Hiker Found Safe After Lengthy Search In Olympic National Park

OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, WA — Rescue teams found an overdue backpacker and helped airlift him to safety Sunday evening after more than a week missing in Olympic National Park, officials announced Monday.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, Jerren Fisher, 26, entered the park on Sept. 8. The National Park Service said a search and rescue operation began Thursday after a family reported him overdue.

Parks officials said Fisher had a wilderness permit, valid through Sept. 12, with camps planned at Enchanted Valley, Marmot Lake, Camp Pleasant and Sundown lake. His vehicle was found unoccupied Thursday at the Graves Creek Trailhead.

Search and rescue teams followed Fisher's itinerary, starting from its endpoint, and hiked to various locations throughout the weekend, despite cold temperatures, rainstorms and gusty winds.

Due to the stormy weather, air support was not possible for much of the weekend, but ground teams made verbal contact with Fisher Sunday afternoon and spotted him down a steep ravine near Six Mile Trail early in the evening, officials said. With weather conditions more favorable, the U.S. Coast Guard dispatched an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Air Station Port Angeles early Sunday evening, and Fisher used a flashlight to help guide the aircraft to his location.

Coast Guard officials said the complexity of the heist, along with fuel concerns, prompted crews to call for a larger MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, stationed in Astoria, Oregon. The crew on the larger helicopter successfully hoisted Fisher out of the ravine around 8 p.m. and transported him to Olympia Regional Airport. Officials said he was taken to the hospital for a medical evaluation in stable condition.

"Thanks to the National Park Service rescue teams who located the stranded hiker and were able to direct our aircrews to achieve a safe rescue, said Colin Boyle, a lieutenant commander and chief of the Coast Guard's 13th District command center. "The Coast Guard urges hikers and mariners venturing into remote areas to have a plan for reliable communication to reach first responders if necessary."

The search effort included volunteers from Olympic Mountain Rescue and Tacoma Mountain Rescue and the National Park Service.