Incident on Gategill - ie Parachute descent.
http://www.grough.co.uk/magazine/201...-lakeland-fell
Don't know if anyone is aware ?
I could only assume that it would be BGR related ?
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Incident on Gategill - ie Parachute descent.
http://www.grough.co.uk/magazine/201...-lakeland-fell
Don't know if anyone is aware ?
I could only assume that it would be BGR related ?
Sounds nasty, hope he's OK
It does sound like 2 and 2 might really be 4 here, hard to imagine this being anything other than a BGR related incident, recce or attempt. That descent is uncompromising and something I've only done once and it claimed an couple of ankles. So many terrific, sure footed descenders can whiz down here but it's a risky one for those of us less gifted in the balance dept! It would have been greasy underfoot this weekend - I was out on leg three nav'ing a round and it was very tricky out there.
Hope it all ends well and a speedy recovery ensues...
Bad times. Thoughts go out to the injured party.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark Smith
Ditto that Rodders, wishing them a speedy recoveryQuote:
Originally Posted by Rodders
It's certainly an uncompremising line if you get off route.
Hope it's not as bad as it sounds
Doesn't sound good!! Not sure I'd be down there in anything but good, dry conditions. But I've only been down there the once.
Good point well made Mark.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark Smith
As you say Rob, I hope it isn't as bad as it sounds... good luck to them and I hope for a full recovery.
Hope the runner recovers well.
We stood at the top on Sunday and, again, I voiced the opinion that I don't see the point in it at all and, indeed, it can entice runners down there who would be far better placed taking one of the other options.
Brings back memories (almost exactly a year) - although that's not hard as I carry a reminder around with me. Yes, hope he's ok. Spinal injuries sound worrying.
Poor sod , I hope he recovers ok and he's not as bad as he sounds. Never been down that route but know of its reputation.
It's certainly a challenging descent and i can imagine a tumble having quite serious consequences, i wish the injured person a speedy recovery.
there is a safer and just as fast option a wee bit furher west - avoids the gullies and takes in more scree
Not sure what injuries he has suffered but apparently he is conscious and drinking coffee. His name is Mark Williams and may be known to some Ambleside runners. This was not a BGR attempt but a two day recce of the route. The runners are all from Springfield (Essex) and are all experienced and competent fell runners.
The accident actually happened right at the end of Gate Gill, probably no more than 200m from the gate off the fell. We knew that we had strayed into the gully from our intended path along the ridge, but it seemed as easy to keep going down rather than try to get back to the Hall's Ridge path; we could see where we were going and were through the worst part. Three of us were carrying gear, as we had planned to do the round over a couple of days, camping out half way round. Mark was only running leg 1, never having been to Great Calva before, and fell right at the end of the valley, just before he would have left us to run back to Keswick. None of us saw what actually happened, but we understand, indirectly, that he is sitting up and drinking tea (thankfully a lot better than we had been led to expect). Needless to say the recue people really performed well; many thanks to them.
Here's hoping for a speedy recovery!! Tea definately helps i find!! :thumbup:
Speedy recovery Mark.
This is a timely reminder to all others to be aware and be careful out there.
Ken
If he is sitting up that suggests limited damage to his back, excellent news! I must admit, I read this and had a cold chill run over me .... I came down the Parachute in very wet and slippy conditions on Friday night (on my abortive BG attempt) following the route that Tom Phillips mentions and was pretty mortified when I read this, particularly as one of my support runners hadn't done it before.
Still, it does sound like it was one of those accidents that could have happened to anyone, particularly so far down where the incline is much less steep. Hope Mark continues to improve.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gk4
Sounds promising... fingers crossed.
See you Friday Ken.
A correct assumption in this instance but there are plenty of us who frequent the Northern Fells and even Gategill without it always being BGR related...Quote:
Originally Posted by AlanB
Great news by the sound of it, hope all goes well for you mark .
I know Mark quite well - we always have a chat when he comes up for races in the Peak. Please pass on my best wishes to him.
I agree. Slightly off topic but I find the obsession among fell runners with finding a shorter 'faster' more direct way to be a bit sad. Of course, speed is the name of the game so it's inevitable but I'm always aggrieved when the need for speed takes me along some soul-less contour or down a bland slope when the ridges are so much more sporting and aesthetically pleasing...Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr1470
As a veteran of flinging myself off Blencathra (Sharp Edge in my case) with grievious consequences, I echo the best wishes for a speedy recovery.
Andy, is an accident on a ridge preferable to one on a soul-less contour? YiannisQuote:
Originally Posted by Fellhound
Sounds promising. Excellent news
Good to hear he is recovering. An accident anywhere is an accident does it matter whether it was on a race, recce or round?
Absolutely... my Sharp Edge fall was a brilliant accident... :rolleyes:Quote:
Originally Posted by ydt
Details?Quote:
Originally Posted by Fellhound
and a much better view :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Fellhound
Sorry Mike, I was just matching Yiannis’ flippancy..Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike T
It wasn’t a brilliant accident at all actually, it was quite serious. I fell c.100ft in three or four bounces from the infamous slippery slab on the upper section of Sharp Edge in September 1999 and suffered multiple injuries: broken ribs, punctured lung, internal bleeding (haemo-thorax), broken cheekbone and other facial injuries, R kneecap broken into 4 pieces, severed patella tendon, big chunk of flesh gouged from R buttock etc.
