A group of hikers ran afoul of yellow jackets in what has been an exceedingly hazardous wasp season while hiking near Mount Seymour on Thursday.
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Heat, hiking, helicopters … oh, and yellow jackets too.
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A group of hikers had to call for a medical evacuation Thursday night after encountering difficulties on the Old Elsay Lake Access Trail, west of Coldwell Beach.
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The group had started out on Wednesday, aiming to reach Elsay Lake by following the standard route from Seymour, but soon found the hot temperatures pushed them to exhaustion. They camped overnight and changed plans to take the Old Elsay Lake Access Trail toward Deep Cove to avoid having to regain the elevation to get back to Seymour, but soon found significant amounts of blown-down trees on the lesser-used trail.
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Then, disaster. The group broke ground on a wasps’ nest, with one hiker suffering more than 20 stings to his body. He wasn’t allergic, but with the amount of venom he had absorbed, his symptoms meant he was unable to continue.
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The group used antihistamines to stabilize his condition and called North Shore Rescue for an extraction.
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Search-and-rescue teams, including two advanced medical providers — emergency room physicians with wilderness medicine expertise — were flown in by Talon Helicopters and roped down to the scene. The hiker was treated, and the whole group was hoisted to safety.
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Wasps have been exceptionally troublesome for South Coast hikers so far this year.
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Sunrise
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“If you’ve been hiking recently, you’ve probably noticed them. And they are fierce this year,” Maria Masiar, a training officer with Lions Bay Search and Rescue, said earlier this week. “According to B.C. pest experts, a relatively mild winter followed by an early, warm spring allowed more queen yellow jackets to survive hibernation and establish new colonies. With a longer growing season, those colonies have had more time to expand, resulting in larger, more defensive nests.”
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Area search-and-rescue organizations suggest hikers should carry over-the-counter antihistamine and pain medications, as well as an EpiPen in case of severe allergic reactions.
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A crowdsourced map of nest locations — wasp-watch.com — that have been encountered by outdoor enthusiasts has also been created.
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