The origins of SARDA owe a great deal to one man, Hamish MacInnes, a past leader of Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team. Back in the early 1960s, Hamish MacInnes was invited by the International Red Cross to attend a training course for avalanche dogs at Trubsee near Engleberg in the Swiss Alps. There he saw the work of the Swiss Alpine Club in using a dog’s natural scenting ability to locate humans buried under avalanche debris. Hamish MacInnes saw the potential for using dogs to search for lost walkers and climbers in the UK. In December 1964, he used a Glencoe training course for mountain rescue members from throughout the UK as a sounding board for the ideas. Encouraged by the response from members and the potential shown by the Swiss dogs, a meeting was held in May 1965 and
Return to search dog roots David and Brock are members of Lake District Mountain Rescue Search Dogs and you can find out more about this regional organisation at www.lakes-searchdogs.org
Everything’s under Control
SARDA (the Search and Rescue Dog Association) was formed. There’s an obvious connection to the Team’s current dog handlers but also an historic link from earlier this year. In April, Lurcher, Brock and handler, David Benson, stopped off at Engleberg to visit Trubsee for themselves. “I’d always wanted to visit the location as it holds such an important place in the origins of UK mountain search and rescue dogs,” says David, “and this was my opportunity.” David and Brock continued on from Engleberg to the Italian Dolomites as attendees at the International Commission of Alpine Rescue’s dog handler sub-committee winter training workshop. This was hosted by the Guardia di Finanza and attended by 51 dog and handler teams from across Europe. The programme involved four days of practical work with dogs to find snow-buried victims. “Brock doesn’t get a lot of practice given the smaller the amounts of snow here in Cumbria,” says David, “but he held his own with his Alpine canine friends.”
In her Chair’s article in the Annual Review, Jacquie Freeborn talked about investments in our Rescue Centre Control Room and the improved resilience of the building. In this article, she explains her role as Base Controller, how it has changed over the years and the benefits of those recent investments. Jacquie has been involved in Base Control since 1985 and it’s changed a lot in that time: “The Control Room in our old Base was not much bigger than a cupboard,” she says. “I started out supporting the team at base but I was happy driving a Team Land Rover so I soon got promoted into being the radio relay out on the hills.”
One of the biggest changes over the years has been the evolving scale, scope and sheer quantity of technology and equipment involved in the modern Rescue Centre. The opportunity was taken to update things using grant funding that followed the December 2015 flooding: “Our power, IT and communications systems are essential to operations,” says Jacquie, “and they’re much more resilient now as we’ve raised them on to the first floor. The other aspects of the investment that’ve made a huge difference for me are the new equipment in the Control Room and the creation of a second Control Room alongside it.” These changes aren’t just about updating equipment. They also enable people to keep up to date with what’s happening on a call out wherever they are in the Rescue Centre and the second room is ideal
“In 1988 we did 14 rescues in three days from that Base, which must have been our longest ever nonstop shift. It wasn’t worth going home so we were sleeping there and we called in the local WRVS to cater for the Teams so we could keep going.” Visit the Patterdale Mountain Rescue web site at www. mountainrescue.org.uk for latest call out information and Team news
for other agencies or neighbouring MR teams to use during bigger incidents. “The two big screens in the Control Room are ideal for updating logs in parallel with watching progress of the Team on the map software,” says Jacquie, “and I don’t need to keep updating people as they arrive – they can see for themselves on the screens around Base. This avoids crowds of people in the Control Room, everyone’s up to speed AND the second room is already helping joint working.” “After Storm Desmond, we wanted to future proof the Rescue Centre. We needed to make everything more secure, sturdy, flexible and adaptable and I think we’ve achieved that – huge thanks go to Cumbria Community Foundation and other donors for the support that enabled it to happen.”
Patrick Relay
A patchwork for Christmas
Two of our biggest supporters are featured in books this Winter – with one offering proceeds to Patterdale MRT so we’re keen to encourage sales. The first is Rachael: A remarkable child explorer by Joyce Buxton. This is the story of Rachael Moseley, a young Patterdale resident who walked the Coast to Coast Path three times in aid of the Team while still
National links
Two recent additions to the national Mountain Rescue England and Wales website may be of interest to our supporters, especially as one of them has involved our President and former Team Leader, Dave Freeborn, in a lot of work! Dave’s been working on digitising a selection of films from the MR archive and these are gradually being added to www.mountain.rescue.org.uk Just look out for the clapper board icon on the Home page and select your video viewing. Also on the MREW website, there’s now a blog with articles and information about everything from animal rescues to safety advice. A current post describes the Man+Mountains exhibition about Chris Bonington at Keswick Museum. This is running until early January and is well worth a visit – you can find the Blog at the same web address.
