Hiker Freed From Quicksand in Arches Canyon After Drone Pinpoints Location

A hiker at Arches National Park was rescued Sunday after becoming trapped up to his thighs in quicksand inside a shaded canyon wash. Searchers used a drone to locate him, then reached him with a ladder, vehicle traction boards and backboards to safely free him. The man was not injured.

Grand County Search and Rescue incident commander John Marshall said the call came in around 7:15 a.m., and the team was surprised — there had been a quicksand case about two miles away in 2014, but such incidents remain uncommon. "The page went off and I kind of shook my head and said, 'Did I hear that correctly? Somebody is stuck in quicksand?'" Marshall recalled.

Rescue technician Jake Blackwelder described a frigid scene: the ambient temperature where the hiker was trapped was about 21 degrees Fahrenheit, and the canyon received little direct sunlight. The hiker spent several freezing hours stuck in the wash before rescuers reached him.

Teams used a drone to help pinpoint the hiker's exact location and then approached carefully. Using a ladder and vehicle traction boards allowed rescuers to spread their weight and work beside him without becoming stuck themselves. They also used backboards while digging him out.

Marshall explained why quicksand can be deceptive: because of the body's natural buoyancy, people rarely sink past waist level, but the sand can have "a good bite" and struggling tends to make someone sink deeper. "One or two footsteps into that sand is really all it needs to initiate that initial stuck factor," he said.

The rescued man told searchers he was an experienced hiker who had explored trails in Utah and elsewhere. He said he had stepped into wet, innocuous-looking sand that turned out to be quicksand.

Officials also recalled another Utah quicksand incident in 2019 at Zion National Park, when a hiker was trapped up to her knee and eventually airlifted after spending a day stuck in snowy conditions; her companion reportedly hiked three hours to reach a cell signal and call for help.

Safety Tips

If You Encounter Quicksand: Stay calm, avoid sudden movements, and try to lean back to increase buoyancy. Call for help if possible and try to slowly work your legs free rather than pulling straight up. Rescuers recommend distributing weight (for example, with boards) when approaching someone who is stuck.

Video of the rescue shows how drones can aid searchers by quickly locating stranded people in remote terrain.