I need to tell everyone the events that occurred on Fourtown while they are still fresh in my head.

We were a group of four: Myself, Ben my cousin, Uncle Tim, and friend Shane. We entered the BW on the 6th of July and departed out of Mudro (ep23). With a planned loop of Fairy lake, Moosecamp Lake, and Fourtown for an easy out on the 11th.

All went well the entire trip we got the campsites we wanted the weather was good and the fishing was good.

We left Moosecamp Lake and took the Moosecamp River down into Fourtown and stayed at on of the southern most sites on the 9th. We woke up on the 10th (Saturday) and listened to the weather on the marine radio and there were Thunderstorms in the forecast for the night and into the morning of our departure. We went fishing and fished until noon with very little action. Back at camp the decision was made that after lunch we would break camp and leave a day early. The weather was hot and sunny with a fresh wind out of the south at 15 kts with gusts to 20.

While we were packing we noticed a group of 3 canoes making their way south to the first portage out of Fourtown.
With canoes loaded we set out to return home.

Just before the first portage out of Fourtown back to Mudro (ep23) we saw the group that passed us while we were packing up. They were on a rocky shore line just before the portage and scrambling through their packs. Once we got closer we could see that one of their group was laying down on the rock. We stopped and asked if they needed any help. They said no and said that they had everything under control. We continued on.

We made it through the first portage and paddled across the pond and unloaded our gear. Myself and Shane took the canoes while the others in the group took gear. After Shane and I dropped the canoes and the end of the 140 rod goat hill portage we returned to pick up more gear and were headed back to load the canoes when we heard the cries for HELP!!!.

We dropped our gear and ran to the location of the cries. Three men from the group that we passed told us that one of their group was gravely ill and suffering heat stroke.

We quickly formed a plan.

Shane was to go back to aid the victim. My cousin Ben and myself and a member of the other party emptied one of our canoes and would make our way to the parking lot at the entry point all the while looking to see if we could pick up a cell tower.

The member of the group that was with us said that they had activated the 911 feature of their SPOT PLB but was unsure if it had worked.
Back at the 140 rod portage my Uncle gave all our water bottles to the group that was in distress. NONE of them had any water. A group of eight and no water????? This was also their first day of their trip. They had just entered earlier in the day.

After making our way to the parking lot we met a group and asked if they had a Sat phone and explained the situation to them. One of them said that he had On Star. We tried that but was useless.

The three of us jumped into the van and started making our way to Ely. Half way there we passed and stopped the Sheriff. We explained the situation and where the victim was. He said that he was responding to a 911 from SPOT but had no clue the situation or location of the victim. He radioed the Ranger station in Ely and they dispatched their float plane with flight nurse.
By this time the victim had been unconious for 2.5 hours.

While making our way back the Forest service plane flew over us on the way to the scene.

We arrived back to the end on the 140 rod portage where Shane was waiting and he told us the gravity of the situation that he had to deal with. I will NOT go into that.

The rescue personal loaded the victim into the plane and took off.

From the time we were asked for help 1430 to the time the plane landed was four hours.

After the plane took off we spoke with the other group and asked if they needed help hauling their gear, they said yes. We all helped haul their gear over the 140 rod goat hill and they said that they could handle everything from there on. They said thanks many many times. I told them that we weren't even supposed to be there. That we had made the decision to come out a day early. As it turns out were the LAST group to exit that day. I shudder to think of what might have happened if we had not left a day early.

All told we each made that 140 rod portage 7 times. We were exhausted, but we kept our self hydrated the whole time and ate as to not become victims our selves.

We finally made to the Van loaded up and drove home.
Morel of the story, Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate.
I called the Ranger station today and asked if they knew how the victim was doing. They did not know but said that they would call me and let me know.

wow!

quote kanoes: "wow!"

I'm still in shock. I hope the guy makes it.

wow - thats all i can say too

WOW!

It's amazing how hard it can be to stay hydrated around all of those lakes.

airmorse, What a story! You guys were in the right place at the right time, and did the right thing. Whatever the outcome, god was working through all of you.

