peakbagger
In Rembrance , July 2024
WMUR had a report that an unprepared hypothermic hiker was rescued on Mt Washington from the Westside trail (near the summit) on Saturday.
They have been but it's been over 40 years as far as I know.Wouldn't be a President's Day Weekend without some sort of foolish hiker going out to the Presidentials in bad weather. Sounded like without the use of the Cog this would have been a recovery, not a rescue. I know SAR "signs up for this" but they must really be getting tired of the stubborn stupidity of these people on such obviously bad weather days. Someday a SAR volunteer is going to be the casualty in one of these events, which would be a damn shame..
Yeah, that's a creepy place to have to shelter. More like a morgue. LOC was full one day back in 85 and we were showed the "overflow" shelter down below. It was summer and we opted to camp out in the open under the stars. Kudos to the Cog RR for stepping up and as always to the SAR crew for going out in deadly conditions.One of the rare occasions where the LOC refuge room was actually used as intended.
I thought I had read somewhere awhile back that they were closing/had closed that emergency area because too many people were using it on purpose as a shelter and it was getting pretty disgusting. Is that not the case? How do you even get in there? I don't think I ever really looked at how to get inside when I've been at that hut.One of the rare occasions where the LOC refuge room was actually used as intended.
I would imagine that the Cog pays for that. And, it is money very well spent in terms of goodwill. Plus, IMHO, it is the right thing to do. Of course, it's easy for me to say that since it is not my money...The role of the Cog in this rescue is interesting. They dispatched not one, but two trains to deliver SAR folks to the junction of the Westside trail. That's pretty far up the hill. I assume they burned some diesel and called in crew to run the trains.
Who pays for that? Or is it written off as great PR and good vibes in support of their expansion plans?
Regardless it was a huge contribution to SAR efforts.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/whitemountain/workingtogether/volunteeringI don't know if they do it any more, but the rangers in the main parking area at Monadnock used to check folks coming in to see if they were prepared. Water, maps, boots/clothing, etc. Some of it was questions, some was just observation. Presumably someone is checking the cars in the Ammo parking lot to see if they've paid. Perhaps they could be stationed there for a few hours in the mornings (when the majority of hikes start) to do similar hiker assessments/warnings. Especially on the really bad weather days? Same at Pinkham. Alternatively, post signs at the trail heads saying any rescue will be at least six hours away (assuming you can get a cell signal). It's not like calling 911 and getting a response in 10 minutes.
There's old climbers and there's bold climbers but no old bold climbers.
- Somebody
Unless, of course, you have a train and dedicated volunteers to save you.
The Cog railway has always jumped at the chance to help in SAR. They get a bad rap and it's completely undeserved. I consider them one of the finer occupants on mountain. I've have always thought highly of the Cog and find the opposition to have weak and biased criticism of them.The role of the Cog in this rescue is interesting. They dispatched not one, but two trains to deliver SAR folks to the junction of the Westside trail. That's pretty far up the hill. I assume they burned some diesel and called in crew to run the trains.
Who pays for that? Or is it written off as great PR and good vibes in support of their expansion plans?
Regardless it was a huge contribution to SAR efforts.
Albert Dow was buried in an avalanche looking for Hugh Herr in 1982. I was up there when it happened, it was a big deal.Wouldn't be a President's Day Weekend without some sort of foolish hiker going out to the Presidentials in bad weather. Sounded like without the use of the Cog this would have been a recovery, not a rescue. I know SAR "signs up for this" but they must really be getting tired of the stubborn stupidity of these people on such obviously bad weather days. Someday a SAR volunteer is going to be the casualty in one of these events, which would be a damn shame..
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