Skye Mountain Rescue Team helped 20 people in difficulty on the Skye Trail on Friday, after volunteers were called to several separate incidents across the route. The callouts ran from 7am to 8pm, and some happened at the same time.
The team said Friday was one of its busiest days. It also said the trail is sometimes misunderstood, with some sections offering no obvious paths, which leaves walkers having to judge distance, timing and route-finding for themselves.
Skye Trail callouts on Friday
The 20 rescues were spread across several incidents rather than a single incident, but the team did not say how many separate callouts there were. That makes the day notable for volume as well as duration: the same volunteer team was dealing with multiple people in difficulty over a 13-hour span.
Some of the callouts overlapped, so the figures point to more than one team task at once. For walkers, that means a problem on one part of the route could not always be treated as an isolated case, especially if other incidents were unfolding at the same time.
Skye Mountain Rescue warning
After the Friday callouts, the charity urged hill walkers to know their route, know their escape options and have a Plan B if technology fails. It also asked people to check proper mountain forecasts such as MWIS before setting out.
“Yesterday’s weather was particularly poor, but it was not exceptional for Skye and, importantly, it had been forecast. Our role is, and always will be, to help those who need us without judgement. Things can and do go wrong despite good preparation,” the team said.
It added: “However, when 20 people undertaking the same route require assistance in separate incidents on the same day, we think it is reasonable to ask whether there is a wider message in that.”
Plan B for walkers
The team said the problems it sees are not unique to the Skye Trail. It warned that people can underestimate the terrain and the time involved, become over-reliant on electronic navigation, be caught out by mountain weather, or carry on when changing plans or turning back would be the better option.
“None of this is intended as criticism of the people we assisted yesterday, and we are not suggesting that the same factors were involved in every incident. Things can and do go wrong in the hills despite good preparation,” the team said.
Its message for anyone heading out is direct: come to Skye, enjoy the hills, undertake the Skye Trail and have great adventures, but build in escape options before the route, weather or technology forces a decision.
