On April 1, 2023, at 6:02 pm, Gallatin County Dispatch received a SOS notification from the International Emergency Response Coordination Center (IERCC) for a skier that was stranded and lost in the Bear Basin area. Their goal was to skin and backcountry ski into the Beehive Basin area, but the skier ran into equipment trouble and ended up needing assistance in Bear Basin.

Gallatin County Sheriff Search and Rescue Big Sky Section volunteers responded to assist. GCSSAR volunteers traveled via snowmobiles then transitioned to skis to meet the skier. The skier was ultimately escorted to the trailhead and transported back to their vehicle by a GCSO Deputy.

Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer would like to remind winter recreationalist to be prepared for any situation and that equipment can fail. The skier had GPS device and a phone with downloaded maps. The phone and the charger for the phone died, and as a result, the skier initiated the SOS function on the GPS device.

Photo courtesy of Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office.