Air Cadets trapped in a Blizzard on Dartmoor April, 1981, Where and when, to start searching?
Easter was late in 1981 on Dartmoor when 13 Air cadets arrived at Oakhampton for a weekend's adventure training. Some, were in training for the forthcoming Ten Tors event. On the Saturday morning the parties were briefed on the weather forcast (which was pretty bad) from RAF Mount Batten in Plymouth. They (still) set off with each party walking a circular contro rotaing route. The younger air cadets were to go to Yes Tor, High Willhays, Dinger Tor, Cranmere Pool, Hangignstone Hill, Oke Tor and back to their base at Oakhampton. The older cadets were to walk the route in reverse. Whilst the younger cadets finished their route safely, the older cadets met sever weather conditions. Suddenly, out of the East came a blizzard. Misstrusting their compasses the cadets erected their tent's and assessed the situation. By this time their supervisors were becoming very concerned and reported the facts to to the Oakhampton Police and the Dartmoor Rescue group under Fred Barlow. All that evening and night, they waited on the edge of the Norther moor. It was a task that was to eventually last for more than two days and involve RAF and Royal Navy helicopters, Royal Marine's with Snow-Cats and many hundreds of searchers from the Dartmoor Rescue Group and the Police.
The older group of cadets had been passing Cranmere Pool when the wind and driving snow from the East became too much for them and they turned West, the freezing wind to their backs. There original itenary was to walk due North past Cranmere to the military, battle camp at Oakhampton. Fortunetely, they had camping equipment with them and so they camped. The snow became deeper (up to 20 foot drifts) and the blizzard raged for more than two days.
According to local television, the moors were surrounded, ringed with: members of the Dartmoor Rescue Team, the police, Royal Marines and the military, helicopters were on standby. The plan apparently, was to have these personel in position around the edge (nobody apparently knew from which edge of the moor the cadets would emerge) off the moor so that, once the blizzard abated, the would be rescuers could enter the moor and then, and only then, start to search for the cadets. but where were the cadets. Where and when would their rescuers, start to search?
I had assembled equipment for attempting to rescue people in winter conditions in the late 1970's after a new's item that followed the demise of many motorists trapped on the coast road to Hiffa, Isreal, where military personel were arranged at each end of a massive blizzard waiting to enter and rescue motorists known to be trapped in the sudden storm. When the blizzard finally abated, 35 motorists were found in their cars - dead.
The police at Oakhampton told me too stay away when I telephoned and offered my services (police actually consulted with a local star gazer who was asked to envisage were the cadets might emerge - she said the Cadets would emerge of the moor by a stone-cross - there are 100's of stone-cross's on Dartmoor) . On the Monday morning, I collecting my equipment together and drove with difficulty due to thick snow on the main road around Dartmoor to Sourton where I parked and donned my equipment, a rucksack filled with food, warm clothing and sleeping bag - a one piece, expandable (into a bivi-bag) waterproof suit and a full-face-helmet with a compass embedded in the visor. I set off into the Northern moor on a compass bearing reading due South. I had calculated that the cadets would turn West due to the bitter Easterly wind and that they would emerge off the Western side of the Norther moor (they self rescued out of the western edge of the North moor at Widgery Cross near Lydford) - if they survived.
I walked slowly due South all day. It mattered not that I was being buffetted by very strong, icy cold wind. My intention was to walk for a day and then bivouac in my suit until the storm abated and thus be in a position - within the moor, to look for any movement once the storm abated. It was after midday when the rear edge of the wintery system appeared from the East with blue sky behind it. Because of the early arrival of the rear edge of the bad weather, I changed direction and walked, through deep snow, to the summit of High Willhay (the highest point on Dartmoor) for a better view of the moor to the South of me through binoculars. There was no movement on the ground.
Almost immedately, a helicopter flew across the Northern moor towards me and over me - it did not see me. Fortunely, I was not one of the Cadets struggling to survive after a gruelling experience because the helicopter merely flew past me (I was dressed in a bright red one peice suit) and disappeared to the South West. I bivouaced for the night on High Willhays (the suit pulled out; expanded into a bivi bag). During that clear night I saw no torch lights; no indication that anyone was in the North moor. The next day, I retraced my steps to Sourton and returned to Saltash. The cadets had self rescued during the afternoon of clearing weather.
Nobody would have known that someone had actually been in the middle of the moor searching until I saw members of the Dartmoor Rescue Group (on Television) slapping each other on the back after the (rescue of the Cadets?) cadets who in fact, self rescued out of the Western side of the North Moor through Widdery Cross almost exactly on my compass bearing down through the Western side of the Northern moor.
It would have been a different story if the blizzard had continued for many more days. The only person in the middle of the moor with the intention of waiting there; to be on-hand to assist quickly was threatened with being sued by the Air Cadets Commander until that is, they reolised that just one man and not a whole organisation had actually been inside the moor looking for his lost - Cadets. But why threaten to sue - anyway?? The reaction of a worried man; Commander no doubt. The national weather forcast was not good, in fact very bad, prior to the cadets entering the moor. The worst blizzard in living memory at that time of the year was approaching from the North East and it almost claimed numerous young lives to say nothing of the fact, that some aquired frost bite but it could so easily, have been much worse.
The equipment that allowed me to entrer and survive in the moor in those conditions was shelved. In the years since, all too many climbers have died in similar conditions, died wearing gore-tex covered layers a gore-tex covered shroud. Equipment does not make the man; the climber.