I was close to death due to blood in the chest cavity when I got to Carlisle infirmary but have made an almost complete recovery thanks to the Mountain Rescue team, other people on the scene, and the medical care I received. Strangely though, I have never quite regained my previous level of fitness
Strangely Bill, I never noticed the view on my way down but I'm sure it was spectacular....
:)
Yikes Fellhound that was nasty. Was it wet? I have done it 3 times, once down - horrible - as I chickened out of staying on the ridge and found myself on even worse ground to the north - twice up in dry conditions - fine. I can see that even when dry you are only a foot or two - or a brief distraction - from disaster.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fellhound
Oh no, poor Mark!
Whoever is in touch with him, a speedy recovery from me... xx
I never go up Sharp Edge in anything but perfect conditions these days. If its damp at all it can be slippy. I had a nasty day up there a few years ago. Nearly fell off twice, once from in the gulley and once again on the slab. I decided to descend, tried the ridge...slippy. Dropped down to lower path...horrible, shaley and slippy. Scary day! Judging by your resultant injuries Fellhound, I'd be wise to only go up in scortching sunshine!! I've taken a few people up there and had problems too....
Mark is now out of intensive care and in good spirits except for being bored with nothing to do. He has a shattered 2nd vertibrae which they have secured by bolting marks head in a halo collar thingy to stop him moving it. they plan to leave it like that for up to six weeks to see if it will bind itself together. if it does not they will go in and wire it all up.
He also has a broken leg which they will not set and put in plaster for a couple of days when hopefully the trauma and swelling has gone down.
Also he has lost a chunk of flesh from the side of his nose plus other scrapes and bruises
Sounds like Doddick for Mark then next time !Quote:
Originally Posted by invisible
Glad it's all getting sorted.
[QUOTE=Fellhound;488224]I agree. Slightly off topic but I find the obsession among fell runners with finding a shorter 'faster' more direct way to be a bit sad. Of course, speed is the name of the game so it's inevitable but I'm always aggrieved when the need for speed takes me along some soul-less contour or down a bland slope when the ridges are so much more sporting and aesthetically pleasing...
actually, I'm with you on this one. ridges are usually the nicest lines. :rolleyes:
Ouchya!!! Good luck on a quick recovery!
Wow that has to smart a bit.
Very unfortunate to have had such a fall, very fortunate to be "bored" with his current situation. Its going to be a long hard road back. I'm sure everyone wishes a speedy and complete a recovery as possible.
As for the recce/race/run comments, its like getting run over by a big or a little car, it don't matter much, its still a car, they all still hurt.
OOOh poor Mark-he must be in a lot of pain. How scary the whole thing must have been too. Ive fallen there also on wet rock with tired legs at the end of a BG reccie. Slipped, bounced a few times but managed to stop the forward rotation by flinging myself backwards, digging heels and elbows in, rucksack helped and quicky came to a halt. immediately burst into tears and was then very quiet for the reast of the day. A few sleepless nights -what might have been..... Mark is such a lovely lad and always runs with a smile and a friendly chat to everyone he meets. Hes a member of Ambleside AC although lives and works in Essex and is a Geordie by birth. Ambleside friends have sent a card and best wishes for a quick recovery. If youre reading this Mark Good Luck and leave those nurses alone!!Quote:
Originally Posted by invisible
Thanks for all the good wishes. Thought it was about time I contributed!! :-)
I am now recuperating at my parent's home in Somerset. Apart from the obvious effects of the injuries, I'm OK and don't feel too bad at all. My neck and shoulders are constantly sore and I've strained muscles in my chest and arms from shifting myself about with limited mobility, otherwise, no pain.
It seems I fell about 60ft down a scree slope. Don't know if I damaged it too much. Apart from scratches, cuts and bruises, my C2 vertebra (in the neck) is smashed (that's how the doc described it!), the skull is fractured in four places, the malloleus (bottom of fibia) is broken in the left leg and some lumbar vertebrae are damaged where the ligaments were pulled off. I have also nadgered my right ankle which is just soft tissue damage. By the feel of it, I think I may have caught the right foot in a hole or rock and this may have caused my fall.
Fortunately I don't have any memory from well before the incident until waking up in the hospital in Newcastle.
Apart from the frustration of limited mobility, my only annoyance is that I lost my wallet, phone and camera in the fall as my rucksack tore open. But there again, that my have saved me!!
From an assessment at Taunton hospital, I will now need to wear the halo for between 3 and 4 months. So effectively I'll be out of action for the rest of the year. But I will be back. With the Quantocks so close here, a few easy walks will get the confidence back.
Oh, and Maggie May! I'm native Welsh!! And I can report that all the nurses have been fantastic!! :thumbup:
Lastly I wish to convey my big thanks and gratitudes to the Keswick MRT and Great North Air Ambulance teams. Once I fully fixed I'll be popping up to buy you beers :thumbup:
Mark