Routt County Search and Rescue has responded to five field missions so far this year — 17 fewer than the first three months in 2024, according to Routt County Search and Rescue President Bobby Carlton.

The dip in fieldable missions — defined as a mission where search and rescue teams physically respond to a call for help — has much to do with technology used to locate people in the backcountry, said Carlton.

“Our incident commanders are really good at talking to people and finding out where they’re at with the technology we have,” said Carlton. “There are a lot of times incident commanders can talk people out, so we don’t have to go into the field.”

The organization had 16 calls for service in the first three months of 2025, eight fewer than last year.

Of this year’s 16 calls, search and rescue teams physically responded to five, spending over 400 hours on active operations, states a news release from the organization.

Routt County Search and Rescue team members were paged Jan. 6 for their first mission of the year after a snowmobiler got stuck in a drainage on the northwest side of Farwell Mountain near King Solomon Falls. 

The snowmobiler spent the night in the cold while 16 Routt County Search and Rescue team members were sent to locate him and bring him out of the area, according to the news release.

Only a couple weeks later, six Routt County Search and Rescue team members were sent to assist an injured snowmobiler in the Slater Park area in North Routt while they were participating in snowmobile training.

“The team quickly transitioned from training to mission mode and headed north to assist the injured snowmobiler,” states the news release.

When team members arrived at the scene, they put the injured snowmobiler in a toboggan and transported him to an ambulance waiting at the trailhead.

On Feb. 19, Routt County Search and Rescue was paged to locate two overdue snowmobilers in the Farwell Mountain area. Two teams responded to the call, utilizing two separate routes to reach the riders through radio communications, according to the news release.

Teams found the riders the following morning after the two snowmobilers were able to get unstuck from the snow they had been caught in the day before.

Team members responded to a Feb. 21 call regarding a snowmobiler who had been separated from the group he was riding with, and had last been seen in the North Fork drainage of Fish Creek around sunset.

Two teams of snowmobilers and skiers found the man and brought him out of the area on snowshoes due to avalanche conditions.

One month later, a Routt County Search and Rescue team was alerted to an injured snowmobiler on Buffalo Pass and quickly found the rider. 

A second team of Search and Rescue snowmobilers brought a paramedic from Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue to assist the injured rider, while Routt Powder Riders crews groomed the trail to provide a snow road. The injured rider was taken to an ambulance in a heated snowcat.

Carlton noted that multiple recent field missions required people in need of help to spend the night in the backcountry and emphasized the importance of being prepared for anything, regardless of the time of year.

Proper clothing, food, water and shelter are essential for any backcountry trip.

Carlton added that traveling with another person is always advised.

“We have incredibly independent spirits in Routt County. We’re not going to tell people not to go alone, but it’s always safer with a companion,” said Carlton. “Whether you’re alone or not, always file a plan on where you’re going to go, where you’re going to park, what trails you’re going to be on and when you expect to be back.”

To support Routt County Search and Rescue, visit RouttCountySar.org/Donate/#Content.