[Idyllchat] Eleanor, one tough lady

[Joan Herriges]

Bill:  I always pick my role models carefully, and Eleanor ranks way up there.  When you send your trip reports and photos I marvel at her spirit and resilience.  When I feel lazy about hiking the extra mile I think of her.  Now she has conquered the Yosemite trails--albeit not the mules!  Seriously, getting her back up on a mule, and then leaving her in that heat was inexcuseable.  I hope the rangers have taken steps to make sure this does not happen in the future. 

Keep those photos (including the desserts) and travel journals coming.   Hopefully you had some time before the accident to enjoy a particularly spectacular year at Yosemite.  Cheers to Eleanor--and Bill.  Joan.



----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bill K......r 
  To: Idyllchat at untours.com 
  Sent: Monday, October 16, 2006 4:51 PM
  Subject: [Idyllchat] Eleanor, one tough lady


  Some of you are already aware that in July my wife Eleanor was injured falling from a mule while on a half day ride at Yosemite National Park.  The inexperienced guides asked "Can you get back on the mule?".  No one checked her for injuries.  No one radioed ahead what happened.  I was not allowed to dismount to help.  After another hour of riding down rugged terrain and almost falling 3-4 more times, she insisted on being left on the trail.  I was supposed to return with her crutches.  She was left with a bottle of water and two apples (from me, not the guides) in 102 ºF heat.  An hour later our group arrived back at the stable.  It was obvious that even if I reached her, there was no way she would be able to walk out.  So I immediately requested that Park Rescue Search and Rescue be called.  Unaware that Search and Rescue was called, Eleanor slowly made her way down rugged terrain so she could meet me when I came back with her crutches.  While I waited back at the stable, park rangers radioed that she had been sighted a mile away from where we left her.  The people at the stable remarked that she is "one tough lady".  We left her on the trail about 11:20am.  At about 3:30pm park rangers found her and transported her to the medical clinic. 
     
  She suffered no broken bones, but had a painful leg muscle strain as well as strained forearm muscles.  She suffered more injury from getting back on the mule and hanging on for another hour than from the actual fall.  I sent Yosemite Park authorities a three page letter listing safety precautions that they should implement to prevent this from happening again. She has recovered from the muscle injury.  However, a third degree burn from a heating pad (to try and alleviate the pain at night) is still healing.  

  We will be traveling again, but no more mule or horseback riding.  I know this is not an untour topic.  I just wanted everyone to know what happened.

  Bill Kover
  Swiss Heartland Untour 2002, 2004





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