If you whistle for help in a mountainous, stay in one place...Advice from SAR long ago.

Years ago when I first got into mountaineering, I was involved in a situation where a person injured his back and was unable to descend from just over 6000 feet elevation. His G/F descended down on her own, blowing the whistle constantly which only served to echo off every rock and mountain slope and made for a difficult time for 2 other people on the mountain who had heard the whistle to find her.

Long story and very long day short, 2 other guys (who just descended from an 8000 feet summit) found the G/F and we met up with them by sheer coincidence. By this time we were at around 3500 feet and all five of us went back up the mountain where it was quickly determined that B/F was in no condition to walk out even with assistance. My friend and I stayed on the mountain with G/F and injured B/F while the other 2 guys went for help down to base which was about 900 feet.

SAR bundled the injured B/F and flew him, G/F and the man who lead SAR up the mountain, out by chopper while we once again headed down the mountain accompanied with 3 SAR. One of the SAR told us that unfortunately people who signal with help with whistles do not always stay in one place that causes hours of wasted searching and that because of that in a mountainous area, one day it may cost someone's life.

Postscript to this: It was not until later that night, I asked the man who came back up the mountain with SAR why he did and his friend did not. As he explained, he was worried that he may not of been able to exactly pinpoint our location on the map up on the mountain but could show SAR by hiking up with them. His friend did not accompany them as he was too physically tired and I can understand why. The man who lead SAR back up the mountain calculated that he ascended/descended approximently 17000 feet in one day. That is a remarkable feat by any measurement...and this man was 51 years old at the time.