Tips on calling 911 from the backcountry

January 28, 2025  |  By Stowe Mountain Rescue 

File photo by Gordon Miller

Editor’s Note: The folks from the local backcountry rescue teams are some of the most knowledgeable when it comes to being prepared when you venture out into the wilderness. They’ve seen it all on their many emergency calls to help people who get lost, hurt, or otherwise need help getting home. Stowe Mountain Rescue recently posted this helpful information about making the dreaded 911 call from the trail. 

Not surprisingly, the steps begin before you even put on your gear. 

If you’ve ever imagined calling for a backcountry rescue, here’s an insight into how the 911 call would go. 

Your approximate location will be ascertained from your 911 call, but the dispatcher should ask you to pull up your exact coordinates. Look at the Compass app on your phone to find this (you will need to enable location access in the Compass app settings). You’ll find latitude, longitude, and elevation – all three are important and you should practice pulling them up from the comfort of your sofa. 

Also, this might sound obvious, but if you’re staring at any landmarks as you relay the coordinates, mention as much. 

The dispatcher will need to know the following: How many people in your party? What injuries do you have? Any underlying medical conditions? Do you have water/food with you? Are you warm enough? Do you have a source of light? What’s the state of your cell phone battery? 

If you have a second person in your party with a cell phone, be proactive and give dispatch that number, too. Don’t be shy about volunteering information – it’s in your interest to get a full account of your circumstances across. Finally, offer up any additional information you think might be relevant to the rescue – for example, if you have a stressed-out rottweiler with you, or you’ve swallowed a bunch of psychedelics. You know, stuff we’d like to be aware of… 

If you’re in the Stowe area, you might get patched through to talk directly with our team. Be conservative with your cell phone battery – if you’re running low, we’ll ask you to switch to airplane mode once we’ve made contact, with a plan to check back in at agreed-upon intervals. Now’s the time to plug in that battery bank we’ve been asking you to carry! 

Assuming you have charge, answer all calls from numbers you don’t recognize – maybe it’s a telemarketer, or maybe it’s your rescuers trying to reach you. Likewise, keep an eye out for texts – until we get on the scene, there’s nothing more reassuring than effective communication between the subject and rescuers. 

Here’s hoping you’ll never find occasion to benefit from this rehearsal. May all your pulling up of coordinates be done from your sofa!