The middle of August is a busy time in the Lake District but not usually quite such a busy time for the Team. But one particular weekend this summer was an exception with five rescues. You can see more of Mark’s photography at www.marklittlejohnphotography.com and this card is one of several on sale now via the Team’s website – just look for the Shop tab.
at primary school. She has since spread her wings, trekking in Nepal and exploring Iceland too. The book is available in Booths branches and other bookshops as well as on Amazon, cover price £20. Our Trustee, Angela Frances Bell, has written a book about her years of fell walking. Entitled You Just Can’t Bottle It, it has a foreword by the amazing Lake District fell runner, Joss Naylor and profits will go to Patterdale MRT.
The first one, on the afternoon of Friday 10 August, was for a man who sustained an open fracture to his leg while taking part in a mountain bike race. He was treated on scene by Team members and then flown to hospital by the Great North Air Ambulance. The second incident was an 84-year-old man who had fallen while walking with his family from Howtown to Patterdale. He sustained a head and facial injury and became disorientated following the fall. He was treated by one of the Team’s doctors on scene and then taken in our rescue boat for transfer to hospital. On the Sunday, the Team dealt with three further rescues. The first, at around 8:30am, was in response to a 999 call from two young men who were wild camping at Hard Tarn. They awoke to thick mist and were unsure how to navigate back down to the valley safely. Nine Team members located them and escorted them safely off the mountain.
“The book is all about fell-walking through generations of my family,” says Angela, “and it also contains tales from my time in mountain rescue and stories of my adventures with a variety of companions.” “The title came about because you have to go up into the mountains to experience the atmosphere - you can’t just buy that feeling in a bottle!”
You Just Can’t Bottle It is available from Angela via angela_bell65@aol.com. It costs £10 plus postage and packing.
Articles for Relay We are always looking for interesting articles or letters from supporters. Please write c/o Patrick Relay Editor, Ogilvie House, Patterdale, Cumbria CA11 0PJ The Patterdale Mountain Rescue Association Ltd. is a registered charity No1063329 and is affiliated to the Mountain Rescue Council of England and Wales.
Just as this rescue was starting, the Team was also requested by Cumbria Police to assist a 12-year-old boy who had fallen approximately 20ft from Swirral Edge on Helvellyn. Team members were sent to locate the boy and his father but they had already made their own way safely to the valley.
Swiral Edge © Michael Graham
Books for sale
Five rescues in 48 hours
Our Team Leader, Mike Blakey, was asked to comment and said: “Mountain rescue teams are entirely voluntary and, although Team members are always willing to assist those in need, it can be frustrating and tiring when we’re called to those who could have avoided their situations. Hard Tarn © David Brown
Thanks again to the great photographers among our members and supporters who help us out with card images each year. We’re refreshing our current selection of fundraising cards with a couple of new designs this Winter including one from Mark Littlejohn. It shows a hidden corner of our patch – if you’ll pardon the pun. Mark will explain: “This photograph was taken from Beda Knotts one freezing but beautiful January morning last year. I had been up and over the tops before dawn and had gone out looking for a more abstract shot of some sheep trods in frost and low, angled light and was struck by the early light on Martindale instead. The way the early light and the colour combined made me think of a patchwork quilt so I’ve called it Martindale Patchwork. As simple as that really - a nice image doesn’t need to be complicated.”
W i nt e r 2018
New s from t he Pat t e rdale Mo unta in Rescue Tea m
PATRICK RELAY l Winter 2018
As the team completed this rescue, they were called to assist a woman who had fallen and sustained a fractured shoulder while walking the Coast to Coast long distance route. Team members, assisted by Penrith MRT, climbed back up the valley to assist her. She was treated on scene and then lowered on a stretcher to the waiting GNAA helicopter before she was flown to hospital for treatment.
“On this particular weekend, most of the incidents were exactly what we’re here for – unavoidable incidents involving people who were prepared, enjoying the outdoors but something went wrong. They realise their situation, call us out but do everything they can to make themselves safe too. It’s the unprepared – like our wild campers who didn’t seem to have checked a weather forecast - who create frustration. Their predicament was completely avoidable and we were already stretched dealing with more serious incidents.” All in all, volunteer Team members were out on incidents for about 18 hours over this one weekend.
Visit the Patterdale Mountain Rescue web site at www.mountainrescue.org.uk for latest call outs