MOUNTAIN rescue volunteers of Wasdale were called to assist a group of walkers who had reported themselves lost in the area of Scafell Pike on Friday, before later finding out they had made their own way back to the valley floor.
Cumbria Police received a call from the party of six walkers just before 4pm on Friday June 19.
The initial 999 call placed them on the Broad Crag footpath, but the call then dropped and further attempts to reconnect were unsuccessful.
Broad Crag is a neighbour to Scafell Pike, England's highest mountain, in the Wasdale Valley.
The team leader of Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team sent PhoneFind links, messages, and attempted repeated calls after losing contact with the group but they could not be contacted.
A very brief call was eventually made, during which the group stated they were now on the Corridor Route and had parked at Seathwaite.
The Corridor Route takes walkers up Scafell Pike from Seathwaite in the Borrowdale Valley, so the group was attending to descend.
A spokesperson for Wasdale MRT said: "With no further contact and the group appearing to be moving and not requesting additional assistance, the situation became difficult to assess and the search area remained large."
Following discussions between Wasdale MRT, Cumbria Police, and the Keswick MRT Team Leader, the decision was made not to deploy immediately and to await further information.
The team leader later made the decision to stand down as no additional calls were received.
Police later confirmed the group had made contact, they were safe and well.
Involving one Wasdale MRT team member for five hours and 14 minutes, it was incident 69 of the year so far.
