OCR Text |
Show with gas, and along with vomiting, he began belching, painfully- "Get his heart higher than his feet, Kevin ordered, and the two hurried to move packs to support Karlan in a sitting position. "Don't move, he instructas ft filled ed Karlan. KEN HAD grabbed Karlan 's foot, and in the circle of light saw that the snake had hit with only one fang. Kevin quickly reached for the to apply a tourniquet, Ken uneasily rope swung the light toward the foot of their beds. The rattler was moving toward them. He shouted a warning to Kevin. Kens first thought was that they had nothing with which to kill the snake. Tent poles were too light, and it would take too long to get them out of the pack. Kevin picked up one of the rocks used to hold down the plastic cover and slammed it on the snake with all his As strength. his father discuss their ordeal at Coyote Gulch and the miraculous circumstances surrounding his rescue and almost complete recovery after being bitten by a rattlesnake. Karlatf Hichfann and By Margaret Van Noy Profiles Writer There was nothing ominous about that dark June night as the three Richardsons rolled their sleeping bags out on the plastic ground cover and prepared to settle down for the night. took food and water and hiked down to Lake Powell and back, a distance of 16 miles. The way led through willows, d the river, led over rocks, up and down the many gulches and across hot sandy desserts. The three were tired from their 15 mile hike, but like true backpackers, were looking forward to one more day in the wilderness with its promise of more sights and sounds to come. On that warm June evening they lay down, fully clothed except for shoes, on top of their sleeping bags. Ken Richardson laid out the things they would need for the next days hike. Nearby, water seeped down the face of the cliff, but there was no way to fill bed. For the Richardsons, father Ken and the canteens. Dragging a rock out of the Ken had scraped and chipped sons Kevin 32, and Karlan 22, it was an ' creek bed, with his knife until he had a hollow four ideal spot for their favorite pastime, back packing. Back when his boys were inches deep and eight inches across. still small, Ken Richardson had begun With the rock set next to the wall, it was possible to fill all five canteens by dippacking them off into the wilderness, the water out with a cup. ping his for the love and nature and had soon cast its spell on them as Opposite them, one wall of Coyote Culch rose straight up 300 feet and into the darkness. Above them, a massive overhang jutted but 100 feet into the gulch. AT SOME remote time, the Escalante River might have been a roaring torrent washing out a network of huge gulches, all converging into this one, but now it was a mere trickle in its sandy rs well. They werp hearty individualists. They back packed in winter, summer, spring or fall, usually without a tent, sleeping in the open. While still very young, they learned to recognize various animal tracks and to follow those tracks. They crawled on hands and knees through the snow to spend hours watching elk or deer. They slept through blizzards high on the slopes of the Oquirrh Mountains near their Tooele home. They had hiked all night through Ophir Canyon. They had spent nights watching the desert floor come alive with creatures of . "Coyote Gulch was soon a to become event. terror-fille- d flood. It was 1 a.m. when Karlan awoke to a white hot burning sensation in his left foot. "Something bit me, he called to Kevin who was sleeping between the two. I think it was a mouse. Kevin raised himself sleepily up on his elbows as Ken awoke and reached for his light He quickly shone it toward the foot of the sleeping THE CANTEENS were nearby. The knife was in his pocket. Ken kept his flashlight by his side. From past experience in the wilds, he knew that mice and sometimes rats would scavenger at campsites in the night. He had made sure to fill it with new batteries and knew it was in good condition. Just before the three had left their pickup, Karlan had decided to the year before, Ken and Kevin had cliffs. The beauty of the place had lived up to its promise. Coyote Culch beneath the Jacob Hamlin Arch was especially intriguing, and the two had made camp on this very spot. It was this sight that Karlan, fresh from his mission had impatiently waited to see. Since his return, more important events had intervened until finally in THE PATCH of ground on which they had made their beds was just large enough for the three sleeping bags and their packs. Beneath them, and over the sand, they had laid a plastic ground cover, comers