Ill-equipped N.Y. hikers rescued off Maine mountain

Rescuers communicate by cell phone as one of the stranded pair, sitting, looks on. (MDIFW photo)

MOUNT ABRAM TWP, Maine - The Maine Warden Service rescued two poorly equipped hikers on the Appalachian Trail late Tuesday night.

Jacob Haisley, 36 of Red Hook, N.Y., and Wayne Gage, 70 of Schenectady, N.Y. were planning on hiking a 15-mile portion of the Appalachian trail that included Mount Abraham, Spaulding Mountain and Sugarloaf Mountain, but soon found they were outmatched by the elements.

They began their hike at about 8 a.m., and were quickly slowed by the deep snow, and only made it halfway through their hike by the time darkness fell. They found shelter at the Spaulding Mountain lean-to, but did not have food, water or the proper equipment to spend the night. Temperatures dropped into the single digits, and as they got colder, they decided they could not hike out and called 911 around 5:45 p.m.

Game Wardens were able to speak to Haisley on the phone, and advised him to stay at the lean-to and start a fire. Three game wardens ascended much of Spaulding Mountain by snowmobile, then snowshoed over ¾ of a mile to near the summit of Spaulding Mountain where the hikers were stranded. After a quick examination, it was determined they could hike out, and the game wardens and stranded hikers snowshoed back to the snowmobiles, arriving at the base around 1 a.m. on Wednesday. Neither hiker required medical attention.

"Poor planning, coupled with poor decisions, stranded these hikers in very dangerous conditions," said Game Warden Kyle Hladik. "They were very fortunate we were able to get to them quickly."