California hiker bitten by spider, paralyzed in mountains, rescued after relaying location

Last week, a hiker in California's Sierra Nevada mountains was paralyzed after being bitten by a spider. The woman had taken the Taboose Pass out of the Sierra Nevada's John Muir Trail after encountering too much snow, and while fetching water from a creek, she was bitten by what she thought was a spider, according to Inyo County Search & Rescue officials.

Stranded and Rescued

The hiker was unable to feel the skin on her legs and could not continue her hike down. Despite this, she managed to call in and relay her coordinates to rescue officials around 6:30 p.m. before her phone battery died. The county's search and rescue team arrived at the trailhead just before midnight and carefully walked her down the tricky section of the trail while ensuring her safety with ropes. They then transferred her into a wheeled litter that the team had stashed in a more stable area of the trail, about a quarter mile away from her location.

Urgent Reminder from Authorities

Officials did not provide details about the woman's condition but urged hikers to carry power banks for phones or satellite messaging devices. They also emphasized that the Taboose, Sawmill, Baxter, and Shepherd Pass Trails are less maintained compared to the rest of the trails in the Sierra, with potentially very tricky sections, route finding issues, and steep grades.

"About half of the emergency calls that SAR receives come from a person with a dying phone battery," the department said.

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