I've had heat stroke....not good.
hard to imagine not hydrating yourself with all that water around.

quote mooseplums: "I've had heat stroke....not good.
hard to imagine not hydrating yourself with all that water around."

Glad you were there to help those folks. It can be a very susceptible sickness. I know my dad can't handle being on the water or hot days period, very long, he thinks it started from first being exposed to a "heat stroke" training for chemical war in the 60's after being drafted. Wearing heavy rubberized suits, headgear, respirators. It is something (I think) that fluids only slow down the over heating of your core temp. Possibly this individual is in a similar scenario. Hope all is well

Something for soloists to ponder.

quote fishguts: "airmorse, What a story! You guys were in the right place at the right time, and did the right thing. Whatever the outcome, god was working through all of you."

My aunt told me that in church today the sermon was about the good Samaritan. He does work in mysterious ways.

One more WOW, Hope he does ok. Good thing you were able to help him. I work outside and have learned when I stop sweeting I'm in trouble. I will drink a lot of water on a hot day. On a hot day I will dunk my hat in the water a put it back on my head. Name of the game is to stay cool and have plenty of water IN you.

Good story and good lesson. It was great that you were there to help. I sure hope the guy's OK.

sounds like a big bummer.


too bad they didn't throw him in the lake instead of on a rock. Seems like that'd cool his core off pretty quickly. Also seems like it'd be a pretty darn good time to drink unfiltered lake water.


I had heat stroke once when I was biking in too hot weather, All of the sudden I had black spots in front of me, and then I couldn't see at all except a little on the very sides. I dove off my bike and rolled into some nearby shade and just lay there till I recovered. freaked me out pretty well. :)



anyway, I hope the guy is alright, that stuff is no fun for anyone.

Heavy Duty Story..i hope all ends well.great to hear that a BWCA.COM poster was willing and able to put out for someone in need.also a good reminder that bad things happen out there.it's just not all jolly fishing trips.a bit of advice i got from the RN's when i worked at the VA was to start drinking extra fluids days before you head out so your body is not trying to play catch up when your working hard.one of the heavy items in my food pack that i take no matter what is the Gatoraid and Tang type drinks.while they may not been all they are cracked up to be and have a lot of sugar they do make it easy to hog down lots of fluids.

Good thing you were there to help. Hydration is so important. I wonder if they started with water and just did not replenish it because they were "on a mission" or if they didn't have any to start with. Either way, pretty stupid.


I agree with bradcrc they should have gotten him in the water. That will cool you down fast which is what's needed.

Nice job thinking through all the options and lending a hand. When you first asked if they needed help, they probably thought he'd pull out of it or something I imagine. Thanks for the story, good reminder to be alert within your group and for others. Thank goodness you guys were headed out that day!

quote fishguts: "airmorse, What a story! You guys were in the right place at the right time, and did the right thing. Whatever the outcome, god was working through all of you."

I agree! God works through people every day and He used you and your group in a mighty way. Well Done!!

I hope he's OK - heat stroke/exhaustion is very serious.

I did those portages last fall solo and it was a little strenuous. It was very warm for late Sept - well up in the 70's - and for some reason I had forgotten to mix up my quart of gatorade. Well, as merganser said, I was "on a mission", but by the time I got to Fourtown I was feeling it and knew enough to stop, filter water, eat something, and rest a little.

I'm not sure that putting him into the water would have been that good of an idea, because it would have been shocking to him. Anyone know the first aid protocol for heat stroke?

I hope he's going to be okay. Wow, that will be a trip you'll never forget, airmorse! Wish it could have been for a better reason, though. Good on you for working so hard to help out.

Airmorse,

Thanks for sharing. Probably a life changing experience for you.

It drives home the need for people to drink lots of water when it's hot and you are camping. You need to drink a lot of water even when you are not thirsty.

I had a member of my group suffer from mild heat stroke s few years back. It was over 100' in Ely the day we left.

You didn't mention if alcohol was a factor in your story. Something might have been the catalyst for this to happen (besides the heat) with such severity.

tom

Glad to hear you guys stepped up like you did - you did the right thing.

I hope the story ends up with a happy ending for the individual with the heat stroke.

