172Recon
01-01-2009, 06:25 PM
You may have already read this since it's all over the place, but if not here it is:
YOUNG RHODE ISLAND HIKERS SAFE
CONCORD, N.H. - Two young hikers were rescued by New Hampshire Fish and Game
Department Conservation Officers Tuesday evening, December 30, 2008, saving them
from spending a cold night in a mountain cabin without adequate winter gear.
Dean Cooper and Pasquale Digiovangiacomo Jr., both age 18, of Cranston, Rhode
Island, had set out at approximately 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, intending to hike up and
spend the night at the U.S. Forest Service's Black Mountain cabin in the White
Mountain National Forest in the area of Jackson, N.H. The inexperienced hikers were
wearing regular work boots, not insulated hiking boots. They abandoned some of their
gear, including lightweight sleeping bags and kindling, about 300 meters up the
trail. The young men arrived at the cabin at about 3 p.m. and were surprised to find
that the cabin was not equipped with blankets or other amenities. (The White
Mountain National Forest website clearly states that the rental cabin is "rustic"
and users are expected to carry in all their own gear, bedding and water.) They
tried to get a fire started in the cabin woodstove, but were unable to get it
going. Cold, wet and facing the prospect of a night with little protection from the
cold, they
called for help about 6 p.m.
Two Fish and Game Conservation officers, Brian Abrams and Bradley Morse, hiked in to
assist them, bringing along insulated hiking boots designed for winter wear, which
were loaned by the Eastern Mountain Sports equipment rental program. Morse, a
paramedic, determined that the young men's feet were not frostbitten. They were
provided with dry socks and the boots, and accompanied down the mountain by the COs,
reaching the trailhead at about 11 p.m.
"Unfortunately, these hikers were ill prepared for winter conditions," said
Abrams. "If they had had good sleeping bags and boots, they might have managed to
keep warm, but they would have needed sleeping bags made to accommodate temperatures
as low as 30 degrees below zero."
Abrams noted that people planning to go out in the elements at this time of year
must be prepared for winter's worst. If you don't own appropriate equipment, you can
often rent it at local mountaineering shops, which also can offer guidance about the
kind of gear needed to withstand particular conditions.
That'll cost 'em
YOUNG RHODE ISLAND HIKERS SAFE
CONCORD, N.H. - Two young hikers were rescued by New Hampshire Fish and Game
Department Conservation Officers Tuesday evening, December 30, 2008, saving them
from spending a cold night in a mountain cabin without adequate winter gear.
Dean Cooper and Pasquale Digiovangiacomo Jr., both age 18, of Cranston, Rhode
Island, had set out at approximately 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, intending to hike up and
spend the night at the U.S. Forest Service's Black Mountain cabin in the White
Mountain National Forest in the area of Jackson, N.H. The inexperienced hikers were
wearing regular work boots, not insulated hiking boots. They abandoned some of their
gear, including lightweight sleeping bags and kindling, about 300 meters up the
trail. The young men arrived at the cabin at about 3 p.m. and were surprised to find
that the cabin was not equipped with blankets or other amenities. (The White
Mountain National Forest website clearly states that the rental cabin is "rustic"
and users are expected to carry in all their own gear, bedding and water.) They
tried to get a fire started in the cabin woodstove, but were unable to get it
going. Cold, wet and facing the prospect of a night with little protection from the
cold, they
called for help about 6 p.m.
Two Fish and Game Conservation officers, Brian Abrams and Bradley Morse, hiked in to
assist them, bringing along insulated hiking boots designed for winter wear, which
were loaned by the Eastern Mountain Sports equipment rental program. Morse, a
paramedic, determined that the young men's feet were not frostbitten. They were
provided with dry socks and the boots, and accompanied down the mountain by the COs,
reaching the trailhead at about 11 p.m.
"Unfortunately, these hikers were ill prepared for winter conditions," said
Abrams. "If they had had good sleeping bags and boots, they might have managed to
keep warm, but they would have needed sleeping bags made to accommodate temperatures
as low as 30 degrees below zero."
Abrams noted that people planning to go out in the elements at this time of year
must be prepared for winter's worst. If you don't own appropriate equipment, you can
often rent it at local mountaineering shops, which also can offer guidance about the
kind of gear needed to withstand particular conditions.
That'll cost 'em