A Vancouver man is lucky to be alive after plunging about 45 metres down an embankment earlier this month.
The unnamed 24-year-old was hiking on a pathway along the canyon near Capilano Park Road on Aug. 8 when he wandered off the trail to look over the edge. He slipped all the way down to a rocky alcove on the shore of the Capilano River, said North Vancouver RCMP Cpl. Richard De Jong in a news release on Monday.
Rescuers used a body board to carry the hiker to safety downstream. But he miraculously escaped serious injury, said De Jong.
The hiker then left for home with his girlfriend on a transit bus, he added.
“This is a clear example of the importance of staying on the trails in our parks and to respect the back country as a place of potential hazard,” said De Jong.