Backcountry
(PC: Kezi News)
What would you do if you were stranded in the mountains of Oregon during peak winter conditions? If you’re like me and you have no clue what the best course of action would be to stay alive, take note from the pair of 19-year-old hikers—Parker Jasmer and Christian Farnsworth.
#BreakingNews #USCG Sector North Bend MH-65 aircrew assists @LaneSheriffOR in locating 2 missing hikers near Eugene, OR See hoist video and read more at https://t.co/1Qw0NjHbkE #ProtectingThePNW #PartnershipsMatter pic.twitter.com/pcXqREE6qP
— USCGPacificNorthwest (@USCGPacificNW) January 2, 2022
The two hikers set out for a hiking trip exploring Swastika Mountain on December 23rd to celebrate the holiday season. Family members began to grow worried when the pair didn’t return home by December 29th. By December 31st, the Lane County Sheriff’s Office was made aware of the boys’ disappearance. Luckily, the Sheriff’s Office took immediate action to locate the boys and was able to locate the hikers from a ping off of Jasmer’s phone that told police the boys were in the Oakridge area.
Due to extreme snow conditions, the Sheriff’s Office enlisted help from Coast Guard Officials. Flying in a North Bend helicopter, coast guard officials noticed an “SOS” message written in the snow and were able to locate Jasmer and Farnsworth because of their message. After 9 days of being stranded in freezing temperatures, the boys were rescued and returned home safely with no major injuries. In an interview with Kenzi News, Farnsworth’s mother, Katrina Crawford expressed her gratitude to the coast guard for realizing just how dire the situation was to rescue the boys.
Coast Guard officials explained that they were able to locate Jasmer and Farnsworth so quickly because the two stayed close to logging roads, wrote “SOS” clearly in the snow, and stayed near their car. When hiking, we should all take note of the smart decisions these young men made just in case of emergencies.
