Holcombe abseil and mountain rescue

Sue Gernon and a member of the Rossendale and Pendle Mountain Rescue Team

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The Peel Tower abseil on the top of Holcombe Hill has become a regular annual fixture for Rossendale and Pendle Mountain Rescue Team. In the course of a day over one hundred otherwise sane people walked all the way to the top of the Peel Tower at Holcombe, then took the quick way down on the end of a rope,128 feet or about 43 metres. If that doesn’t seem like a long way down, just pop up next time you see the flag flying on the tower and lean over the edge.

Several very brave people conquered their fear of heights, or their fear of falls more accurately, as they were gently encouraged to go over the edge. There were many worried faces, and even a couple who decided it was a bit too high. It doesn’t matter, some of the bravest people were the ones who knew they didn’t like heights but still tried to get over their fears, showing more bottle than most by just having a go.

For Sue Gernon it was the first time she had ever tried to abseil: "I felt really safe as I was given clear instructions and had a fab time, I really feel like Ive pushed myself and achieved something, and raised money for a good cause at the same time."

If you were there and saw a few of us suddenly race off in a cloud of dust – well it just goes to show why a Mountain Rescue Team is needed in the area.

A mountain biker had crashed near the firing ranges, literally less than a mile away from the tower; the ambulance could not access him to treat him or to evacuate him as it was a long way from a proper road. Team members took a paramedic crew there in one of our 4x4s; he was treated for a broken humerus and a nasty shoulder injury by NWAS and then we carried the poor lad to the Air Ambulance over some steep terrain.

Then if that wasn’t enough, it was up all those steps to the top of the tower to carry on…