From canyon to satellite....

Steve Rice is a backcountry ranger with Grand Canyon National Park, and he’s just taken delivery of his Fast Find PLB, made by McMurdo. ”Currently we carry portable VHF radios and a satellite telephone, but neither of these options is 100% effective in the narrow confines of the inner canyon” he says as he explains why a Fast Find 210 would provide a greater safety net.

Steve primarily acts as the lead ranger for Phantom Ranch along the Colorado River at the bottom of the Canyon. He also conducts routine solo patrols of up to eight days in the park’s trail-less backcountry and works as the SAR Shift Coordinator, sometimes managing as many as a dozen separate rescues and medevacs in a day. “Your PLB is a valuable addition to my personal safety equipment, and its small size makes it perfect for carrying on extended backpacking patrols where every ounce of gear means a little less water I can carry” he says.

Overall the park is handling in excess of 200 rescues each year- most concentrated in the spring, early summer, and fall. For further information on the Grand Canyon National Park visit http://www.nps.gov/GRCA.