EP 14: 54 hours off the trail - Lost in Golden Ears

[00:00:00] - [Cassie]
Close yet so far. There, but in the wrong place entirely. Imagine you're lost. You know there are searchers close by, but the brush is just too thick that rescue feels so elusive. This is episode 14, fifty four hours off the trail, lost in golden years.

[00:00:24] - [Cassie]
Welcome to mishaps and mysteries. I'm your host, Cassie.

[00:00:28] - [Nina]
And I'm your host, Nina. Our podcasts explore stories of misadventures in the wild landscapes of British Columbia, Canada. Thanks for being here with us today. This is another story that inspired mishaps and mysteries. It takes place just North of Maple Ridge in Golden Ears Provincial Park, the largest provincial park in the greater Vancouver area.

[00:00:51] - [Nina]
Every year, over 600,000 people visit Golden Ears to swim, boat, and windsurf on Alouette Lake. But beyond the busy front country campgrounds lies 620 square kilometers of rugged mountainous terrain and dense coastal western hemlock forest. If you listen to episode six, it's comparable in size to Redfern Keely. But unlike the safety of the main trails, it doesn't take long to step out of bounds and find yourself deep in the backcountry. Out there, salt reception drops to zero and things can go wrong very quickly.

[00:01:31] - [Cassie]
It's late June twenty twenty three. Confident, smart, responsible Esther Wang was 16 men. She was described by a teacher as the type of student that any teacher will want to have in their classroom. She's living in Langley and was camping at Golden Ears at the North Beach Campground. She was a member of the air cadets at the time, and it seems like this camping trip was part of an outdoor activity requirement in the work that she was doing towards her bronze award in cadets.

[00:02:06] - [Cassie]
Cadets is a free program in Canada that provides youth with opportunities in leadership, fitness, and more. They're sea, army, or air cadets. And as a member of the air cadet specifically, Esther would have gotten experience in activities like flying and gliding. At the time, Esther stood five three and had long black hair. On Tuesday, 06/27/2023, Esther is going hiking in the park with her camping group.

[00:02:37] - [Cassie]
Just a day hike. She was wearing a dark outer layer of black leggings and a black jacket, and was also wearing a dark blue ball cap and a white, red, and blue backpack.

[00:02:49] - [Nina]
At 9AM, the group set out from the North Beach Campground. Their plan was to hike the East Canyon Trail, a moderate nine kilometer out and back route with a few steep climbs, and eventually link up with the Golden Ears Trail, which is considered hard. Parts of it are quite steep. Because this was strictly a day hike, Esther was not carrying any overnight survival gear. She later wrote about the start of that day saying, we started from our campsite at North Beach, and we use the East West Canyon Connector to access the Golden Ears Trail.

[00:03:26] - [Nina]
The exact makeup of our hiking party is a bit unclear. Reports conflict. Some cite three teens and one adult, while others mention four young people with one acting as a leader. What we do know is that this small young group was heading to a destination referred to in articles as Steve's Lookout. We found on Reddit a reference to a memorial called Steve's Lookout from a 2017 RMSAR post.

[00:03:57] - [Nina]
It's located between the nine and ten kilometer markings. It's past Alder Flats by quite a bit, but we couldn't find us on a map. Regardless of where they actually were, the group reportedly reached their lookout and began the trek back to camp at 02:45PM. Just fifteen minutes later, at 3PM, Esther vanished.

[00:04:23] - [Cassie]
Imagine being the group leader, their stomach must have dropped to the ground, and a desperate confused feeling had to have followed.

[00:04:31] - [Nina]
Yeah. I think we all know that feeling to some extent. It's horrible.

[00:04:35] - [Cassie]
The group doubled back to the lookout and found no sign of Esther. The leader returned to the trailhead to seek help from park rangers and Esther was subsequently reported missing. The search for Esther began that afternoon. Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue was there as the lead. Ridge Meadows RCMP were also there and organizing too collaboratively.

[00:05:00] - [Cassie]
The search grew as 16 teams from across the province came in to look. They were from the Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley, and Sea To Sky area. 40 to 45 people were generally involved in the search, and at one point, it said that there were close to 60 volunteers. They searched for Esther through the night on Tuesday the twenty seventh. Like we said, there's almost no reception in Golden Ears Provincial Park.

[00:05:25] - [Cassie]
RCMP couldn't ping Esther's cell. They shared her picture and details of her going missing at the trailhead and in the general park areas. Family and friends of Esther's were itching to help search. So by the next day, people were showing up, but Ridge Meadow Search and Rescue had asked the public not to search themselves because of the danger posed by the challenging terrain of the area. Some family and friends were interviewed at the trailhead.

[00:05:56] - [Cassie]
They had been up early in the morning to get to Golden Ears to help search. Instead, they were there supporting Esther's parents waiting in the parking lot for news. A fellow cadet and his mother were interviewed too. He said that she was confident, hardworking, and motivated. Searches continued all day Wednesday, June 28.

