Current:Home > NewsA hiker is rescued after falling down an Adirondack mountain peak on a wet, wintry night -ProfitEdge
A hiker is rescued after falling down an Adirondack mountain peak on a wet, wintry night
View
Date:2025-04-17 00:14:26
Forest rangers successfully rescued an upstate New York hiker who survived a frigid night on a rugged Adirondack mountain peak trapped above a cliff, after she slipped and fell hundreds of feet down from the summit.
“I thought I might have froze to death. There were like 45-mile-an-hour winds (70 kph) up there,” veteran hiker Hope Lloyd said Wednesday about her recent ordeal.
Lloyd, 46, was solo hiking on the day after Christmas when she lost her footing at around 5:30 p.m. near the top of South Dix Mountain. Lloyd and state rangers said she slid several hundred feet over steep snow and down a slippery rock slab. She was heading straight toward a cliff but was stopped by a small spruce tree.
“That’s the only thing that saved me,” Lloyd said in a phone interview. “If I was a little bit to the left or a little bit to the right, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
Conditions were treacherous on the 4,060-foot (1,235 meter) mountain, one of the Adirondack High Peaks, with heavy rain and areas of deep snow and slick ice, according to Ranger Jamison Martin. Temperatures were in the lower 30s (around zero degrees Celsius).
“It’s basically what we call hypothermia weather: wet, cold, just the mix of those things. It’s a bad combo,” Martin said in a video detailing the rescue.
Lloyd is an experienced hiker who has climbed all 46 Adirondack High Peaks, twice. But she was exhausted and felt it was too perilous to move from her spot because she might slip again and start sliding toward the cliff. Even with her headlamp, it was too dark and foggy to see. She phoned for help.
Lloyd had an emergency blanket and kept herself moving in place as much as possible to fight off the cold.
Martin and another forest ranger reached her by 1:30 a.m. — about eight hours after her fall. They gave her warm liquids, food and dry clothing and soon helped her bushwhack back to the trail. They reached her vehicle at 6:30 a.m.
The resident of South Glens Falls, New York, suffered some scrapes and bruises but realizes it could have been much worse.
“I feel extremely grateful. Extremely grateful,” she said. “I just want to hug everybody.”
veryGood! (5794)
Related
- Jamie Foxx reps say actor was hit in face by a glass at birthday dinner, needed stitches
- Israeli military detains director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital
- Irish writer Paul Lynch wins Booker Prize with dystopian novel ‘Prophet Song’
- From 'Butt Fumble' to 'Hell Mary,' Jets can't outrun own misery in another late-season collapse
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
- Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott and Sarah Jane Ramos Expecting First Baby
- Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders out for season finale vs. Utah, freshman Ryan Staub starts
- Israeli military detains director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- US Army soldier killed in helicopter crash remembered as devoted family member, friend and leader
Ranking
- Retirement planning: 3 crucial moves everyone should make before 2025
- Lawyer for Italian student arrested in ex-girlfriend’s slaying says he’s disoriented, had psych exam
- Becky G Reveals How She Found Her Inner Strength By Making This Lifestyle Change
- Missing dog rescued by hikers in Colorado mountains reunited with owner after 2 months
- Meta releases AI model to enhance Metaverse experience
- Pakistan’s army says it killed 8 militants during a raid along the border with Afghanistan
- Former UK leader Boris Johnson joins a march against antisemitism in London
- Israel summons Irish ambassador over tweet it alleges doesn’t adequately condemn Hamas
Recommendation
Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
2 deaths, 28 hospitalizations linked to salmonella-tainted cantaloupes as recalls take effect
Syria says an Israeli airstrike hit the Damascus airport and put it out of service
Irregular meals, benches as beds. As hostages return to Israel, details of captivity begin to emerge
Federal Spending Freeze Could Have Widespread Impact on Environment, Emergency Management
1.3 million chickens to be culled after bird flu detected at Ohio farm
Violence erupts in Dublin in response to knife attack that wounded 3 children
Alex Smith roasts Tom Brady's mediocrity comment: He played in 'biggest cupcake division'