Journey through Snow Creek Canyon turns perilous when horses suffer brutal fall

Spirit and Mo were on a mission to help clean up hiking trails along rugged Snow Creek Canyon, in the picturesque outskirts of Palm Springs.

But the volunteer journey suddenly turned perilous Saturday afternoon when the equipment-hauling horses became stuck on San Jacinto Mountain, and triggered a very different mission: a veterinary medical evacuation.

Mo, Spirit and a third horse were lugging equipment along the trail when they stumbled on a bee hive, angering the insects, officials say.

When bees began to surround the animals, the horses became so spooked that they bolted off the trail and tumbled down a steep ravine, according to Tyler Reynolds, a Riverside City Fire Department captain.

Although the third horse landed in an area where it could climb back onto the trail, Spirit and Mo were not so lucky. They were injured and trapped within the ravine, Reynolds said.

A rescue call went out to save the animals, but the effort had to wait until the next morning because of the lack of daylight.

The Riverside Horse & Animal Rescue Team arrived on the scene Sunday, and began looking for the horses.

The team includes Riverside firefighters, police officers, county animal control personnel and a veterinarian. They are specially trained in large animal rescue via helicopter. The team has been in place nearly a year, Reynolds said.

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When the the team reached Mo, some 20 hours after his fall, Reynolds said the animal was in “very bad shape.” A veterinarian found that he was dehydrated, had a severe leg injury, and appeared to have hip and head wounds as well.

“He was pretty too far off by the time we actually reached him,” said Reynolds, who is a member of HART.

Mo died before he could be airlifted off the mountain, and the veterinarian euthanized him to ensure “he was 100% gone prior to being left in the canyon,” Reynolds said.

Mo’s body was left where he had fallen and rescuers covered him with brush. The veterinarian snipped off a piece of Mo’s mane and tail to give to his owner, which is a tradition when a horse dies, Reynolds said.

When rescuers reached Spirit, he had cuts on his legs and was covered in bees, but appeared to be in much better shape than Mo. Spirit was blindfolded, bound in a sling and airlifted by helicopter out of the ravine.

But on Monday, authorities announced that Spirit did not survive, despite the dramatic helicopter rescue.

“Spirit passed away at the animal hospital late last night due to kidney failure,” Reynolds said. “He hung on as long as he could but we didn’t get to him soon enough.”

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