[00:06:20] - [Cassie]
In addition to the number of volunteers, searches included a helicopter and a UAV. But the thick tree canopy of the Western Hemlock Forest made searching with aerial equipment challenging, pretty much fruitless. There were no signs of Esther. On Wednesday night, they had to pause the search. It was then resumed first thing on Thursday morning, June twenty ninth.

[00:06:48] - [Cassie]
Again, team searched all day.

[00:06:53] - [Nina]
Hope must have been fading by then. I can only imagine. No sign of Esther after two days.

[00:06:58] - [Cassie]
No. No sign. Except at about 09:30PM on Thursday the twenty ninth, Esther walks out of the woods and into the parking lot. The very parking lot where her journey started at the trailhead. And the first people she sees are her parents.

[00:07:26] - [Nina]
It goes without saying that in any missing person case, the agony falls hardest on the parents. So imagine the sheer relief when on Thursday night, the news broke across the province. Esther had been found. She was safe. She was well, and she was back with her family.

[00:07:45] - [Nina]
Rich Meadows RCMP superintendent Wendy Mehat and search and rescue's Ryan Smith became the faces of the media updates. And the story they were telling was nothing short of incredible. Esther hadn't just survived fifty four hours lost in a dense backcountry. She had navigated her own way out. At just 16 years old, she self rescued.

[00:08:08] - [Nina]
Everyone was asking the exact same question. What happened? It came down to the terrain. Esther had been looking down, hyper focused on navigating a steep section of the trail. When she finally looked up, her group was gone.

[00:08:25] - [Nina]
They had likely turned a blind corner while her eyes were on the ground. In her own words, Esther wrote, once I realized that the rest of my group was no longer in front of me, I tried to turn around, but I tripped and fell. She took a hard tumbling fall down a steep slope, only stopping when she hit a flat embankment below. Terrified and completely alone, she curled into a ball. But instead of panicking, she leaned on her cadet training.

[00:08:55] - [Nina]
She forced herself to stay calm, a critical split second decision that set the tone for the next fifty four hours. And you know what, Cass? I'm just gonna add here that in a lot of cases where people survive, one of the key factors is they force themselves to be calm.

[00:09:17] - [Cassie]
It's so important, and we'll definitely get into that later in our safety lesson. So now she's fallen down. She's hurt and she's disoriented. Where did she come from? Where did her group go?

[00:09:31] - [Cassie]
She was lost. As time went on into the evening, she could hear what sounded like whistles and other general noises one might imagine they'd hear when they're being searched for. And she tried to get the search volunteer's attention, but was unsuccessful. She was feeling nervous for sure, but she did say she managed to stay strong. With daytime soon to come to a close, she had to shift priorities.

[00:09:59] - [Cassie]
She moved down the mountain having to do some scaling. She was seeking out water. She did have the food and water packed for the hiking trip for the day, So she was able to eat that and already had some water to start, but she knew she was gonna need more. Esther did manage to find a river that night, Tuesday, and she slept on the rocks by it. She said that she was so cold, she couldn't really sleep.

[00:10:27] - [Cassie]
Around 1AM, she could hear people looking for her. The sounds of whistling and yells, and most importantly, she could see lights. She tried to shine her headlamp in an effort to be seen, but it was not fruitful. No one could see her, and she couldn't discern the direction that the lights were coming from properly. The canopy and the brush was just so thick.

[00:10:54] - [Cassie]
That had to just be so devastating. She began to be scared that she wouldn't be found.

[00:11:01] - [Nina]
The next day, Wednesday, early in the morning about 5AM, she decided to climb back up the slope she'd scaled down and search for water. She hoped that she could find the trail she'd been on. In this process, she thought she heard whistles and tried to find where they were coming from. She wasn't going to be able to get back up to that spot. She turned back to go down and fell and hit her head.

[00:11:26] - [Nina]
It's not clear how badly, but she didn't lose consciousness. She was able to carry on after the fall. Throughout Wednesday, the twenty eighth, she heard more search party noise and found a peak to climb as she hoped she would be spotted then. She saw helicopters overhead but went unseen. It's challenging to spot someone in the thick trees.

[00:11:48] - [Nina]
One thing she tried, she shook small trees to try to draw attention to their shaking branches in hopes that it would be seen by helicopter. She used her phone to play music in the hopes that that would be heard. It sounds like there were a few times where she knew she was close to searchers but just couldn't get their attention. She said that each time she felt deflated. What a horrible feeling to be so close and yet so far from rescue.

[00:12:18] - [Nina]
Somewhere in her struggle of climbing back up the hill, she lost her phone. It was already dead by then. She did successfully climb back up the hill later in the day. By Wednesday night, exhausted, she was at a peak on the mountain and slept under a tree.

