RCMP say a 75-year-old Idaho man died Wednesday after falling down a steep embankment along Highway 3A at Akokli Creek while geocaching.
Cpl. Dan Moskaluk says around 2:20 p.m., Creston RCMP, the BC Ambulance Service, and Nelson Search and Rescue were dispatched to a pull off area where the man’s group had stopped.
Despite the efforts of the man’s family and another group of motorists who provided first aid and CPR, the man died at the scene from injuries sustained in the fall of 80 feet (24 m).
"Geocaching is a very popular recreational activity where people use GPS devices to locate hidden items,” Moskaluk said in a news release.
“We do caution people to consider the terrain at these sites, to ensure that it is safe to attempt to retrieve the item. If it's in rough terrain, simply skip it.”
The man and his family were all from Moyie Springs and were vacationing in BC. Witnesses say the group stopped and had just begun locating the GPS bearings of the geocache when the man stepped over the roadside barriers, lost his footing and fell.
RCMP and the coroner have completed their investigation and concluded the death was accidental.
Victim services workers have provided support to the family.
Oddly, the man, whose name has not been released, is the second Moyie Springs resident killed on that stretch of road in the last year.
Peter Small, 64, died last fall when his motorcycle crashed south of Crawford Bay.