Midway through summer, volunteer search and rescue teams covering some of the mountain counties nearest to the Front Range are on a record pace when it comes to the missions they’ve conducted so far this year, but they can’t pinpoint what’s driving those numbers.
The Evergreen-based Alpine Rescue Team, which covers Clear Creek, Gilpin and Jefferson counties, performed a record 172 missions last year, a 43% jump over the previous year. As of July 18, they stood at 72 for 2025. They hit 72 on July 19, 2024.
“We seem to be right on pace to match last year,” said Steve Wilson, a public information officer for the team.
On the other side of the Continental Divide, the Summit County Rescue Group surpassed 120 missions for the year last week. Their record is 220, which came in 2021.
“We are just about on pace with our record-breaking year,” said the group’s public information officer Ben Butler. “Generally we have been in the 180-190 range since then.”
But those rescue numbers aren’t the same everywhere in the state, said Anna DeBattiste, spokeswoman for the Colorado Search and Rescue Association.
“Some teams are telling me they are down, that things have been very quiet,” DeBattiste said. “I don’t think teams overall are busier. Anecdotally — I’m speculating — I do think when it’s really hot in the Front Range, more people are coming up into the high country. That could be a factor for Alpine, and it could be a factor for Summit.”
Boulder County’s Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, in fact, is running “well below average” this year, according to spokesman Page Weil.
Statewide, DeBattiste said there have been 14 helicopter hoist rescues performed by the Colorado Air National Guard this year, as compared to 11 for the same period last year. That doesn’t include medi-vac helicopters that transport injured hikers to hospitals after victims have been carried off the mountain.
Last month, there was a flurry of helicopter hoist rescues performed by the Air National Guard in coordination with local search and rescue teams. One, which was led by the Alpine Rescue Team, was from the summit of 14,270-foot Torreys Peak after two men were struck by lightning. It is believed to be the state’s highest-ever helicopter rescue.
Also last month, two hikers were rescued by helicopter hoist near the summit of Quandary Peak. There were two helicopter rescues in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness on the same day.
Colorado search and rescue teams are volunteer operations that work in concert with county sheriffs. They don’t charge a fee for their services. Purchase and upkeep of gear is funded by the Keep Colorado Wild state parks pass, sales of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Search and Rescue Card (CORSAR) and donations.
The Alpine Rescue Team used to be funded by proceeds from the Evergreen Town Race, a once-popular road race on Upper Bear Creek Road to Evergreen Lake that has been canceled the past two years.
These days, search and rescue is more rescue than search. Rescue teams say the proliferation of cellphones, improved mountain cellphone coverage, two-way satellite communication devices, Apple emergency SOS via satellite and other tech tools helps lost, stranded or injured hikers communicate their predicaments and locations.
“We don’t have as many searches as we used to, for people that are lost, because a lot of people can get themselves out with the help of their cellphone,” Wilson said. “We still have some, but they’re definitely reduced.
“But there are a lot more people who go out and twist their ankle, and help is merely a phone call away,” he added. “We don’t hesitate to go out there.”
The Summit County Rescue Group has seen the trend involving backcountry communications, too.
“It has decreased the number of pure searches we have,” Butler said, “where someone is overdue and we don’t have a good starting point.”
And, if technology makes it easier for hikers in distress to contact rescuers, that’s fine with Butler.
“I’d much rather have somebody who feels like they’re in a precarious situation call 911 for search and rescue services than push themselves beyond their limit,” Butler said.
The Alpine Rescue Team had a particularly busy day last month that involved a rescue on Torreys Peak and two separate calls at St. Mary’s Glacier, all within a two-hour period, according to public information officer Dawn Wilson.
“We had dozens of members spread out on three different missions at the same time,” she said.
She is reluctant to speculate on why the ART has seen a spike in numbers the past two years. Rescuers focus on helping hikers in distress, not questioning them about their credentials.
“We don’t have statistics on how much experience these people have,” she said. “We do realize people without experience are going out there. People get hurt, and we’re there to protect them. We’re the lifeguards of the backcountry. We’re there to help out, whether it’s by accident or bad planning.”
Recognizing that inexperience can be a factor in some rescues, though, the Colorado Search and Rescue Association is releasing a series of informational videos they hope will educate novices before they try something they aren’t ready to handle. Called Trailblazers & Lifesavers, the first two cover backcountry skiing on Vail Pass and rafting on the Arkansas River near Buena Vista. They can be found on the association’s blog and YouTube.
Still to come are videos on climbing the Third Flatiron in Boulder and fall hiking in Pagosa Springs. In the future, they hope to add videos on snowmobiling in Routt County and mountain biking on the Western Slope.
“Nobody goes out looking for a safety video online,” DeBattiste said. “The videos are very short, three-minute videos promoting a specific activity in a specific location. Like, are you thinking about getting into backcountry skiing? Vail Pass is a good place (for novices) to do it. Are you thinking about getting into whitewater rafting? The Milk Run on the Arkansas is a good place to start. When a person comes across the video by searching the activity or the location, it gets into how to do it safely.”
Butler reminds backcountry users hiking with dogs that canines have limitations their masters need to keep in mind. Dog rescues in the backcountry aren’t that common, but they do happen. The Summit County Rescue Group has a litter specially made for evacuating dogs.
“We will go out a couple of times a summer and assist pet owners whose dogs have become exhausted or injured,” Butler said. “It’s important for folks not only to recognize their limitations, but also think really hard about what adventures you’re bringing your dog on. Most dogs I have encountered are happy-go-lucky; they’re going to follow their owner to the ends of the earth. The dog has a hard time saying, ‘I’m tired, my legs are starting to hurt, my (paw) pads are starting to hurt.’
“The canines we’ve rescued,” Butler added, “they go and go and go until they can’t go any longer. They’re not going to be able to give you warning signs that they’re starting to get tired or dehydrated.”
