Rescue team works to find cyclist off trail above Cascade
El Paso County Search and Rescue was working to evacuate an injured mountain biker on a steep hiking trail above Cascade late Tuesday night.
The injured cyclist was reported to be on or near Heizer Trail, which “climbs relentlessly” from Cascade to the top of Cascade Mountain, according to cospringstrails.com.
The person was reportedly on a steep section, at about 8,800 feet elevation between a trail and the Manitou Reservoir, according to scanner traffic.
Search and Rescue members were loading the injured cyclist on a litter and preparing for his evacuation, according to a tweet sent via Twitter at 10:45 p.m.
Also on Tuesday night, the Colorado Springs Fire Department responded to a call of several “scramblers” without gear on Gray Rock in Garden of the Gods.
“The reason we were called is because rules are that folks need to have a permit to climb here, and if they’re going to be above 10 feet, they need to have climbing gear,” fire Lt. Bill Miller said.
Miller said it was reported that five young men were “probably several hundred feet” on the rock about 8:10 p.m.
“Frankly, it’s not a difficult climb – the area that they were in – but the rules are that they need to have that stuff with them in case they get into a situation that they can’t get out of,” he said.
The climbers, in their teens and early 20s, were let go with a warning.
“These were first-time offenders, and we gave them a chance to learn from the experience,” he said.
When asked what the young men were doing on the rock, Miller said it was a guy thing.
“Guys see a big rock. You want to conquer it,” he said. “I don’t think there was any malice in it.”
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Contact Daniel Chacon: 476-1623
Coronado runners Bailey Roth, left, (187) and Dan Egger (163) take off with the pack of 250 plus during the boys varsity race Thursday, Sept. 20, 2012, at the Coronado Cougar Classic at Monument Valley Park in Colorado Springs. Roth finished third and Egger fourth in the race. Thirty-nine school raced in the cross country meet. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)