This is a must read for everyone on this site, not only to convey how important staying hydrated is, but also remaining calm and forming a gameplan when things go bad. It might take a couple extra minutes to figure exactly what your going to do, but in the end you will save far more time by knowing exactly what you plan to do. You guys are heroes in my eyes, and Im Glad the lord choose you to work through to help that poor soul, I will pray for his or her speedy recovery, Great Job guys .

Glad you were there to help.

If the person is conscious I would put them in the water. If nauseated- small frequent sips- like 10 ml every 3-5 minutes, which would get you somewhere between 120-200 ml/hr of fluids. That may not be enough fluids, but any will help. Hopefully, one could avoid vomiting at that type of rate.

If unconscious, do not try to force fluids orally. Pour water over naked body...in the shade... and fan.

Just found out that the person in question made it. He spent the night in the hospital and was released the next day. The person I spoke with said that the individual looked very tired and weak after being released.

Still...Glad he recovered.

quote bradcrc: "sounds like a big bummer.



too bad they didn't throw him in the lake instead of on a rock. Seems like that'd cool his core off pretty quickly. Also seems like it'd be a pretty darn good time to drink unfiltered lake water.



I had heat stroke once when I was biking in too hot weather, All of the sudden I had black spots in front of me, and then I couldn't see at all except a little on the very sides. I dove off my bike and rolled into some nearby shade and just lay there till I recovered. freaked me out pretty well. :)




anyway, I hope the guy is alright, that stuff is no fun for anyone."

Submerging him in the water would have only worsened the situation by putting his body into a deeper state of shock.

What the flight nurse did when help arrived was to put ice packs under his armpits and in the groin area to help cool him.

Good reminder for me as I get ready to go in to the BWCA on Friday. 5 years ago I was hiking on the North coast of Kauai through a remote section of the island to a waterfall. It was warm, and on the way there I started getting a slight headache (note- one of the first signs of heat exhaustion). When we got there we enjoyed the sights, swam a bit in the cold water under the falls and cooled down. Then headed on down to the shore and back through the NaPalis to the car.

The nagging headache started back about 1/2 hour into the hike to the shore. I felt hot and was going to cool off at the beach, but the "guys" in the family wanted to get going. So I started plodding up the hills in the blazing sun, but started feeling really yucky. My hubby thought I was just complaining until I my muscles started spasming and I literally couldn't move. I knew I was in trouble in an area not accessible by chopper. As Drnatus said, sips of water worked best cuz I thought I would vomit. Made slow progress til we hit a little stream, and I sat down in it and cooled off.

Three signals I totally ignored - headache, beet red face, and no sweat. I know when portaging I have to pay attention and stay hydrated since I overheat much easier since this happened. I felt really lucky in Kauai....just glad these guys in the BWCA had some guardian angels in the human form around to help them! My sons and hubby really came to my rescue too.

onajourney, I get hot easily, too. I've gotten that type of headache and I get a beet red face. If I do not start cooling off immediately, I will get a migraine. I know it is from overheating. I don't think I sweat as much as most people. Anyway, this is a good reminder. It is hard when you're with a group and they want to keep going...

quote airmorse: "

Submerging him in the water would have only worsened the situation by putting his body into a deeper state of shock."

Yeah I think the cooling off in the lake bit should be done sooner, when the person can get in himself...and even then he should probably get in slowly. I've done that once, and I ended up really sick with flu-like symptoms. Not fun.

When I was on my solo trip July 5, I felt light headed when I reached my destination at 2PM. I was well aware of the need to hydrate on that hot, humid day. I drank 2 liters of water, but probably should have had more. I drank another liter of water at my campsite and cooled off with a swim. Only then, did I feel better. For insurance purposes, I drank a fourth liter of water and ate a small snack.

quote airmorse:
Submerging him in the water would have only worsened the situation by putting his body into a deeper state of shock.

What the flight nurse did when help arrived was to put ice packs under his armpits and in the groin area to help cool him. "

I agree that once he is unconscious not to submerge. There have been conflicting theories as to what is the best approach and none have been proven. It is likely that different methods work in different situations. It is important to avoid shivering as that will generate core heat- which we don't want. In the middle of the bwca you have to go with what you have, and ice packs to put under the arms are not likely to be available.

