Searchers rescue hiker lost in snowy woods south of Sisters

A planned snowmobile ride near Three Creek Lake south of Sisters turned into a search-and-rescue mission Thursday night after a Bend man went for a hike and got lost in the snow, officials said.

About 5:20 p.m., Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue was dispatched to a report of a lost subject that had been hiking in the area of the Metolius-Windigo Trail, about 1 1/2 miles north of Three Creek Lake, about 17 miles south of Sisters, said sheriff’s Deputy Jim Whitcomb, assistant SAR coordinator.

The reporting party, Brandalyn Stevens, 48, of Redmond, said her son, William Neason, 23, had decided to go for a hike while he was waiting for Stevens and Stephen Rhinehart, 45, also of Redmond, to arrive with snowmobiles, after which they were going to ride together, Whitcomb said.

Neason parked his vehicle at the Upper Three Creek Snow Park around noon and walked up toward Three Creek Lake, where the plan was to meet at the junction of Rd 370 and Rd 16, Three Creek Road.

When Stevens and Rhinehart arrived about two hours later, they learned Neason was currently lost, but believed he was in the area of Snow Creek west of Road 16, Whitcomb said.

The pair drove back down to the Upper Three Creek Snow Park, where they waited for law enforcement to arrive.

A U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer responded to the sno-park and provided updates that Stevens would periodically receive from Neason via text messages.

Neason was able to report he had been walking in three-foot-deep snow, was wearing tennis shoes, blue jeans overlaid with Carhartt pants, a sweatshirt and a Carhartt jacket. Neason also was reported to have a means of starting a fire, Whitcomb said

Attempts to call and or text Neason by law enforcement were not successful. But Neason was able to call 911 at about 5:45 p.m.

It was learned Neason was dressed for an overnight stay, but was now wet. Neason also advised he had food and water.

Dispatch was able to obtain an accurate ping of Neason’s location, which put him near the Metolius-Windigo Trail, about 1.3 miles northwest of Three Creek Road.

Neason called 911 again at 7:15 p.m. to say he had stopped walking, had been able to build a fire and was cold. Based on the ping of the phone this time, the coordinates showed that Neason had walked about 200 yards downhill in a northeast direction.

Three SAR snowmobiles, one towing an ambu-sled, and five SAR members were deployed to the Upper Three Creek Sno-Park parking lot, arriving around 8 p.m., Whitcomb said.

From there, snowmobiles were needed to travel about 3 1/2 miles to the intersection of the Metolius-Windigo Trail. They then had to head off-trail to the west, toward the GPS coordinates, through narrow stands of trees and blown-down timber.

Around 9:30 p.m., Neason was able to call 911 again to say he had been able to start a fire, which had since began to die, but the embers were helping his feet from getting too cold. The ping on the phone this time confirmed Neason had not moved since his prior 911 call.

SAR personnel located Neason around 10:20 p.,m. Neason was provided warm fluids and was wrapped in a couple sleeping bags and transported back down to the Upper Three Creek Sno-Park in the ambu-sled. He was then released to the care of Stevens and Rhinehart.

Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue responds to a number of similar missions every year. Incidents such as these serve as a good reminder to always travel prepared, especially in the backcountry, said Sgt. Nathan Garibay, the county’s emergency services manager.

“A little bit of planning and preparation can make a big difference when things go wrong,” Garibay said. “By letting someone know your planned route and carrying ‘The 10 Essentials’, you can drastically improve your ability to survive and maintain comfort until help arrives.”

For more information go to: http://www.deschutessearchandrescue.org/the-10-essentials-for-survival/