See hiker pinned by big boulder get rescued from rugged terrain in Calistoga area
If a hiker who was pinned down by a large boulder on his backpack and right arm near Calistoga hadn’t been able to rip open his jeans pocket and retrieve his cell phone on time, he may not have been found and rescued early Tuesday morning, according to the California Highway Patrol Golden Gate Division Air Operations.
The hiker, whose name was not given, had been pinned for several hours when the mishap occurred around 5 p.m. Monday near Mount St. Helena. CHP received a 911 call at 2:20 a.m. Tuesday from the hiker near the Oat Hill Trail in the Palisades area.
Cal Fire, Napa AMR and Saint Helena Fire all responded with a CHP helicopter crew. CHP flew to the GPS coordinate and located the hiker using a thermal imaging system and night vision goggles, CHP Golden Gate Division Air Ops reported in a Facebook post.
“The hiker was able to signal the helicopter using a small flashlight,” CHP said. “The location of the hiker was off trail and in extremely rugged terrain.”
The crew landed about a mile from the hiker’s location, and two officers made their way through the rocky area to reach the injured party. They were not going to be able to get the hiker out because of the treacherous landscape and his non-life-threatening injuries.
“The crew determined a ‘first light’ rescue was the most appropriate way to extricate the hiker,” CHP said. “The crew canceled ground resources to the hiker’s location and requested they stand by for first light operations.”
As the helicopter crew waited for daylight, the officers on the ground built a small fire with their survival gear and warmed the hiker. Temperatures were reportedly in the low 30s.
The hiker was hoisted by helicopter out of the area and flown to an ambulance waiting at the Calistoga Fairgrounds.
“If the hiker had not retrieved his cellphone and provided Cal Fire his GPS location prior to the battery dying, he may not have been located,” CHP said.
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 1:24 PM.
