Founded in 1947, we are one of the oldest and most experienced mountain rescue teams in the country, and also one of the busiest. We are contracted by the Boulder County Sheriff's Office as the county's primary mountain rescue agency, but upon request we also assist other mountain rescue teams outside the county. RMRG is a fully certified and accredited, non-profit IRS 501(c)3 organization and we do not charge for our services.

Each year RMRG receives about 200 calls for emergency assistance (see our call statistics for more detail). Some incidents resolve themselves, but most involve fielding rescuers. The nature of calls for rescue are diverse and range from hikers with sprained ankles, to fallen climbers, to avalanches, to downed aircraft. Operating under the Incident Command System (ICS), rescuers find missing parties and evacuate injured persons. RMRG is also trained to assist in natural disasters such as floods and snow storms. For any large incident we can provide logistical expertise, incident management, and radio communication services.

Outdoor Safety Education RMRG promotes safety in mountain recreation and provides outdoor safety education programs for schools, businesses, and community organizations. 

Training RMRG members have extensive and continuous training in mountain search and rescue techniques. We are a fully accredited member team of the Mountain Rescue Association (MRA), a U.S. organization of over 90 member teams. Twelve MRA teams in Colorado provide mutual assistance to each other upon request. RMRG exceeds requirements for FEMA/NIMS Type I Mountain SAR and Wilderness SAR resource types, and exceeds NFPA 1670, 1006 and ASTM F2209. RMRG has an extensive equipment R&D program to ensure we have the best and safest mountain rescue equipment and techniques available. 

Why are we so busy? Outdoor recreation is popular in Boulder County. There are 200 miles of foothills trails and 110,000 acres of open space, including the Flatirons and Eldorado Canyon State Park. The Continental Divide forms our western border, overlooking 136 miles of trails and 160,000 acres of the Roosevelt National Forest and Indian Peaks Wilderness. Rocky Mountain National Park is in the northwest corner of the county. These spectacular and inviting outdoor recreational opportunities increase the chances for wilderness accidents and for getting lost, and create a need to educate the public in safe outdoor practices.