braced against the prospect of a wind by large boulders 20 to 30 pounds in weight. bag. WHAT HE saw took his breath away. A rattlesnake lay coiled, its tongue flicking in and out, moving toward Kevins feet. Ken Richardson could not believe his eyes. He had checked with the park not only this season but last. Nobody had ever seen a rattler in Coyote Culch. Two girls, university students working for the park service, had slept on that spot two nights before. It cant be, he thought. But there it was. Although their minds were literally paralyzed with fear, both men acted instinctively. As Kevin lept to his feet, Ken shone the light on the snake. Moving closer and closer he flicked the light off and on. The snake bring his flashlight too. A thirty foot rope, handy for climb- backed away. ing up and down gulches, lay coiled within easy reach. Also nearby so as not to be forgotten were some elastic band- ages. With hikers there was always a chance of broken bones or a sprain, and found themselves walking across scorching hot sand. ALTHOUGH KEN was an expert at first aid in the wilds, he turned to Kevin. Kevin, working in the security division of the LDS Church, was a trained emergency medical technician. Because of his love for the wilderness, he had studied the textbook section on emergency treatment for snakebite on his own. it He had barely finished before he came to Coyote Culch. Karlan had moved to the top of his bag as soon as he was bitten. That was the last thing he was able to do. Within 15 or 20 seconds, he became deathly sick dizzy and nauseated. He began retching. His stomach immediately distended - June, the trio had been able to get away. The day before, they had packed in from Red Wells where they had left their pickup. It had been an eight hour hike with each one carrying a 40 pound pack. FOR KARLAN it was somewhat of a homecoming trip. A young man with goas, life seemed to be going just as he had planned. A mission had been one goal: he had achieved it. He had a promising job as a computer operator with Sperry Univac. Marriage had been another goal, and now he thought of his wife, Valerie, .who was waiting for him at home. And perhaps the greatest miracle of all - the young couple were expecting their first child in November. The backpacking trip into the Escalante was a minor goal - to become one of the many trips which were now only A 11 I V ; ' I ij I 4 4' j pleasant memories. But for Karlan Richardson, Coyote Culch was soon to become an adventure rf X f4 Ki-i'- v V ' . V - he would never forget, a terror filled event that would return to haunt him A a. 1 again and again. AS THE three bedded down on that night of June 9, they were pleased with the success of the first two days of the trip. They had arrived on June 8, a Monday, and made camp. The next day, leaving most of their gear at the spot, they Kevin Richardson and his father beneath the red sandstone cliffs. The wall to the back and right gives some idea of the awesome and inaccessibility of the cliffs. , . eyes on ft. AS HIS breathing became more and more labored, something happened. Snakebite victims immediately develop a hyper fear of snakes or anything that moves. Ken bad built a fence around Karlan with the tent to keep the still writhing snake from his sight. Suddenly, a little mouse scampered from above hb head and slid down onto one of the packs. It made a whirring noise. There was real terror in Karlans voice as he tried to call, "Dad, from hb throat. Strangely, the sudden Earalyzed adrenalin gave him added strength, and he began to breath easier. n As Kevin had predicted, Karlan to perspire, and great drops of sweat rolled off hb body. Ken sponged him with water from the canteens, squeezing moisture into hb paralyzed eyes to prevent tissue damage. He turned Karlan on hb side when he began choking on the saliva that ran down his paralyzed be-ga- ' They decided that Kevin could make the best time. He put on a big pair of boots, and scooped up some dried food for his breakfast. Ken gave him his flashlight grateful that Karlan had insisted on bringing his along, but when he gave the button an experimental push, nothing happened. The flashlight did not work. Inside the metal was corroded with rust. With his knife, he scraped away at the rust and tried again. This time the light came on. It stayed on just until daylight. KEVIN SET off at a run. He was still tired from the days 15 mile hike, but he knew there was no other way to get help. It was eight hours to the pickup at Red Wells. His goal was to try for a shortcut of four hours up Hurricane Gulch. This was the most likely