Crag Rats mark 100 years of rescues on Mount Hood

HOOD RIVER — “We had a rescue a few years ago of a woman who was hiking alone and got stuck on a ledge up near Mt. Defiance. She was out there for two or three days and members of our organization got her out. [She] spoke about when she finally heard human voices and understood that there were people who had come to help. [She] listened to the search team communicate among each other and how respectful they were and how organized they were, that she realized her life was going to be saved.”

This anecdote is from Paul Crowley, a Crag Rat since 1998 who now works in an incident command role for the group.

The Crag Rats are America’s oldest mountain rescue team, celebrating 100 years of service in Hood River. “To be a Crag Rat is to have the honor of playing a role in search and rescue history,” said Crowley.

When they began in 1926, they were a group of local men with a passion for mountaineering who saw the need for a rescue team through their guide work on Mount Hood and subsequently created the Crag Rats.

“We made this slow metamorphosis from a strong social club that was an expert mountain rescue group to a professional level mountain rescue team that has a strong social vibe,” said Chris Van Tillburg, doctor and the group’s medical director and de facto historian.

“We now allow members from adjoining counties, some of our most essential members are women, our training is far more extensive than it was in the past,” said Crowley, pointing out the ways the group has changed since its inception.

The group is composed of roughly 55 active rescuers, but they have a “once a Crag Rat, always a Crag Rat” perspective that means their network is more than just the people climbing the mountain each time a call comes in. When it becomes more difficult to actively participate in field work, “your options are to sit on the sidelines or figure out some way to play a role,” said Crowley.

The Crag Rats sit under the authority of the Hood River County Sheriff and are connected to rescues through 911 calls. The dispatcher will send the information to the coordinator who will in turn organize the people going on the rescue. From there the initial group will gather their gear and start heading up to the rescue location.

“It’s not instant,” cautioned Meredith Martin, one of the call coordinators who’s been a Crag Rat for 14 years. “By the time rescue arrives it’s a long time. It’s better to come prepared and then not have to depend on a rescue.”

Member Brian Hukari, in his 70s, was described by Crowly as the “quintessential Crag Rat” for his skillset, dedication and loyalty and is one of the longest standing members of the organization as a member of the founding families who joined when he was a teenager.

“[People] aren’t as responsible as they were before and there’s a lot more people doing it too,” said Hukari, echoing Martin’s perspective. The number of rescues they are called to help with has increased progressively, peaking in 2022 with 60 missions and averaging 40-45 missions per year.

Looking into the future, all of the members spoke about the continued need for the Crag Rats going forward. “I don’t see our role diminishing at all, and just see the Crag Rats becoming a more important part of that environment as it has the last 100 years,” said Lisa Rust, an expert climber and one of the most frequent responders to Crag Rats calls.

Rust told a story that to her epitomized the essence of the Crag Rats: She and her husband John Rust, also a Crag Rat who serves as the “Big Squeak,” or president were hiking on Mt. Hood with their young children and three people fell into a bergschrund on the mountain. “We sent our own kids back down the mountain and my husband and I initiated the rescue. And that’s what any of us Crag Rats would do: to go and respond to people that need help in and on the mountain.”

The Crag Rats are a 501c3 and welcome donations to help with maintenance of the historic Cloud Cap Inn which they steward and use as their base on the mountain. Visit www.cragrats.org for more information about the team and ways to get involved.