Maine forest rangers played a key role in the Monday morning rescue of a hiker injured after a fall on Maine’s tallest mountain.
A 61-year-old from Utah was climbing the Cathedral Trail with a companion on Saturday when he fell 10 to 15 feet, according to Eben Sypitkowski, the director of Baxter State Park.
The hiker and his companion spent the weekend atop the mountain when they were unable to descend quickly with the assistance of a park ranger and volunteers from Mahoosuc Search and Rescue, Sypitkowski said Monday.
A Maine Forest Service video gives us a first-person view as rangers on Monday morning used a helicopter to airlift the injured hiker from the Hamlin Ridge Trail. The injured hiker was brought to the Caribou Pit, where he was treated for dehydration before forest rangers flew him the rest of the way to Millinocket Regional Hospital.
That was the second rescue performed on Katahdin over the weekend. The two Pennsylvania hikers, who weren’t injured, became stuck off-trail below the Knife Edge amid gusty and erratic winds on Sunday, and were rescued by a volunteer search and rescue team that brought them off the mountain early Monday morning.
“This mountain is as rugged as any. Do not underestimate the mountain, and do not overestimate your own skill and preparedness,” Sypitkowski said Monday.
Related: Crossing the Knife Edge
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