A Saturday night hike up New England's most notorious peak ended with a rescue and a truck ride instead of a triumphant summit selfie for two teenagers from Plymouth, Massachusetts. The pair were pulled off the top of Mount Washington after one developed significant leg pain and they took shelter beside a summit building as the weather closed in. Rescue personnel and a Mount Washington State Park employee reached the hikers, brought them indoors and arranged for a vehicle descent down the Auto Road.
According to The Boston Globe, the 17- and 18-year-old called 911 at about 7:30 p.m., reporting wind-driven precipitation and that one teen was suffering "significant leg pain." The Globe also notes National Weather Service readings that night placed air temperatures in the upper 30s with gusts near 40 mph and visibility reduced by fog.
How rescuers reached the summit
New Hampshire Fish and Game conservation officers contacted Mount Washington State Park and the Auto Road for help reaching the stranded hikers. A park employee located the teens by about 8 p.m., brought them inside and rendered first aid while conservation officers drove to the summit in four-wheel-drive pickup trucks to escort the pair down later that night, as reported by Boston 25 News. CBS Boston carried video of the incident.
Officials urge hikers to be prepared
New Hampshire Fish and Game used the rescues to remind hikers to carry essential Hike Safe items such as warm clothing, a headlamp, navigation tools and a first-aid kit, officials told NHPR. The warning echoes the summit's reputation: the Mount Washington Observatory calls the peak "the Home of the World's Worst Weather," and observers note the summit routinely sees hurricane-force gusts and rapid temperature swings. Mount Washington Observatory provides scientific context for that reputation.
The Mount Washington rescue came one day after three women from Haverhill needed help on the Falling Waters Trail after darkness fell and icy conditions slowed them, as reported by The Boston Globe. Officials said crews found the women roughly 1.5 miles from the trailhead and returned them to safety just after midnight.
