Missing hiker in the western Whites

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

I am posting this report at the request of NH Fish & Game.


INFORMATION ON MISSING HIKER

Peter Murphy from Littleton, NH
6 ft., 220 lbs.
Salt & pepper wiry hair, gray mustache
Traveling light, probably T-shirt & shorts with small day pack
Presumed to have gone up Skookumchuck Trail to summit of Mt. Lafayette on Sunday; car is at that trailhead

Anyone who may have seen this hiker please call NH State Police, Troop F at 603-846-5517

 

[bikehikeskifish]

See also this:

http://forum.hike-nh.com/viewtopic.php?t=2815

Tim

 

[mirabela]

Holy moly. Let's pray for this guy.

 

[dr_wu002]

They found him walking on a service road. Now the only thing left to decide is if A) he's negligent and B) he should pay the big bucks.

-Dr. Wu

 

[mirabela]

Hey, he's alive. Score 1 for the team.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

They found him walking on a service road. Now the only thing left to decide is if A) he's negligent and B) he should pay the big bucks.

-Dr. Wu

Thanks, Wu. But, if no helo, probably no paying big bucks. Good that he got out before tonight, when wintry mix of ppt and sub-freezing temperatures are in the forecast for the area.

 

[BobC]

His sister posted a frantic message on the hike-nh.com forum (which bikehikeskifish linked to above), asking for "avid hikers" to help out in the search. She had already called state police but didn't think they were sending out a rescue team (most likely, they were assembling a team and she didn't realize how long it takes). I called her (since she posted her number) to explain that she really had to depend on the experts for help, not other hikers with no experience at rescues. At the time I talked to her she had just heard from her sister about the SAR team heading out to look for him. She said that she was worried because he hikes alone a lot and is "dorky" (gotta love sisters!), and she was afraid he would make a stupid decision. Apparently he's just moved to NH recently and was not very familiar with the trails around here. Anyway, glad to hear that this turned ok.

 

[JustJoe]

http://www.unionleader.com/article....line=Littleton+hiker+found+cold,+but+unharmed

 

[TrishandAlex]

He's a lucky, lucky fellow...

 

[NorthShore]

Wow. Extremely lucky to have lasted as long as he did before being found...unless he really had more than just shorts and tee shirt. This had tragedy written all over it from the first posting.

Hopefully he'll learn from this and not be a repeat offender. There seem to be fewer grouch posts than usual in the UL for some reason. Maybe they know its getting old.

 

[Stash]

http://www.unionleader.com/article....line=Littleton+hiker+found+cold,+but+unharmed

UL comments are fun.

Comments are an interesting mix but, overall, pretty gentle. Being a Littleton resident would seem to help! Is that a good or a bad thing? Or somewhere in between?

 

[CINDERSMOM]

I can see how he got lost. I was on that trail in April and once you turn away from the brook there was no trail blazes at all. Luckily I had a GPS. We followed very faint snowshoe tracks which were only visible once in awhile. We went wrong a couple of times but realized it after what seemed to be a trail ended in very thick vegetation. The snow was amazingly deep. I fell into a spruce trap up to my waist and was not hitting the ground. Had to dig down to get my foot out of my snowshoe and then dig my snowshoe out. The surprising part was that on the way out there were no visible tracks of us having come in. (there were 2 of us with snowshoes on). Glad he made it out OK

 

[erugs]

Has it been determined that he didn't have additional clothing other than the tee shirt and shorts? How did he ever survive?

 

[BobC]

The missing hiker (Peter Murphy) posted the following comment over on the hike-nh forum. The link is here but I don't know how to link directly to his post, which is under user ID pmurphy. I've cut-and-pasted his comments below. I'm impressed that he took the time to post, and he seems to be appropriately humbled. I still think he needs to add to his gear list if he's hiking to peaks like Mt. Lafayette alone - at any time of year - so I posted some suggestions on the other forum.


-------------------------------
Dear hiking blog community. My sister rallied support to help ensure I got out of the woods, and I thank her and you for support. In 20/20 hindsight, I now posted the following on my Facebook page, and I will be adhering to it from here on in (that and the buddy system if there might be snow). I will also post and inform others when and where I am going on a hike, and after I get back.

Hiking:
Essential: compass, timepiece, light, and whistle.
Basic: (topo) map, extra water (w/apple juice if it can freeze), extra food (w/non-perishables), extra clothing that wicks well (poncho, fleece, long pants).
Other: first aid, rope, knife.

(Some might include insect repellent, medication, sun tan lotion, water purification system or tablets, etc.)

If this helps anyone, it would be worth the embarrassment (and danger) of being lost in the woods. I learned the hard way, but you don't have to. Never underestimate nature, no matter what your level of expertise.

I got lost coming down Mt Lafayette on Skookumchuck like some suspected; I mistook the stream and where to continue. Later, I misjudged my distance from the road, then my actual location. I should have been able to navigate to a nearby camp, but I was too disoriented. I eventually headed from a pump house shed, along the foot-trail-only fire access roads to the Gale Forest trailhead, and toward the main road.

 

[sierra]

Sounds to me like he came away from this with some valuble lessons, good for him. I would venture to guess not many people who hike (considering the trail system in the Whites) have really been lost. Losing your way in the woods is tough and its tougher to keep your head and find your way out. I got lossed in CO once descending a 14er into a fairly thick drainage after lossing a faint herdpath. I thought I could "wing it" and just kept moving. After a short while I consulted my compass and was heading the wrong way, even though every fiber of my being said i wasnt. I trusted the compass and found the river I was looking for leading me eventually to the trail. IM glad this dude is ok, he sounds like alot of beginning hikers, ignorant of the woods but willing to learn, which is basically where we all where at one point, no?.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

This story was John Harrigan's column for Sunday 5/2 (Manchester Union Leader).

Tim

 

[Waumbek]

I promised myself never to get involved in one of these mare's nest threads, but I've broken promises to myself before...

And, for once, I happen to agree with the responder to Harrigan's column who essentially says that the so-called "charge 'em" policy is not up to the volunteers, who of course have their individual opinions but are professional enough not to air them in the news media circus.

This is about state politics and policies. If you have comments or complaints, send them in that direction. Find out who determines policy for Fish & Game; write an intelligent and compelling letter. Kvetching on VFTT really won't do much except perhaps make you feel better.

I also agree with another responder who says that Harrigan is missing the boat, very late to the party, unable or unwilling to pick up on the clues, including the turn-around on the Mason case.

 

[Tim Seaver]

This is about state politics and policies. If you have comments or complaints, send them in that direction. Find out who determines policy for Fish & Game; write an intelligent and compelling letter. Kvetching on VFTT really won't do much except perhaps make you feel better.

Dismissing the quality discussion that has taken place on this forum as "kvetching" isn't helpful. This forum is one of the best places for that discussion to occur, and probably more effective at raising public awareness than a sternly worded letter collecting dust in a bureaucrats bottom desk drawer.

Best quote from the Gonzales article:

But if bureaucrats get to decide how much risk I can take in New Hampshire, I guess I'll spend my money somewhere else.

 

[Waumbek]

...than a sternly worded letter collecting dust in a bureaucrats bottom desk drawer.

I was thinking more along the lines of the governor, whose staff does read and tally letters, "sternly worded" or otherwise.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

By asking us to post something about a missing hiker in the Whites, I believe that NH F&G has great respect for the importance and relevance of this board, and I hope that this relationship continues. But, I also recognize that there is a lot of information about particular SAR missions that cannot be made public for a variety of good reasons, so we need to live with that, along with columns by folks such as John Harrigan and those who reply to such columns. All part of the terrain, so to speak.