Search and rescue volunteers ventured out in the dark overnight to help two stranded and woefully unprepared hikers on Crown Mountain.

North Shore Rescue said the pair started hiking around 12 p.m. Thursday on the Hanes Valley loop, 30-kilometre trail that’s considered very difficult.

“Starting out at noon was obviously one of the fundamental things they did wrong,” search manager Peter Haigh said.

“They expected to complete the circuit in about eight or nine hours, and that’s pretty tight. You’ve got to be pretty fit and know what you’re doing to do it in that time.”

General hikers should allow for at least 10, and even up to 12 hours to complete the Hanes Valley loop, Haigh added.

At around 9:30 p.m., realizing they were stuck, the men called 911 for help – which is about the only thing they did right, according to rescuers.

They didn’t have water, extra clothing, light or almost any of the other 10 essentials for hiking.

“I think they’ve learned a lesson and hopefully the general public will learn from it and carry the 10 essentials and all will be well,” Haigh said.

The hikers, Jason and Fred, were found at the top of Crown Mountain, which is a ways off the trail. After being helped back to safety, the pair said they were extremely grateful to the volunteers who headed out to rescue them.

“Going down, the guys were actually showing us a couple of cliffs that you could go over and you would completely have no awareness of such a consequence,” Fred said. "It's so dark you can hardly see anything."

“I feel like we wasted a lot of people’s time but we’re both really grateful to everyone,” said Jason.

North Shore Rescue said members have had a busy year, completing close to 70 rescues so far.

For more information on safe hiking and packing the 10 essentials, visit the North Shore Rescue website.

With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Ben Miljure