Hiker frees himself with this after falling into Mount Baker crevasse
A hiker on Mount Baker fell into a crevasse and became trapped Saturday just below the Coleman Saddle, but managed to free himself using an ice ax and hike out just as search and rescue operations were organizing.
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office was notified of a possible hiking accident on Mount Baker at 8:20 a.m. July 4, according to information provided to The Bellingham Herald in an email from spokesperson Deb Slater.
Dispatch determined that the call came from a phone owned by a woman who lives in New York, Slater reported, and a deputy contacted her. She confirmed that her 30-year-old son, who recently moved to Washington state, was using her phone and that he was an avid outdoor enthusiast.
The woman also gave a description of her son’s vehicle, which the deputy found parked at the Heliotrope Ridge Trailhead, Slater wrote.
Just as Bellingham Mountain Rescue was contacted to being search and rescue operations, the hiker appeared and confirmed that he had called 911 after he fell and became trapped in the crevasse. He told the sheriff’s office that he was finally able to get his backpack off and used and ice ax to free himself.
The hiker was fine other than a sore knee, Slater wrote.
