Ill-prepared hikers, one in shorts, rescued from snowy North Shore mountain

A trio of ill-prepared hikers was rescued off Mount Fromme in North Vancouver, B.C., on Sunday evening.

North Shore Rescue says it was dispatched after the hikers, all university students from UBC, were unable to locate the trail to descend the mountain.

After wandering off-trail, one of the hikers sustained a twisted ankle and called 911 for assistance around 4:30 p.m. PT.

The rescue team helped the hikers walk off the trail by around 9:30 p.m. PT. They were cold and damp but otherwise unharmed, according to search manager Peter Haigh.

However, he says the hikers should have been better prepared.

"Their footwear was totally inadequate. They were in runners. It's quite steep snow where they ended up," said Haigh.

He says one man was wearing shorts. As well, he says, they hadn't properly timed the trip.

"They obviously left too late for a return trip with daylight. And that's not a smart thing to do," he said.

Haigh says North Shore Rescue has seen a large number of twisted ankles this year.

"We've been having a lot of issues with that," he said, adding that hikers should wear shoes with ankle support and grip, ideally hiking boots.

While ill-prepared, the hikers did do a couple of things right by leaving a trip plan with someone else and staying put once they called for help, NSR wrote earlier on social media.