At around 22:30 on Thursday August 15th the Lions Bay Search and Rescue team was activated by Squamish RCMP for a 911 call from hikers who had lost two members of their party.
The informants reported that they had last seen their 2 companions near the foot of the West Lion. The group was hiking the Howe Sound Crest Trail from Cyrpess Bowl northward. The group was to meet at the shelter in Magnesia meadows where they would spend the night. The members of the group who did reach the cabin became worried when by 22:00 their two companions had not reached the shelter. The 911 call was placed to the RCMP, the team was mobilised to meet at the SAR base.
The RCMP dispatched Air1, a helicopter equipped with infrared cameras, to support the team in the search. Air1 spotted the pair on a steep section of the trail between Hanging Lake and Harvey Pass. Because of their location, they were outside of cellular phone reception. The pair were located not far from the trail; they were waving their arms and flashing their lights in the S-O-S pattern to Air1.
With the missing pair’s location firmly established, a ground team hiked to them. Around 5AM the SAR team members along with the subjects were flown to the Lions Bay School field, safe and sound.
Another job well done by the men and women of the Lions Bay Search and Rescue team, and thanks to RCMP Air1 for helping speed up the operation.