The Guardia Civil rescued two climbers who had been lost over several days on the Sierra Nevada.
The rescued couple; a 58-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman, were found in a good state of health although exhausted.
The rescue team had tracked them down to near the Cerro Pelado, which lies within the municipality of Jérez del Marquesado, making contact at 16.30h last Sunday the 6th of March.
The man had phoned the emergency number, 112 to say that he and his companion had become lost, owing ot the dense fog, on a climb from the Refugio del Horcajo heading for the Piedra de los Contrabandistas.
The Guardia Civil first tried to locate them from the air but despite a space in the fog opening up momentarily, they had to abandon the attempt when it closed back in again.
The Guardia Civil tried to contact them during the rest of the evening by phone but to no avail so they decided to deploy all their units the following morning at first light. The personnel from the Servicio de Montaña divided into three teams, each covering a different area.
It was the team that went up the Postero Alto firebreak heading to the Piedra de los Ladrones that came across faint tracks in the snow, almost covered over by recent snowfall. They followed these footprints in the snow until they disappeared
However, from there the officers thought that they could make out two figures in the mist below them so one of their number descended rapidly. Luckily, it was the two lost mountaneers.
Questioning the couple, the officers discovered that they had not been wandering around lost for two days, but over three days – the first day they hadn’t called for help because they had been sure that they could have found the Refugio Postero Alto themselves.
The rescuers gave them food and drink as the couple had exhausted their own the previous night. Then they all set off together, slowly descending some 1,100 metres, taking three hours to reach the Guardia Civil vehicles.
The officers then drove them to where the couple’s car was parked, which is where they parted company as the couple said that they did not need medical assistance – all they needed was to get home and rest.
However, the rescuers believe that had they not found them that day there was a good chance they would have perished up there.
Editorial comment: seriously, guys! Winter, 2,000 metres up, snow line… what were you thinking?
(News: Sierra Nevada, Granada, Andalucia)