Mountain rescue called out to family with a baby who became stranded on top of Ingleborough in driving rain and high winds

Mountain rescue volunteers have had to be called out to assist a family who climbed Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales without adequate waterproof clothing with a baby.
IngleboroughIngleborough
Ingleborough

A local fell runner found the two adults, a seven-year-old child and a baby sheltering at the summit of the mountain, which is on the Three Peaks Challenge route, on November 2.

The family were described as 'lost and cold' and did not have adequate warm and waterproof clothing. The weather was poor with low fog, driving rain and strong winds, and the family had been unable to descend the hill and return to Clapham.

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The man gave them directions to Little Ingleborough before phoning police to report his concerns for their wellbeing.

Police informed the Cave Rescue Organisation, who sent two mountain rescue volunteers who met the family near Gaping Gill and escorted them back to the CRO's Land Rover, from where they were driven back to Clapham and given police advice.

On the same day, the CRO team was also called out to search for three Three Peaks walkers who had been reported to be struggling on Ingleborough in poor visibility. They became separated from a larger group who made it back down, and had strayed from the path at Simon Fell Breast.

Volunteers covered a number of potential routes down the mountain but were unable to locate them until a call came that the missing walkers had managed to reach the New Inn pub in Clapham, from where their friends collected them.

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Mountain rescue organisations regularly warn visitors to the Dales about the risks assciated with hill-walking in an area where weather conditions can be misleading and change quickly.

Wind speeds, rainfall and fog are all more extreme on higher ground and large numbers of Three Peaks walkers attempt the challenge without adequate clothing or a map and compass to navigate with, instead relying on smartphone apps which leave them vulnerable to running out of battery.

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