DEATH VALLEY, Calif. (FOX5) – Park rangers rescued a stranded hiker from an unstable gully in Death Valley National Park last Wednesday.
According to park officials, two men from Belgium had went for a short hike in Mosaic Canyon and decided to split up. One stayed on the main trail, while the other ventured into a side canyon, planning to loop back up to the main path.
As the side canyon grew steeper and more unstable, the hiker was eventually unable to proceed or safely descend. He was stranded about a half mile away from the trail in only a t-shirt, with no extra clothes, food, or water. The hiker would call for help with his satellite-enabled phone.
Park rangers reached the man 40 minutes after sunset with a VX-31 rescue helicopter from Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake. Rangers deemed it too dangerous to hoist the hiker, due to the risk of downdraft winds dislodging loose rocks.
Rangers then tied webbing around a boulder to create an anchor, while giving the hiker a harness and helmet before lowering him down the slope.
The rescue crew and hiker reached the trailhead around 7 p.m.
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