he tripped over his trekking poles...
(WBIR) Almost 24 hours after a Michigan hiker fell in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, he is being treated in a local hospital.
A park spokesperson said the 64-year-old man fell around 2:00 pm Sunday Alum Cave Trail, a steep hike that ends just below the summit of Mt LeConte.
According to the friend that was hiking with him, the two men were on a day hike. They reached the top of the trail, but then the injured hiker tripped over this hiking poles on the way back down. He fell 15-20 feet town the trail, then eight feet down an embankment.
It took several hours for rangers to reach the injured hiker. They stabilized him, but were unable to carry him down off the mountain because of severe weather. The rangers set up a tent and two rangers and two medics spent the night on the trail with him while the others hiked back.
Early Monday morning, a total of 18 rangers helped carry the man to safety, using a wheeled stretcher. He was taken to LeConte Medical Center in Sevier County around 1:45 pm to be treated for a back injury. The man is in stable condition. His name has not been released.
The heavy rain wasn't the only challenge that rangers faced in the rescue. To get the man back to safely, they had to cross several rivers and negotiate a staircase through a rock feature known as Arch Rock.
wbir.com/story/news/local/2014…iker-in-smokies/13260723/
(WBIR) Almost 24 hours after a Michigan hiker fell in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, he is being treated in a local hospital.
A park spokesperson said the 64-year-old man fell around 2:00 pm Sunday Alum Cave Trail, a steep hike that ends just below the summit of Mt LeConte.
According to the friend that was hiking with him, the two men were on a day hike. They reached the top of the trail, but then the injured hiker tripped over this hiking poles on the way back down. He fell 15-20 feet town the trail, then eight feet down an embankment.
It took several hours for rangers to reach the injured hiker. They stabilized him, but were unable to carry him down off the mountain because of severe weather. The rangers set up a tent and two rangers and two medics spent the night on the trail with him while the others hiked back.
Early Monday morning, a total of 18 rangers helped carry the man to safety, using a wheeled stretcher. He was taken to LeConte Medical Center in Sevier County around 1:45 pm to be treated for a back injury. The man is in stable condition. His name has not been released.
The heavy rain wasn't the only challenge that rangers faced in the rescue. To get the man back to safely, they had to cross several rivers and negotiate a staircase through a rock feature known as Arch Rock.
wbir.com/story/news/local/2014…iker-in-smokies/13260723/
2,000 miler