Posted on 12/08/2003 10:26:45 AM PST by presidio9
BACHELDER'S GRANT, Maine - A group of high school students who had set out for a weekend camping trip and disappeared during a snowstorm may have been spotted Monday by a game warden pilot.
"By the air, we found this group walking single-file and we're sending someone in to confirm it's this group of missing students," said spokesman Mark Latti of the Maine Warden Service.
Three college students missing on a weekend hike in another part of western Maine were found safe Monday.
The 10 students from Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School set out Friday with two adults for a weekend camping trip and were last seen Saturday morning by a parent of one of the hikers who met up with the group along the trail, Latti said. The group was due back Sunday.
Volunteer searchers had spent five hours looking for the students Sunday night, but found no trace of them. Latti said the group spotted from the air was walking along Route 113 in the White Mountain National Forest area near Maine's western border with New Hampshire.
Portions of western Maine were covered by more than 30 inches of snow during the weekend storm. Temperatures dipped to 10 degrees Saturday night and 19 late Sunday, the National Weather Service (news - web sites) said.
The students were outfitted for winter camping with food and tents, but they did not have snow shoes, Latti said.
Also Monday, three Unity College students who set out Saturday for a weekend camping trek on Tumbledown Mountain were found Monday in their car, Latti said. They were in good condition, he said.
The men had been well equipped for overnight winter camping, with plenty of gear, food and a dome tent, Warden Thomas Jacobs said.
"Why they ever decided to do this when the storm's been on advisory for the last three or four days, I do not know," said warden Lt. Nathan Berry.
This happens every major storm. Remember those hikers during the Blizzard of '93 who decided to go backpacking in the mountains of North Carolina? Heck, just last year, five miles from where I used to live on South Mountain in south-central PA, a group decided to hike into a shelter on the Appalachian Trail right before the President's Day storm - and rescuers had to go in on snowmobiles in the middle of the night to get them out. I have outdoor training, winter camping gear and snowshoes and I wasn't about to go out in that storm. What a bunch of maroons.
I find that only French Burgundy is suitable for the Moose/cheese combination. I haven't had any, therefore since the France-U.S. diplomatic dust-up. The bizarre thing though is that my last Moose/cheese meal was on a snowy day in a clearing in Maine.
By John Hilton, February 18, 2003
TresslerCare officials say a group of hikers trapped in the snowstorm Sunday had been told of the blizzard forecast and decided to continue.
TresslerCare officials say a group of hikers trapped in the snowstorm Sunday had been told of the blizzard forecast and decided to continue.
The group of eight youths and three counselors were attempting to complete the 31-day Wilderness Challenge Course when they were overwhelmed by the snow. By 10:30 p.m., they were holed up at a shelter in Pine Grove Furnace State Park along the Appalachian Trail.
One of the youths reportedly had a cellular phone and was able to direct rescuers to their location. Two of the teenage boys were transported to Carlisle Regional Medical Center with hypothermia. One of them also had a minor case of frostbite on his foot and was held overnight for observation.
The remaining six youths sustained no injuries and were transported to the TresslerCare Wilderness School campus near Boiling Springs.
TresslerCare officials say the counselors were first-responder trained and all were equipped with snow gear, food and shelter. Course administrators spoke with the group by phone Sunday morning and advised them of the forecast of 12-18 inches of snow.
The group decided to continue and later constructed tarp shelters on pads and surrounded them with snow for additional insulation. As the snow piled up, the weight collapsed the tarps and the group was forced to move to the park's three-sided wooden shelters, which provided less protection from the cold. Help was summoned shortly after.
The wilderness challenge is an adventure-based program designed to help court-adjudicated youths develop self-esteem, take responsibility for their actions, work cooperatively with others to achieve goals and understand the value of helping others.
It has been provided to youths across the state since 1981 and is a program of Diakon Lutheran Social Ministries.
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Tarps? TARPS? For a forecast 18-inch snowfall? (We actually got nearly 30 inches). And this was a "wilderness school?"
Confirmation, alone, that this is not a California event.
Maybe even some thermal imaging sensors for tracking wildfires....
Aw shucks, he's just trying to be nice. They're too dumb to realize the danger.
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