A wrong turn running in Peterson Creek Park trapped a Kamloops woman and her beloved dog several metres down a rock face as the sun began to fade late Tuesday afternoon.

Fortunately for Sarah Sparrow and three-year-old Great Dane, Maverick, she took her phone with her on the run.

“I don’t usually bring my cellphone or go (running here) this late,” she said when back on solid ground.

Sparrow phoned 9-11 when she realized she was in a precarious position. She said a dispatcher stayed on the line with her the whole 12 minutes it took Kamloops Fire and Rescue to reach her.

She and Maverick left the Peterson Creek parking lot and ran up a trail on the west side of the park. When Sparrow reached the top of Peterson Creek, she took what she thought was a route back down.

When the trail ran out, Sparrow tried to turn around. She fell instead.

“I lost my footing and I just slid right on the tail side of my back,” she said.

Sparrow dug her feet into the dirt and stopped her descent. When she turned to look, Maverick was several metres above her.

The dog didn’t know what to do, so he crawled down to his master. Soon both were stuck on the hillside

“I thought ‘I have to call someone. I can’t get myself out of this’,” said Sparrow.

One crew of firefighters hiked into Peterson Creek from Whiteshield Crescent South, another ventured in on Glenfair Drive, at the park’s lower entrance. Fire capt. Rob Chalmers and firefighter Henry Chin helped guide the rescue from the base of the waterfall.

They watched as a firefighter climbed down to Sparrow and Maverick. Another ventured up the rocks around the waterfall to join them.

Chalmers said there were two options for rescue: help dog and woman back up or have them climb down. The rescue crew wanted to go with the first option, but Sparrow was hesitant.

“Is there no way to come down?” Sparrow yelled at Chalmers, adding Maverick wouldn’t be able to make the climb.

Every move made by Sparrow, Maverick or one of the firefighters sent a rock or two to the ground. One bounced off Chin’s helmet.

It was decided the pair would climb down. Firefighter Wes Reid held Maverick’s leash while his colleague, Ken Hartt, helped the young woman navigate the rocks and climb over a fallen tree.

“Once we got to the rocks, it was fine,” Sparrow said of the effort.

Paramedics met Sparrow on the ground. She said she was sore, but otherwise fine. Maverick ran about and visited with the firefighters, as his owner thanked them profusely.

“They did an absolutely fabulous job,” she said.

Chin said people like to hike in the park at this time of year. Sometimes they get stuck and firefighters have to rescue them.

“People are people. It can happen to anyone,” he said.

jhewlett@kamloopsnews.ca