spot to find campers. Hopefully, there would be someone with a CB or at least someone who would give him a ride to the pickup. . . The first of a series of remarkable incidents began to take placed It was an anxious night for Ken, alone with his stricken son. Kevin had outlined some of the reactions he could expect in Karlan. As they came, Ken met crises after crises. Karlan, senses numbed by the vicious bite, had not complained of pain, but suddenly he felt the same stinging, burning sensation, this time in his left. Angry red streaks above the elastic bandage told Ken that poison had leaked out around some wrinkles. Quickly he applied a tight rope tourniquet below it and carefully rewound and smoothed the bandage. The pain left. IT WAS frightening to watch Karlan as his muscles began twitching and quivering, his mouth drawn up in a pucker. Several times he drew his right leg up to his body in a rigid muscle spasm, and Ken, his father, worked to straighten it. All through the night, Ken worked to keep Karlan awake. His breathing became labored as though he had a heavy weight on his chest. The father knew he had to do something to prevent the paralysis from leading to respiratory failure. "Breath as deeply as you can, he kept repeating to Karlan. He almost shouted it. KARLAN THOUGHT his father was angry with him. He had never heard him use that tone of voice before. As he struggled to breath, to stay conscious. and an amlxdance driver to the edge of Coyote Gulch. BACK AT Coyote Culch, Ken Richardson was surprised to see a man ride up on horselsack and asked if he had seen a boy who had been bitten by a rattle- snake. He had not expected any help much before 1 p.m. But Karlan was in no condition to be put on a horse. Before he left, Evans to return in an hour, and if Cromised not arrived, he planned to leave a horse there for Ken. A short time later, Ken heard the roar of an engine, and he ran out from under the overhang to wave at the helicopter. The pilot flew over several times looking for a place to land, and then settled down on the rim above. BENEATH THE overhang was a level spot where previous campers had built a fire pit and arranged some big logs around it. Although he knew there was no way a helicopter could land, Ken started clearing thb area. A Then two things happened. man came climbing down the side of the 300 foot high cliff. It was Jay Welch. At the same time Art Evans rode up ahead of schedule. After checking Karlan and pronounc- ing the tourniquets and the care given him as "perfect," Welch turned to hb r hike out. ser-vi- many kinds. IN SHORT, the Richardson boys and their hither were as much at home in the wilds as they were in their own living rooms. The year before this one, while son Karlan was away serving a mission, Ken Richardson and Kevin had come to the Escalante Mountains to see the strange rock formations in the red sandstone The knife, the rope, the bandages, flashlight, and even the rocks were handy, ready for a full day ahead. Little did Ken Richardson realize that he would need every one of them long before that day would break. As he drifted off to sleep, he looked at up Jacob Hamblin Arch, a prominent landmark visible for miles around. He also looked at those sheer cliffs and wondered how they would ever get out should there be a flood. WITHIN A few short hours, the three Richardsons would come face to face with danger fully as terrifying as a KEN'S HEART sank as the rock bounced off again. "The sand is too soft, he thought, but when the snake began flopping, he knew it was dead. Snakes unable to coil are dead. But its body continued to writh all during the night as Ken worked to save his son. The rattler was only two feet long, but it had a thick body about three inches in diameter. The fat body ended abruptly in five rattlers. Kevin was busy cutting a piece of the rope. He tied a tourniquet tight enough to shut off the veins, and at the same time allow the arteries to pump through. The tourniquet had to be just right. Kevin knew that Karlan could lose his leg in two short hours with an improperly tightened tourniquet. WITH THE flashlight they watched Karlan 's color and checked his pulse. It was 130. Karlan, a long distance swimmer, has a normal pulse rate of 50 or 60. Knowing that the poison could soon be well on its way to the heart, Ken also wrapped one of the elastic bandages just below the knee with a prayer that he would not get it too tight or too loose. Once the tourniquets were in place, Kevin made a straight line incision with Kens knife into the fang mark and ed to suck, spitting out the venom as he worked. In