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Story and Photos by Branden Jones OF4WD
A day on the trail can be a fun and relaxing time, but in the blink of an eye it can change for the worse.
Saturday morning started out no differently than any other wheeling excursion. We were up early after a night of going over our vehicles, then met up with friends for coffee and breakfast to start the day in Bobcaygeon. A quick run north up the road and our tires hit the dirt for the first time as we drove into the woods. Once arriving at the trail head there was a quick overview of the planned path for the day and for the new wheelers, a review of the general code of conduct.
The day was going well, even including a brief scare with some water and an intake. Just before noon we completed the first trail of the day and were heading up the E108 to stop for lunch when a call came over the CB that one of the trucks had stalled out. It was quickly determined that the alternator had given up the ghost and was no longer charging the battery. We were able to pull a secondary battery from another Jeep to get it mobile again, while the original battery was charged up. The decision was made to head all the way out to the 507 with the faulty truck, to ensure that he could make it back to town. Little did we know at the time that this delay for the breakdown was going to change the course of events for the entire day.
We stopped for lunch at the 507 and said our goodbyes to those who were heading out due to family reasons/repairs. We were soon back on the dusty path into the woods to hit the second trail of the day “Concession Lake.” Due to the blazing heat of the past few days the water levels were down a couple inches, making life easier on the newer wheelers in our group. Other than a few stops, to show some line choices or to do battle with the bugs, we were making good time. As we reached the mid-point of the trail by an obstacle we like to call “Split Rock”, I noticed an ATVer walking towards me from the side of the trail. The look of shock you could see in his eyes, told me that something was seriously wrong.
I pulled up my Jeep beside him and shut off it off, so I could hear him clearly. He told me that his friend had rolled his ATV and asked if we could help. Walking over, through the trees, to a small bypass you could see an ATV flipped over into a tree and the rider down on the ground with two of his other friends standing by. The downed rider said that he had hurt his back and couldn’t sit up. Thankfully he could still move all of his fingers and toes. I made a call over the CB to the rest of the group that there was an injured person that we needed to help. The first thought was to possibly transport him out of the trail in one of our vehicles on a back seat. We went to the injured rider and checked to see if he could even sit up at all. Even with two people to hold onto he was unable to get his shoulders more than a few inches off of the ground before the pain became too much. It was then that we knew we were going to need professional help, as we could possibly injure him further if we tried to move him.
One of the challenges of being in the bush is that cell phone service is at a minimum. We looked at a few of our phones and only one could get any sort of signal and only when standing on the back bumper of a Jeep. Thankfully Dwayne was prepared with his HAM radio. While we were trying to reach EMS by phone, he was trying to page any operator that could assist. Rick Mate, based in Lindsay over 50 km away, heard the call. Between Rick, and the sporadic phone service, we were able to organize with emergency services based on our GPS co-ordinates and directions. They were going to come up the 507 and head down the E108 to the trail. I was unsure what equipment that they had, so I told them that we would send a few Jeeps up to the trail head to meet them. This way we could make sure that they went exactly the right way.
We decided that four of us would head out and Dwayne would stay at the crash site to act as the relay station. This would allow us, using a hand held unit he had, to keep EMS updated on our travel out of the trail. I took off first to clear the path for the rest of our drivers. The run out felt more like something out of an Ultra 4 race then a normal run down the trail, as it was third gear the entire way. Along the way I ran into a group of dirt bikers and then a fellow group of Jeeps heading in to camp on the trail. With a quick explanation of the medical emergency both groups moved out of the way to let me through quickly. We reached the trail head in record time to wait for EMS.
The OPP arrived at the trail head first with EMS and the Fire Rescue team showing up shortly after that. It was decided to take the OPP officer in first to assess the situation while the fire rescue team got the ATV and trailer organized. Unfortunately for the officer, I had decided to leave my doors at home, so he ended up wearing a little of the trail on the ride back in. A few members of the fire rescue team hopped in the remaining Jeeps and they were escorted directly to the crash site, with the rescue ATV following behind. Once we arrived at the crash site the fire rescue team worked quickly to stabilize the patient and transfer him to a back board and then onto the Rescue trailer. We made sure that there was cold water available to all of the rescue team as they worked. Once the patient was moved out of the way, the ATV was rolled back over onto its wheels, so that the oil could drain back into the bottom of the motor. The victim’s friends were going to ride the damaged ATV out to the trail head and then double back on one ATV to pick up the one they would be forced to leave behind.
The journey out was a slow process. The ATV trailer would be pulled out at a walking pace with members of the fire rescue team walking beside the trailer to keep it stabilized and monitoring the crash victim. Two Jeeps were sent ahead of the rescue team (with the OPP officer) to make sure that the trail was clear of any debris that would make the ride rougher and that any incoming people stayed off to the side of the trail to allow passing. The rest were to follow in behind and help carry out any remaining gear the fire rescue team had. On the way out they had to battle the bugs (we gave them a bottle of bug spray to use), knee deep water, and slippery, sometimes very steep terrain to make it out. At approximately 7PM we reached the trail head and the waiting ambulance. The patient was transferred over from the ambulance up to Life flight that had landed at the gravel pit despite having to make two attempts at the landing due to 0% visibility from the dust.
It was a long, but rewarding day. We spent a little time speaking with the fire rescue team afterwards as they emptied the water out of their boots from the water crossings. They were appreciative of the help we were able to lend them. We packed up our trucks and made our way back to the road home for a well-deserved break.
I spoke with the victim’s wife later in the weekend and thankfully there were no internal injuries, other than two fractured vertebrae. He will be out of action for quite a while, but will make a full recovery.
I would like to thank everyone that was involved in helping out in what could have been a very bad situation: Alicia Peters, Branden Jones, Brent Lockhart, Dwayne Hillier, Les Stacey, Maria Anghel, Phil Peters, Rick Mate, Rick Walker, Robert Tomczy, Sam Vandervecht, Tom Deas, the Fire Rescue Team, OPP, EMS, and Life Flight (Orange).