TCSAR Responds to Distressed Hunter in Horse Creek

At 7:32 p.m. on Friday, September 26, Teton County Dispatch received an emergency alert for a hunter having a medical issue in the North Fork of Horse Creek, a remote area that lies to the southeast of the Cache Creek drainage. The alert regarded a 66-year-old man from Oregon who was reported to be in severe distress. 

The man was in a guided group of elk hunters. After dusk, the group had been hiking down a steep trail back to camp when the man could go no further.

Teton County Search & Rescue responded with two ground teams, each taking side-by-side vehicles up Cache Creek. When the vehicles could go no further, two volunteers continued on bikes. When the bikes could go no further, they continued on foot until they reached the patient about a mile past the divide between Cache Creek and Horse Creek. The second ground team came in on foot carrying the wheeled litter.

As the team treated the patient, they considered going down into Horse Creek, but opted to go back up to Cache Creek toward their vehicles and a potential landing site for an emergency helicopter. The team placed a request for an air ambulance out of Riverton but it was called off due to darkness and challenging terrain (the TCSAR ship was not available because it cannot fly at night).

The team then packaged the patient in the wheeled litter and transported him back up the divide and into Cache Creek. From there, they placed the man in one of the side-by-sides and drove him to the trailhead and waiting ambulance from Jackson Hole Fire/EMS.

The volunteers returned to TCSAR HQ at 2:30 a.m., and prepped the equipment for the next mission.

TCSAR Rescues Injured Hiker from Teton Canyon

On Thursday evening, September 4, a 28-year-old woman from Washington became injured while hiking down from Table Mountain. Along with her three companions, the injured party initially tried to hike out on her own, but she then sustained another injury in the process. Recognizing their need for rescue, the group put in a 911 call at 8:45 p.m.

Teton County Search & Rescue members who live on the westside of the Tetons responded, while additional volunteers from Jackson came in as support from over Teton Pass. The westside team gathered the necessary gear from the Alta cache—a wheeled litter and medical equipment—and hiked about 2.5 miles up the North Teton trail in Teton Canyon. They reached the patient just after 11 p.m, with the support team arriving about 10 minutes later. 

The volunteers placed the patient in the wheeled litter and transported her down the rocky trail, arriving at the trailhead at 1:15 a.m. From there, the patient elected to self-transport to higher medical care.

All volunteers were reported out of the field, with equipment prepped for the next mission, at 2:30 a.m.

Old Bill's 2025: TCSAR Always Answers The Call

TCSAR volunteers are on call 24/7/365. This means they often step away from their families and normal everyday activities in order to answer an emergency call from someone in need in the backcountry.

Since January 1, TCSAR has been called nearly 120 times, an all-time record. Though not every call has resulted in a full-team callout, anytime the phone rings, a volunteer is there to answer.

By donating to TCSAR this Old Bill's giving season, you are supporting trainings, physical and mental wellness, meals, and personal safety equipment that empower TCSAR volunteers to answer the call—and come home to their families.

Thank you for supporting our volunteers.