Photo: Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team
A pair of lost hikers rewarded their rescuers’ efforts by sticking them with a hotel bill. To add insult to injury, the pair also made off with two headlamps lent to them during the previous night’s retrieval,
As Wasdale Mountain Rescue explained in a Facebook post, the rescue occurred after two young male hikers who became lost in dangerous weather conditions on England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike, on December 30, 2025. This resulted in a seven-hour operation that Wasdale Mountain Rescue tactfully described as “avoidable.” Upon the hikers’ safe return, the bar manager of the nearby Wasdale Head Inn offered the wayward travelers a discounted room and snacks. The pair accepted the offer and agreed to pay, but said their money was still in their tent.
However, the next morning was a totally different story. “Disappointingly, in the morning they offered no thanks for the efforts of the hotel, asked for further reductions to the cost, pushed hard for a breakfast and asked if they could arrange transport to get them out of the valley,” continued Wasdale Mountain Rescue. “The answer was, ‘Sorry no extras and please transfer money when you can.’ Sadly there has been no payment to the hotel of the £130 outstanding room cost or thank you to Steve. Neither did the telephone number given to Steve [the Bar Manager at the Wasdale Head Inn] work.”
Though the hotel agreed to cover the loss, Wasdale Mountain Rescue explained that it felt obligated to foot the bill, in order to ensure that future rescued hikers could be ensured the same generosity afforded to the missing pair.
“We avoid judging those we rescue but struggle to understand when the rescued take advantage of hospitality provided by our supporters in the valley,” wrote the organization.
Luckily, it appears that the public stepped up. The post was initially intended simply to encourage the hikers themselves to pay back the money owed, a subsequent update to the Facebook post explained that Wasdale Mountain rescue received “more than required” to settle the bill. They added that “Any additional funding raised will go directly towards the team’s operational costs which are in excess of £100,000 ($137,000 USD) annually.”