[00:12:37] - [Cassie]
On Thursday morning, she had an important light bulb moment. Esther remembered she had taken some pictures on her digital camera. She looked at her pictures and was able to recognize a mountain peak in the background that she could see now from where she was. Okay. So this helped her orient herself as to where she was and where she had been.

[00:13:02] - [Cassie]
She found and followed a fast moving river downstream. As she moved further along, she started seeing pink trail marking tape. We all know the kind. She kept following the river and eventually came across a gravel path, which she followed to a lakeside beach. Exhausted and with her legs wanting to give out from under her, Esther spotted a direction sign and noted that she was at Hikers Beach.

[00:13:34] - [Cassie]
Esther said that at the sight of the sign, she was filled with relief. She saw on the sign the directions to the Gold Creek parking lot. So she's gonna have to kinda double back to go to the Gold Creek parking Lot. But she knew that was where she had to go. That's where she had come from after all.

[00:13:57] - [Cassie]
She had to cross through some water to double back quicker. But her body was also giving out on her. She said she started to feel dizzy and imagine things. I personally wonder if this had to do with the adrenaline rush and relief of knowing that she was finally so close to the parking lot. The body can do some really funny things in those moments, and this could have further disoriented her in her already weekend state.

[00:14:25] - [Cassie]
It was around nine, 09:30PM, and she had followed the sign to the parking lot. Her parents are there waiting for an update from search and rescue. And after more than two days alone in the woods, she walked out of the woods and into her parents' arms.

[00:14:44] - [Nina]
Even though she ultimately rescued herself, Esther said the work of the search and rescue volunteers was key to her coming to safety. Knowing they were there, searching helped immensely. She went through a lot. She had some physical and mental trauma. She was looked over by paramedics in the parking lot.

[00:15:05] - [Nina]
She had bleeding at her feet because her boots had been wet from crossing bodies of water. Her skin had been rubbed raw against the boots. They also noted scratches and bruises. She also, of course, had lots of mosquito bites. And she was exhausted.

[00:15:21] - [Nina]
Ultimately, no hospital trip was required and she went home with her family to rest. She also said her faith played an important role in her survival. She said her cadet training and skills gained from the program helped her with her survival. Of course, everyone wanted to talk to Esther after her rescue. She wrote a letter to CBD, which is how we have some of the specifics of what happened to her and how she got out of the situation she found herself in.

[00:15:50] - [Nina]
Both Esther and her parents shared how grateful they were for everyone that searched for her,

[00:15:56] - [Cassie]
but they declined any interviews asking for privacy. Let's get into our safety lesson this week. Search and rescue experts and adventure smart staff credited her survival to physical fitness, being prepared with food and water, the good weather, and her calm thoughtfulness in the situation. Search and rescue said that she was obviously very determined. Brian Smith from Ridge Meadows Search and Rescue had said, we were literally covering almost every square meter of that area that Esther was in.

[00:16:31] - [Cassie]
Unfortunately, it sounds like a few times Esther saw the lights or heard the noises or dogs barking. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to make contact with us, and we weren't able to make contact with her. End quote. He said that other than not staying put, which would have helped immensely, she did a lot of things right. She was prepared.

[00:16:54] - [Cassie]
She was able to think things through and re-orientate herself. After Esther's survival, Sandra Riches from Adventure Smart BC recommended everyone remember the acronym STOP if ever lost. It stands for stop, think, observe, and plan. So to expand on that, STOP. Stay still to prevent yourself from panicking and making poor decisions.

[00:17:24] - [Cassie]
Think. Take a breath slowly and try to remember where you came from. Observe. Take in your surroundings, what you have on you, what the weather is doing, and is there any water nearby? And finally, plan.

[00:17:44] - [Cassie]
Now you can make your next move. Are you going to stay put, which is usually the recommended option, or are you gonna backtrack? You should only backtrack when you're confident on your route. Staying where you are once you realize you're lost helps ensure that you remain near your last known location, making it easier to find you. Sure.

[00:18:09] - [Cassie]
It's not going to be the best option in every scenario. But by using the STOP acronym, one can at least slow down and take in their situation rather than moving around out of panic.

[00:18:29] - [Nina]
Esther was calm and thoughtful. It would have been a harrowing experience for anyone, but imagine being a teenager. I'm sure the good and bad of those fifty four hours are still in her mind three years later. Esther is an adult now, and we hope she's doing well. Her creativity, like checking back on photos for reference and shaking small trees are reminder to us to use what we have in a survival situation.

[00:18:58] - [Nina]
Thank you for joining us for this episode. New episodes are out every Tuesday. You can reach out to us at info@mishapsandmysteries.ca. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe and leave us a rating and a review. It really helps new people find us.

[00:19:15] - [Nina]
Also, share with your friends. Be safe and never stop exploring.