minutes he too was belching and retching. "WASH YOUR mouth out, Ken instructed as he took over. He had heard there was no point in sucking out the venom after four minutes, but the Richardsons kept it up for an hour. At the end of that hour, they took stock. Karlans throat was paralyzed. His fingers and toes had gone numb. It was almost 3 a.m., and if they were to get help for Karlan, someone would have to and to live, he thought of Valerie, and the baby he might never see. He fought harder. Scenes from his past life flashed through his mind, events of his childhood he had completely forgotten. He wondered if this meant he was dying. Ilis fright made him try harder. Karlans eyes were paralyzed open. The pupils began to drift in different directions. He picked out a star above the Hamblin arch and struggled to focus his o & Ken Richardson and Karlan are dwarfed by Coyote Natural Bridge. The Hamblin Arch b four or five times the size of the Bridge. , throat. BY MORNING he had one canteen of water left. Karlan was now able to swallow, and Ken began pouring water down him. In the meantime the first of a series of remarkable incidents began to take place - events that would lead from one to another into a miracle. On his way back out, Kevin missed Hurricane Gulch. He was already an hour past it before he realized that the landmarks were unfamiliar. He turned around and literally ran back, thinking all the time he had cut two hours off Karlans chances for survival. HALF AN hour later, he smelled bacon frying. The smell came from a camp hidden in some willows. He would not have seen it had he come along earlier. With the camps occupants, a couple from Salt Lake City, he began a forced march to their car. They would drive him to the pickup. At the top of the gulch, they met Art Evans, a local rancher, riding horseback toward Coyote Gulch. Once a year, Evans rode through the gulch looking for strays. Thb was that one day. In 43 years of riding the gulch he had never seen a snake. HE OFFERED to bring Karlin out on horseback and started on Rb way. It was 9 a.m. Eight hours had passed since Karlan Richardson had been bitten by a rattlesnake. Once in the pickup, Kevin raced toward Escalante. He knew the park service had a helicopter, and he was praying that it would be there. Actually, it was more than 200 miles away that day. AT THE ranger station, Kevin was told there was no way to get a helicopter, and the group that had quickly gathered began to make other plans. At that moment an employee from the local Bureau of Land Management office walked in. He had seen a helicopter, which belonged to an oil exploration company working out of Cody, Wyoming. At that very moment, there were two helicopters warming up on the companys pad, and one of the pilots agreed to fly Jay Welch, the park service medic, ( radio and dismissed the helihave to bring him out by he said. HOW LONG will that take? crackled the pilots voice. Welch told him six or eight hours. I was a helicopter pilot with the special forces in Vietnam, the voice came back. Ive set down in tighter two-wa- y copter. basket, well places." SO IT WAS that Ken Richardson witnessed his own miracle as the big helicopter came flying down the narrow canyon, around two bends in the river and right under the huge overhang. The pilot deftly maneuvered around a tree, with no room to spare, and set the craft down on the sandy ledge. ' It was 11 a.m. Ten hours had passed since Karlan Richardsons pleasant dreams had been interrupted by a night' mare. Quickly the men slid Karlan into the seat. Ken Richardson tried to shout hb thanks to the man, whose name he did not know, over the roar of the huge rotors. The pilot grinned back beneath dark glasses. Then he skillfully backed the craft into the cave, maneuvered around the tree, and flew out from under the overhanging roof into the sunshine. AT LAST Karlan Richardson was on hb way to the hospital. Ken Richardson rolled the three packs into one, hoisted them to hb back and climbed on the horse behind Evans. It would be 10 hours before he reached Karlans side again. At the hospital, another set of miracles waited for Karlan. Of six doctors in the community, only one. Dr. Terry Henrie, had ever treated snakebite. Dr. Henrie, who had moved to Panguitch only two weeks before, happened to be on duty that night. The hospital hapon pened to have five vials of anti-veni- m hand. AS HE ARRIVED at the Panguitch Hospital, Karlan looked at the emergency room clock above hb head. It was 1 p.m. Although another chapter of pain and suffering was about to open, the ordeal in the wilderness was over. |