That Did Not Go As Expected
For anyone who does not know, I worked as a residential counselor in a group home/shelter for teens ages 12-17. We take them on various outings to places around Los Angeles, and a few weeks ago they were supposed to go hiking at a place called Hermit Falls on my day off. They did not end up going, but I looked into the place and it seemed like fun.
My best friend and I enjoy hiking to waterfalls, so we decided to go yesterday. We did a little more research and discovered you had to pay $5 for parking, and that people often jump into the water from rocks about 30 feet up. We decided $5 wasn't much for what looked like a beautiful trail, and we figured we would get there early enough to not have to worry about the lot being full.
When we arrived, the lot was indeed full. We drove around for a few minutes until a spot finally opened up. I got out and went to buy the parking pass, while my friend parked the car. When I reached the "General Store" it was a collection of two or three cabins (couldn't tell where one ended and the next began). The cabins were all closed and the "store" was a guy in his mid twenties sitting at a table with an ancient laptop, not really looking at the customers that approached. There was a freezer that claimed to have ice cream and some soft drinks here and there. There was another guy in his mid-twenties pushing a wheel barrel around shirtless. It was the weirdest thing I had ever seen and I'm from Missouri.
Once our parking pass was purchased, we had to go back to the general store to ask directions and we were sent on our way. The trial was supposed to be 1.2 miles long. Once we got off the steep pavement road, we were on a dirt path that quickly turned into a narrow one. It was at most 3 feet wide, and on one side you had the mountain, and on the other side you have a steep cliff. It was beautiful, I can't deny that, but it was eerie and seemed run down. I kept commenting to my friend that we were going to be murdered by mountain people before we reached the end.
Throughout our hike to the falls we were followed by a group of four, who at one point made the comment they were following us because we seemed to know where we were going. My friend replied "that's not a good idea," but we all continued on.
Finally we reached the water, where we found a bunch of people in their early twenties looking down at the water talking about jumping. One or two of them were drinking beers, and a few others lit up a cigarette at one point, but their main focus seemed to be this jump.
Finally, someone took the plunge. You could hear his belly flop from the top, but he swam to the bank and encouraged more to jump. One by one the guys gathered their courage and jumped. A girl also joined in at one point. Occasionally someone who had made the jump before would step in and take their plunge, and everyone would cheer them on. Some people came back up to the rock quickly, others lingered at the bottom, waiting for their friends.
I had been contemplating jumping into the water during the hike. I read that it was a common thing to do, and I figured it's about time I start acting like the person I want to be, which is someone fearless and spontaneous. So after I watched quiet a few people jump and swim to the shore successfully, I decided it was worth a try. I waited a bit longer as a few girls sat at the top contemplating jumping. My friend kept encouraging me to go for it and hinting that she was tired of waiting around. I asked the girls if I could go and they gladly stepped aside, commenting that maybe if they watched me do it, they would be able to do it.
I stepped up to the rock and my friend pulled out her camera phone. I looked down and noted a rock sticking out from the side. My friend said "just jump out" and the guys below began counting down. "3-2-1" and without thinking I lept out into the air. About a second after I left the rock I realized I had made a terrible decision. I had asked several people if the water was deep and I had gotten mixed responses. I wasn't sure weather to go in like a pencil to avoid bruises, or bend a little to avoid hitting the bottom. In the video you can see my arms begin to flail and at this point I remember the feeling of utter panic coming over me. Then...smack I was in the water. My eyes shot open as my feet grazed the pebble along the bottom. The water was green and I could see the sunlight a few feet above me. I tried to swim to the top and fix my clothing so that I would not expose too much when I surfaced.
Once my head was above water the guys asked if I was okay, and I let them know I was fine. The girls were calling out to see if I was okay and I gave them the thumbs up. I felt alive. My leg and bum were a little numb from the smack of the water, but I was living.
As i was pulling myself up the slimy rocks on the bank, I hear a commotion and looked back. Right as I looked back, I saw one of the girls that had been contemplating jumping hit the big rock that was sticking out. She seemed to catcher herself a little, but there was a loud crack, then she rolled into the water. Three of the guys were already headed into the water when she hit the rock, and I swear her head never went under.
She was conscious when they swam her to the side. Her face was bleeding a little, but not too much, and it didn't appear she had hit her head. Someone told the guys to keep her in the water, and they did. The only thing she was was "I can't feel my leg." People at the bottom began trying to call 911, and knowing there was nothing I could do at the bottom, I began trying to figure out how to get to the top. The girl trying to call 911 from the bottom got through but lost the call several times. The guys eventually pulled the injured girl from the water and laid her on the ground. People began tossing down gauze and towels, but her face had mostly stopped bleeding. She seemed to have a broken arm and leg, but it appeared the poor girl had gone into shock almost immediately.
I tried one rout to the top and it did not pan out. I went back to the main rock and tried to dry off some more before trying my next route. The rocks were slippery with bare wet feet. After a few minutes people at the bottom began to get restless and kept trying to help the injured girl. Having dealt with crisis far too often as part of my job, I told them the best thing they could do is not touch her right now, and called up top to let them know someone up there should be calling 911.
Knowing the only way I could help would be up top, I began the climb. Bodies separated so I could get to the rope to climb up. I waited for someone else to finish their climb and someone tossed me the bottom. The guys explained to me how to get up and I began pulling myself up the steep climb. Halfway up two guy were perched on a ledge. They saw me trying to evaluate how to get up the four foot stretch that had very few footholds. They walked me through it and told me they would help me. Once I got about halfway up, they extended their hands and told me to hold on. They lifted me up and I was able to finish the climb.
Up top someone was on the phone with the paramedics and they were giving my friend's number for a call back number, so we had to stick around. The guy who made the call left moments after the call was made, and the rest of us just sat there, hoping the paramedics would find the girl. My friend and I waited about 20 minutes before deciding we should head back up and see if the ranger station had heard anything. Her phone had little services and we doubted a call could even get through.
My friend explained to me what I had missed on the way back. She said the girl had decided to make the jump, but after the countdown, she changed her mind and tried to turn back. That's when her foot slipped and she went down. She caught herself on the rock, and there was a guy sitting next to her that had time to grab her and pull her up, but must have hesitated. She then slipped out of sight, which is about the time I turned to see her hit the rock.
On our way back we let people know the situation below and encouraged them to turn back. Then we heard the helicopter. We watched it stall and lower someone down before flying off. We weren't sure what their plan was, but we knew they had found her. As we walked we encountered two paramedics with a stretcher, three fireman, a park ranger, and then two park rangers. The last two stopped us to ask if we had seen what happened and we described what we had seen. They told us the girl was being airlifted now, and tried to make small talk to make us feel better.
We wondered for the rest of the day what happened to that girl. We wondered how bad her injuries were, and how long she was stuck down there.
Today I woke up sunburned, bruised and sore, but still wondering about that girl.
I'm writing this now for a few reasons. I needed to write this out so that I could process what happened yesterday. Hopefully now it will stop replaying in my head. More importantly I wrote it to let everyone know that these things do actually happen. I never thought I would experience something like yesterday, but now I realize there is a reason we have fear, a reason our parents tell us not to do certain things. I'm also writing this because what I saw yesterday restored my faith in humanity. Some of those guys didn't know that girl. Others did. But they all helped her. People called 911 and waited to make sure she was okay. People helped me get to the top so I could try and do something more. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience and one that I hope I never have to go through again.
