'Pretty treacherous': Search teams rescue 2 climbers from remote gully on Vancouver Island
CTV
A pair of climbers were rescued from a steep gully on Vancouver Island thanks to the efforts of search and rescue crews from the island and the Lower Mainland.
The Alberni Valley Rescue Squad (AVRS) says it was alerted to the two stranded climbers on Mt. Arrowsmith by RCMP around 10 p.m. Saturday.
The men were traversing up the Main Gully route while equipped with gear including ropes and anchors, according to the AVRS.
The pair was able to make it to the "West Ridge" of the mountain before they decided that it was too late and too difficult to finish the route.
"As the night progressed they tried to find their way down after realizing they wouldn't be able to make the route totally," said Rick Johns, search manager with the AVRS.
The climbers then rappelled off of West Ridge into a gully, where they became trapped.
The climbers called for help on Saturday evening. (Alberni Valley Rescue Squad / Facebook)
"The gully led into a big snow moat (where rock meets snow) that was steep, exposed and impassable," said the AVRS in a social media post Monday.
Once they were in the gully, the climbers were unable to scramble out or descend further, at which point they called for help, according to the Mid-Island rescue team.