The sprinkle with cold water and fan approach may avoid the perceived problems with submersion- subcutaneous vasoconstriction-reducing heat transfer, induction of shivering, difficulty monitoring and access problems....but these are more of a concern in ER's with ice water submersion rather than dipping into the shoreline of a bwca lake in July.

Not bringing water bottles *with water* is a crucial thing to "forget." I have been very dehydrated before, but never run into a real problem, with the current heat I plan all runs over 7 miles so that there is access to water along the route.
Refusing help at first was obviously very silly, and they got more lucky that you hadn't finished the portage out yet.
I know a track coach who's biggest saying is that if you wait till you're thirsty to drink you can drink until you're bloated but you can't again become fully hydrated. Les Stroud had a story about drinking unfiltered water that when he did extreme races through the brush in Canada he always made his group drink the nastiest swamp water rather than go thirsty. Even if they didn't win they were much better off than the other groups that came out with severe dehydration..
Rant over.

Wow....a simple thing overlooked. And you guys happen to be there to help! Very fortunate outcome. Thanks for doing the right thing!

airmorse,
Glad you guys were there, you made a differance. Thanks for passing the experience on, it helps us all.
Boppa

quote drnatus: "Glad you were there to help.


If the person is conscious I would put them in the water. If nauseated- small frequent sips- like 10 ml every 3-5 minutes, which would get you somewhere between 120-200 ml/hr of fluids. That may not be enough fluids, but any will help. Hopefully, one could avoid vomiting at that type of rate.


If unconscious, do not try to force fluids orally. Pour water over naked body...in the shade... and fan."

Sounds right...

I was a young kid and did the local run for our towns summer activities well I did not eat or drink in the morning and ran a eight mile race. Finished it up felt like my eyes were coming out of my head anyway got a ride on the ambulance and some fluids and was fine but a couple summers ago when doing some training before going to Iraq I had to ID myself as having problems with heat boy they watched me close. once you get hit with this it is there for life and you gotta becarefull all the time. I am always poudning the water. no matter the temp

Dang, glad you were there to help.

quote nojobro: "I'm not sure that putting him into the water would have been that good of an idea, because it would have been shocking to him. Anyone know the first aid protocol for heat stroke? "

I have the red cross mountaineering first aid manual here..

the goal of treatment for heat stroke is to reduce body temperature immediately. Remove or loosen tight clothing
place patient in a cool, shady environment.
cool the patient with wet cloths or cool water. Imediately stop efforts at cooling if shivering occurs.
Monitor the patient carefully.
Give water in sips to a concious patient.
evacuate by stretcher as soon as possible

Airmorse,

I just read that story again. My God. You guys helped save this guys life.

I sent the story to everyone in my family. We have all camped together and have had many experiences out there. Nothing like yours.

Thanks again for sharing.

Tom

That guy and his group are really lucky your group was there...and you planned a great response, and probably saved a life.

I can't tell you how many middle-aged people I have met who don't drink water because "I'm not thirsty". I try to tell them that by the time they feel thirsty they are two hours or more late...usually they don't believe me. Some have even pointed out Bud Grant's training style...no water at practice. You wonder where some of these people have been for the last 20 years.

Thank you all for all the kind words. We did what I would like to think anyone else would have done.

The important thing is that he made it.

Heat stroke is deadly stuff not to be taken lightly. A guy on another forum lost his wife to in on a hike

Airmorse,

Thank you for sharing that story. Who knows how/why things happen the way they do but you were in the right place at the right time and provided needed help. I'm glad to hear the person involved pulled through.

Hydrate. Constantly. Such a simple thing along with not overdoing it and taking shade/rest breaks in the heat.

Nice job airmorse. Your group did a great thing.

Good work airmorse! And thanks for sharing. A good reminder for all of us to hydrate frequently.

Kudos to Airmorse and his group. After reading your story, I'm certain you saved a life. I hope the karma comes back to you in a special way.