“Alive or dead?”
That was the terrifying question Michela Beavon faced when search teams said they had found her missing husband along the Tongariro River.
For five hours, she had waited for word from searchers after he failed to return from a kayaking trip.
She felt “absolutely helpless”.
At the same time, Mike Beavon was shivering on a riverbank.
But he was alive.
The Beavons, from Taupō, have spoken out about their ordeal after Mike was reported overdue on Saturday, August 9, during what was supposed to be a simple afternoon paddle.
Mike knew the outdoors well. Four decades of kayaking and extensive bush experience had made him a seasoned adventurer.
It had been a long time since he had tackled the Tongariro River. So when his grandson had a soccer game in Tūrangi, Mike saw it as a great opportunity.
He set off from access 10 on Kaimanawa Rd, expecting a three-hour trip down the grade 3 white-water river to Blue Pool, then on to Red Hut Pool, where his family was to meet him.
As he reached the Rangipo Prison Road Bridge more than two hours in, a “silly little thing” on a minor rapid set off a cascade of events.
Mike missed the river split and lost his line through a rapid. He tried to manoeuvre across jets of water and slippery rocks but became stuck on a rock.
He got out and grabbed his paddle, but his kayak slipped away.
With the riverbanks thick with scrub, Mike realised it was too dangerous to swim or walk back up towards the Rangipo Prison Road Bridge.
“If I go around there and get stuck, I might never be found... until some pig dog sniffs me out,” he said afterwards.
Mike’s phone, drifting away with his kayak, was of no use.
He moved to a small beach along the riverbank where he hoped to be visible to passing rafts or rescuers.
Mike said he was reasonably well dressed and had spare clothes, but as temperatures dropped, he became chilly. Taupo hit a low of 2.7C that night.
He built a small shelter to block the wind and clung to hope.
“When darkness descended, I thought, ‘Oh hell, this is going to be a long night’”.
Mike pictured his family’s grief and the responsibilities he left behind.
“All these things go through your head ... All the things people depend on you for would have to be done by someone else.”
Michela dropped off her husband at 10.30am, expecting to meet him at Red Hut Pool about three hours later.
By 2.30pm, there was no sign of him.
She called Mike, who didn’t answer. She kept waiting.
By 4pm, dread set in. Their daughter Amelia, waiting with her, phoned the police. Michela said the response was: “He’s not quite missing yet, but we’ll keep you on the books.”
At 5pm, still nothing.
Michela then called the police, and officers met her at Red Hut Pool and alerted Land Search and Rescue.
Michela showed Land Search and Rescue a photo she had taken of Mike setting off. She said it was a “Godsend” giving rescuers a picture of Mike’s kayak, clothing and helmet.
Land Search and Rescue told Michela it was too late to launch rafts or kayaks. The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was called in.
The helicopter crew saw Mike’s kayak and informed Michela. That meant “there’s a human body somewhere”, she said.
About 7.30pm, she watched the chopper sweep overhead while still waiting at Red Hut Pool.
Michela called the experience a “disaster, emotionally”.
About 8pm, Greenlea Rescue Helicopter crews found Mike. Their search had begun upriver from Motuoapa and had covered most of the Tongariro River.
Rescuers spotted Mike’s kayak about 1km past him, then traced the river to where he was stranded.
The area was too remote for a helicopter to land, so a rescuer was winched down, and Mike was lifted to safety.
Though he was not allowed to take his paddle, Mike said the warmth inside the helicopter was immediate - a stark contrast to the cold riverbank.
The helicopter flew him to the Tūrangi aerodrome.
Michela was sitting in their ute at 9pm when the call came: “We found your husband”.
“Alive or dead?” she asked.
He was alive.
Relief flooded in. But the hours spent stressing were “not pleasant”.
Tongariro River Rafting retrieved Mike’s paddle and kayak a couple of days later.
The Beavons said the experience “really has opened our eyes” and the family were now planning on getting a personal location or distress beacon.
Department of Conservation land safety forum programme lead Tania Seward said the device lets emergency services know when someone needs help by transmitting their location via satellite.
Seward said data, as of June 30, 2023, showed that 90% of rescues were completed in less than six hours when beacons were activated. Without a beacon, rescues were completed in less than 17 hours.
Taupō police area search and rescue squad lead Barry Shepherd was part of Mike’s rescue team.
He said beacons were a tool to potentially make rescues “easier” and “reduce risk”, but making good decisions by being prepared and staying informed before heading out was at the core of keeping safe.
Annabel Reid is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, based in Rotorua. Originally from Hawke’s Bay, she has a Bachelor of Communications from the University of Canterbury.