Two hikers spent a cold, wet night on Burke Mountain after leaving a trail Saturday afternoon in search of a better view.
A 39-year-old man and his 18-year-old nephew set out on the Woodland Walk trail and at some point decided to go off the trail to search for a viewpoint, possibly a waterfall, said Coquitlam Search and Rescue manager Jim Delgrande. The pair called Coquitlam RCMP, which then called in search and rescue volunteers, at about 9 p.m.
They were able to use their GPS device and relay their coordinates for what appeared to be a "simple search," Delgrande said.
"It was dark, pouring rain and very heavy bush, very treacherous terrain. From all accounts it was as nasty as anything people have been in... so it turned out to not be so simple."
It took a two-person team an hour to locate the hikers - who by that point were cold, wet and exhausted - about 200 m from the trail.
Searchers got them into dry clothing and created a shelter for the pair to rest while they waited for additional volunteers to help get them out. They reached the bottom of the trail at about 5 a.m. Sunday.
Delgrande said the pair was lucky they were in a location where their cell phones worked, and that they had plenty of battery life and flashlights.
"But they weren't well equipped for the rain and it was just an appalling day," he added. "And going off the trail, unless you really know what you're doing, is almost never a good idea. You have to be prepared to back out the way you went in."
Delgrande said the hikers had gone downhill from the trail and given the heavy brush and wet conditions it was too difficult for them to get back up to the trail.
He also cautioned hikers not to be lulled into a false sense of security because they have a GPS device.
"It can be a very useful tool but it doesn't mean you can go wherever the fancy takes you," he said.
