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Three safe after night
lost in the forest
By LORNA COLQUHOUN
Union Leader Correspondent
LINCOLN — Three snowboarders were found safe and sound early yesterday morning after spending most of the night lost in the remote and untracked forest behind the Loon Mountain ski resort.
The three young local men were found by Fish and Game conservation officers around 4 a.m., nearly eight hours after they were reported missing, according to conservation officer John Wimsatt.
Brian Anderson, 19, Jesse MacNamera, 20, and Paul Martin, 19, all of Lincoln, were “cold and wet” when they were found in the Talford Brook drainage area in Thornton, on the backside of the ski resort.
“We were notified by the ski patrol at 7:30 p.m. (Sunday) that three overdue snowboarders had not turned up after a sweep of the trails,” Wimsatt said.
The three men had gone skiing out-of-bounds Sunday in an area east of Loon Mountain, by Black Mountain, he said. They became disoriented and lost their way, until connecting with the drainage area.
“They wandered into a remote section of Thornton,” he said. “They were cold and wet and unprepared for the conditions — there were high winds and cold, blowing and drifting snow. They had no gear, but were able to build a fire. They hunkered down for the night with cold wet feet and clothing.”
Search parties, including members of the Loon Mountain Ski Patrol, the U.S. Forest Service and Fish and Game searched for the trio throughout the night in what Wimsatt described as “dangerous conditions.”
Snow began falling in the western White Mountains early Sunday morning, with several inches accumulating quickly, followed by some high winds.
Conservation officers Sam Sprague and Jim Kneeland found the three at about 4 a.m. and brought them out by around 6 a.m.
“They were located approximately two miles from Tripoli Road in the drainage area, halfway between the North Peak (of Loon) and Tripoli Road,” Wimsatt said. “They bushwhacked until they hit the drainage area and then began following it downstream.”
Loon Mountain spokesman Dave Anderson said the ski area frowns on out-of-bounds skiing. The ski patrol, at the end of each day, sweeps each and every trail for skiers “within the designated areas.” But when skiers or snowboarders leave the groomed, patrolled areas, he said, “it creates a dangerous situation.”
He noted that about 10 inches of snow had fallen at the higher elevations and searchers were able to follow tracks in the remote area. Considering that the bad weather abated late in the day and the temperatures were moderate for the time, “all things considered, they were pretty lucky.”
Loon, like other ski areas, stress safety to their guests, he said.
“We have a brochure called the Serious Fun Guide, which includes the skier’s responsibility code,” Anderson said. “Number 6 says that skiers and snowboarders will not ski out-of-bounds. The vast majority knows that and follows the rules.”
Wimsatt said Fish and Game officials will review the case to see if the three could be liable for the cost of their rescue.
“People need to realize the vastness of the area and if they go wandering off the trails, they can have potentially deadly results,” he said.
Source
lost in the forest
By LORNA COLQUHOUN
Union Leader Correspondent
LINCOLN — Three snowboarders were found safe and sound early yesterday morning after spending most of the night lost in the remote and untracked forest behind the Loon Mountain ski resort.
The three young local men were found by Fish and Game conservation officers around 4 a.m., nearly eight hours after they were reported missing, according to conservation officer John Wimsatt.
Brian Anderson, 19, Jesse MacNamera, 20, and Paul Martin, 19, all of Lincoln, were “cold and wet” when they were found in the Talford Brook drainage area in Thornton, on the backside of the ski resort.
“We were notified by the ski patrol at 7:30 p.m. (Sunday) that three overdue snowboarders had not turned up after a sweep of the trails,” Wimsatt said.
The three men had gone skiing out-of-bounds Sunday in an area east of Loon Mountain, by Black Mountain, he said. They became disoriented and lost their way, until connecting with the drainage area.
“They wandered into a remote section of Thornton,” he said. “They were cold and wet and unprepared for the conditions — there were high winds and cold, blowing and drifting snow. They had no gear, but were able to build a fire. They hunkered down for the night with cold wet feet and clothing.”
Search parties, including members of the Loon Mountain Ski Patrol, the U.S. Forest Service and Fish and Game searched for the trio throughout the night in what Wimsatt described as “dangerous conditions.”
Snow began falling in the western White Mountains early Sunday morning, with several inches accumulating quickly, followed by some high winds.
Conservation officers Sam Sprague and Jim Kneeland found the three at about 4 a.m. and brought them out by around 6 a.m.
“They were located approximately two miles from Tripoli Road in the drainage area, halfway between the North Peak (of Loon) and Tripoli Road,” Wimsatt said. “They bushwhacked until they hit the drainage area and then began following it downstream.”
Loon Mountain spokesman Dave Anderson said the ski area frowns on out-of-bounds skiing. The ski patrol, at the end of each day, sweeps each and every trail for skiers “within the designated areas.” But when skiers or snowboarders leave the groomed, patrolled areas, he said, “it creates a dangerous situation.”
He noted that about 10 inches of snow had fallen at the higher elevations and searchers were able to follow tracks in the remote area. Considering that the bad weather abated late in the day and the temperatures were moderate for the time, “all things considered, they were pretty lucky.”
Loon, like other ski areas, stress safety to their guests, he said.
“We have a brochure called the Serious Fun Guide, which includes the skier’s responsibility code,” Anderson said. “Number 6 says that skiers and snowboarders will not ski out-of-bounds. The vast majority knows that and follows the rules.”
Wimsatt said Fish and Game officials will review the case to see if the three could be liable for the cost of their rescue.
“People need to realize the vastness of the area and if they go wandering off the trails, they can have potentially deadly results,” he said.
Source
