Crews search for missing 82-year-old hiker in NH - found safe

God bless this guy for still hiking, many 82 year-olds are confined to a bed in a nursing home so I think it is great that this guy can still get out on the trails. However, I do think that at his age it is a bit dangerous for him to be on the trails alone. Hopefully this story has a happy ending.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2011/12/13/crews_search_for_missing_82_year_old_hiker_in_nh/?p1=Local_Links

WhiteMTHike said:

However, I do think that at his age it is a bit dangerous for him to be on the trails alone.

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I am not quite 82 yet, but getting there

Many of my friends think I am nuts for hiking alone year round, and I agree that it has its dangers. But it is not possible to lead a totally risk-free life, and that is a risk that I am willing to take.

Mohamed Ellozy said:

I am not quite 82 yet, but getting there

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I'd submit you probably wouldn't qualify as the average senior hiker, though . Probaly not average any age hiker.

In my mind, the risk of hiking solo has an inverse relationship with your fitness and familiarity with the trails.

Hopefully this turns out well.

Hoping for the best. But at his age he won't have many hiking peers. Better go alone than not go at all. I wish to be like him when I turn his age.

I sure do hope I am like him when I'm in my 80's.

And if it happens to be my time to cross Rainbow Bridge, I cannot think of a better place to take my leave than on a wonderful hike in the woods.

I look back now and wonder "where did it all go?"
Time certainly waits for no one.

Godspeed to all us "old timers". Ever onward. Don't quit! Savor every moment. It's ours for the taking.

They found him (see OP's link). He's fine!

Just got the news release that he's been found -- Missing Durham Hiker Is Rescued .

We had one of these in VT for a guy in his 90s. His biggest concern when found was that his son would find out and stop him from going out.

Had another in the Northwest Angle of MN for a guy in his late 70s, in a waist-deep swamp. He walked out on his own a couple of days after the search was abandoned.

sardog1 said:

Just got the news release that he's been found -- Missing Durham Hiker Is Rescued .

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Great news, thanks for posting it. I hope he continues to hike and that this does not deter him. Hopefully he goes with a partner next time.

sardog1 said:

We had one of these in VT for a guy in his 90s. His biggest concern when found was that his son would find out and stop him from going out.

Had another in the Northwest Angle of MN for a guy in his late 70s, in a waist-deep swamp. He walked out on his own a couple of days after the search was abandoned.

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That's the spirit!
Happy to here this fella is OK to.
Hope he doesn't get lots of pressure from family and friends to quit hiking.

Those Minnesotans are tough as nails and Vermonters are no wimps either.

That is indeed a tough situation for many who keep hiking actively to and beyond that age... you run out of age-appropriate playmates. My Dad and I finished our NH4K (for me my NE67) last year together shortly before I moved, and I would venture to say he has another round in him yet at age 76, if he cares to take it on. He has the luxury of hiking week in and week out, and prefers to hike weekdays as it's logistically easier for a lot of reasons. But his former hiking buddies mostly confine themselves to hikes too easy and boring for him. Sure, the company is good, but he often faces the dilemma of hiking alone vs. settling for something else. Fortunately (selfishly?) for us, he doesn't hike solo much if at all, but I can understand those who do!!

WhiteMTHike said:

However, I do think that at his age it is a bit dangerous for him to be on the trails alone.

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In this case, what good would a companion have done? Would you require that the companion have more years of experience than the guy

Sure, there are times when a companion could save the life of a hiker of any age. But what this guy needed more was a GPS-enabled cell phone, or just a GPS and a flashlight.

Very good point, Roy.

What good were the two accompanied off Chocorua Monday night when they a) got a late start, b) didn't have a map, c) didn't have any light with them? I guess they could keep each other company.

erugs said:

What good were the two accompanied off Chocorua Monday night when they a) got a late start, b) didn't have a map, c) didn't have any light with them? I guess they could keep each other company.

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Sometimes having a companion can prevent panic or one will remember the navigation at a spot where the other is confused.

On the other hand, more people increase the chance of individual problems or becoming separated...

Doug

Another reason for hiking with a dog (or dogs). They are willing to hike anywhere at any time, and will adjust to your pace. Many have an excellent sense of direction and could help find the way back. If not, the dog would provide a warm companion to hold onto to stave off hypothermia until help arrives. The dog could also hear the rescuers at a distance and bark to alert them of your location.

DougPaul said:

Sometimes having a companion can prevent panic or one will remember the navigation at a spot where the other is confused.

On the other hand, more people increase the chance of individual problems or becoming separated...

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Very good to hear he was found as a rescue and not a recovery. We've had 3 recent searches that ended the wrong way this season in NY.

Over several years and dozens of searches, I can think of just one single case when I was called out on a search where there was more than one person lost - but in that case with two guys in a blizzard one decided to stay put and was rescued, the other guy left and died on the way. There are numerous short term cases that the NYSDEC Rangers find a "lost" group of two or more in short order, but none that went for an extended time when organized SAR resources were called out (in NY).

It would in general be better (IMO) if the guy in this thread carried a compass and knew how to use it to navigate his way in with a map (and thus know his way out), than if he had a gps to pull out from somewhere in his pack.

Nessmuk said:

It would in general be better (IMO) if the guy in this thread carried a compass and knew how to use it to navigate his way in with a map (and thus know his way out), than if he had a gps to pull out from somewhere in his pack.

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I'm a compass fan myself, but the instance in which a GPS shines is when you don't know your starting point. The guy apparently became disoriented when he left the trail to follow deer tracks, if he had a GPS with trail locations he could have quickly found out where the nearest trail was and with the moon that night he maybe even could have walked it without a flashlight.

This article explains why he didn't walk out at first light - he fell in the swamp and lost a boot heading towards a light
http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/298886/out-of-the-woods

So with a GPS showing local trails and a flashlight he perhaps could have rescued himself - may need DP to upload trails

With a GPS-enabled cell phone (assuming service in Durham) he probably would have been found even before his wife missed him and before he fell in the swamp

With a whistle he could have signaled the person carrying the flashlight instead of trying to cross swamp

With a flashing light he could perhaps have signaled the helicopter at night (my $4 light has flash mode)

The last 2 items are very cheap and all of the above are lightweight and would fit in jacket pocket not requiring a pack

Flashlight, flashlight, flashlight. As Roy said, it has little weight and so much potential. Even if the light doesn't have a flashing capacity, one can cup the light on and off with their hand. The couple who had to call for help when coming off Chocorua a week ago today would have had much less trouble if they had been carrying at least one, trail knowledge and timing aside.

I looked at a map. He wasn't far from town or deep in the wilderness. Looks like a walk in the country not far from roads. Sometimes stuff happens.


I'll bet he's learned his lession.

While he hopes to get back to the woods - on known trails, of course - he said the real answer will come from Wilma.

"That's up to my wife, I guess," he said.

"I told him that he couldn't go in the woods anymore unless he had a compass he could rely on and a cell phone," Wilma said.

Charity said he's promised her he'll never go off a trail's path again.

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