to highlight safety, particularly with regard to the difficulty of the hike to The Wave.

• Post a safety sign at the Wire Pass trailhead, where visitors embark on the hike.

• Produce a condensed version of an existing safety video to be featured on BLM websites and shown at the Kanab Visitor Center during the daily permit lottery.

On July 22, 27-year-old Elisabeth Ann Bervel died after she lost the trail for two hours during an anniversary hike with her husband. Ulrich and Patricia Wahli, 70 and 69 respectively, died July 4 as temperatures neared 100 degrees. Their bodies were found 250 yards apart.

The BLM may implement other measures in its longer-term planning, according to a news release Tuesday. Twenty people are allowed to visit The Wave each day. The formation is part of the Coyote Buttes area of the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness.

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/56706364-78/safety-blm-wave-hike.html.csp

[pikan]

"A map is a navigation device. However, you need to know how to use/read it. I never use a GPS."
I think that is the problem here...people DON'T know how to use maps anymore...GPS takes a good part of the guess work out of it for folks that can't read a map.

I think the thing that everyone is pointing to is preparedness...gear will only get you so far, water will only get you so far, physical fitness will only get you so far, experience, knowledge of the area/climate, map reading and compass orienteering knowledge, etc... it's a combination of all that! (and everything I forgot to mention :haha:) but most of all it's knowing your limits and staying within them.