How does Search & Rescue work, anyway?

Friends Of Joshua Tree supports JOSAR (the volunteer Search & Rescue in JTNP) very actively… but you might ask ‘What Does SAR do’? and ‘How do they do it’? Or maybe ‘How might I Get Involved’?

JOSAR performs a crucial function in and around the Park performing searches, evacuations, and treatment on site of lost and injured park-goers. It doesn’t matter if they are hikers, bird-watchers, backpackers, climbers, or campers. JOSAR is there for the entire community. Without this mission-critical service that works in close partnership with Park management, the vast majority of lost and injured park users would be in much worse condition (including losing their lives). We have a lot to be grateful for in Joshua Tree’s JOSAR group; they train hard every month, and have achieved a level of respect and notoriety in the region, setting a high bar for the mountain and urban rescue groups that operate in San Bernardino County, Imperial County, and Riverside County.

Here is an interesting article from Outside Magazine on how SAR works in a general sense using examples from other National Parks.

and this shot, from Joshua Tree National Park taken by JOSAR member, of JOSAR members training. Guess where?