The Oldham Mountain Rescue Team has issued a danger warning to walkers after rescuing hikers on a popular trail in the Dovestone area.
Just after 6pm on Sunday evening, the team was contacted by Greater Manchester Police and asked to help search for a group of walkers.
A National Police Air Service helicopter was also called to the scene.
OMRT was able to track down the walkers to Middle Edge Moss, in between Birchen Clough and Holme Clough using Phone Find technology and some were flown to safety.
The group had become gravely lost after following the so-called ‘Trinnacle Trail’, a route that has found fame on social media.
Following the rescue, OMRT has urged walkers to consider the dangers of tackling the trail which they say is “not for the faint-hearted” and involves a scramble, despite being advertised as one of the best walks in the UK.
The rescue team has also issued a stark warning on the “challenging terrain” in the Dovestones area and said that the weather can “can change in an instant”.
OMRT says the number of people attempting the ‘Trinnacle Trail’ has “surged” due to its popularity on social media, with 25 per cent of call outs in the area now from people following the trail and some involving “serious and/or potentially life-changing injuries”.
In 2021 Imran Choudhury suffered injuries in every bone in his body except those in his left arm after falling 200ft from the Trinnicle.
The Chadderton dad was training in Saddleworth for a Kilimanjaro-sponsored walk for the NHS when he stopped at the famous Trinnacle landmark and asked two passers-by to take his photograph.
When he started climbing back down, he blacked out and fell 200ft and was left clinging to a 50-degree slope in the ravine.
He was rescued by the OMRT and flown to hospital by the Yorkshire Air Ambulance where he was placed in a coma in intensive care for three weeks.
Imran has since raised thousands for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance and plans to also fundraise for OMRT.
The rescue team said that due to social media, it is now "almost a pre-requisite" of visiting the Trinnacle that the hiker gets a photo of themselves on top of the pillar but urged caution as it can be slippery when wet and extremely exposed when windy.
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