This weekend saw the welcome return of one of our most important days in the field: Trainee Selection Day. Pending board approval, these prospects will go on to become trainees and become eligible to assist in callouts as they continue to work their way toward OSSA certification.

#TBT to a recent callout on Mt. Hood. Although the subject was able to walk out without assistance, we always prepare for scenarios in which that is not an option. Here, you'll see a litter and various packaging equipment, which we're always happy not to use.

There's some sound advice in this piece from Brent Neely, captain of Wallowa County Search and Rescue. To add some context, there were two search and rescue missions in Wallowa County in all of 2017. Last year there were 40. opb.org/article/2021/0…

The training continues! Last month, our newly-appointed trainees and our general membership participated in a medical field training, which had them rotating between four distinct stations. There was hiking, assessing, splinting, packaging, and four gallons of (fake) blood 🩸

Not all of our work involves sheer cliffs and steep inclines. When it does, however, we call on our Rope Support Team, which recently spent the weekend at Smith Rock preparing for the different rescue scenarios we might encounter on the trail.

You all know the proverb: "With great power comes great responsibility." Now that fire restrictions have been lifted in the Columbia River Gorge and Mount Hood National Forest, please be mindful when building and putting out campfires.

In general, it's a good rule of thumb to pick up your phone if you're lost in the wilderness or out later than expected. Believe it or not, not everyone is calling about the extended warranty on your vehicle 😉 cnn.com/travel/article…

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Our 2022 Application Period will officially begin in January 2022. If you are interested in joining our team, please see the following link for more information: pnwsar.org/join

Over Saturday, we held our SAR Olympics! The games don't feature gymnastics or table tennis, but we do have litter time trials and plenty of fun. Each station requires teamwork, coordination, and an understanding of some of the gear and skills we put into practice in the field.

Some excellent tips from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife)! While incredibly rare, cougar sightings do occur in areas like the Gorge and near Mt. Hood. If you haven't done already, take a few minutes to learn about how you can stay safe during these encounters.

Happy New Year, everyone! Things have been relatively quiet on the search front the last couple of weeks, which means it's a great opportunity for some training. Earlier this week, four of our trainees spent a frigid night certifying on their night navigation skills.

It's official: our 2022 Application Period is now open! Prospective applicants looking to join this year's cohort should read through the info on our "Join Us" page prior to submitting an app. We look forward to meeting some of you in the upcoming weeks: pnwsar.org/join

Thanks for the spotlight earlier this week, KATU News! For those interested in applying for our 2022 cohort, our next orientation session takes place on February 8th from 6 to 7 p.m. PT. More information can be found on our website. katu.com/news/local/pac…

If you weren't already aware, we're still accepting applications for our 2022 cohort through February 21st! Read more about what we do—and our application requirements—on our website. Our next orientation session takes place virtually February 8th, 6pm PT: pnwsar.org/join

Could the effects of psychological stress and trauma be akin to physical injuries like sprains and strains? Dr. Christopher Tedeschi argues that in careful balance with other approaches, this idea has become a powerful tool for backcountry responders. vox.com/22921788/menta…

This is it! If you're interested in joining PNWSAR, tomorrow is the last day to apply for our 2022 cohort (more info can be found here: pnwsar.org/join). If you're curious as to what to expect, here are some recent photos from our annual snow training on Saturday.

Accessing the Columbia River Gorge’s popular waterfall corridor is likely to become a little more complicated this summer. wweek.com/outdoors/2022/…

On Saturday, our PIO Phil Evans helmed an info table near Cooper Spur while 10 of our members took part in a patrol. Patrols function as a type of preventative SAR, allowing us to keep our fitness up, familiarize ourselves with trails, and respond to local callouts quicker.

Big thanks to SAM Medical for supporting us with a donation of nearly $2,000 worth of important life saving medical equipment for use in the field. This will allow us to provide critical, lifesaving care to our most severely injured patients in the wilderness areas that we serve!

Anyone else get out this past weekend and enjoy the great weather?Perfect weekend for our monthly training☀️🏔🌲Always good when we can get together for a mock mission and keep our skills sharp!