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Hikers rescued from Mt. Doom!
A Dutch tourist, along with two kiwi hiking partners, were rescued from Mount Ngauruhoe in New Zealand over the Easter weekend after they set out on a hike to the summit too late in the day and without the proper gear. The mountain, which stands 7516 feet in height, served as the basis for the fiery Mt. Doom in the Lord of the Rings films, and the three trekkers are described as avid fans of the blockbuster trilogy. It seems that Violet Onderwater of the Netherlands met Ryan Hattle and Sam MacDonald on the popular travel site CouchSurfing.com and soon made plans to travel to New Zealand to meet her new friends in person. The trio made plans to make the Lord of the Rings inspired hike to the summit of Mt. Doom, the location of the climactic final scene of the films.
On Saturday, April 3rd, Onderwater and her companions made the road trip to Mount Ngauruhoe, arriving around 1 PM, and setting out for the top in bright sunshine. They reportedly reached the top of the active volcano around 5:30 PM, but on the descent, Onderwater turned her ankle, injuring it in the process. With their progress down the mountain slowed, and foul weather moving in, one of the kiwis used his cell phone to call for help, which resulted in no less than six search and rescue teams being sent out to find the hikers, who were now caught out in the cold rain and wind, with very light clothing on.
Fortunately, the SAR teams found the trekkers fairly quickly, and aside from a sprained ankle, no one was in any great danger. It seems that tax payers may have suffered the most damage, as early estimates put the cost of the rescue operation at a whopping $10,000.
Perhaps they should send the bill to Peter Jackson.
Filed under: Climbing, Hiking, Oceania, New Zealand
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
SGG Apr 8th 2010 7:57AM
Hey TESS a think???
hope these guys do not reproduce!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tony Apr 8th 2010 1:29PM
They all should be spaded....Problem solved
jitterbopper Apr 8th 2010 8:24AM
Yeah,,, I'll make sure I don't break an ankle before I go. DAH
Sounds like a legitimate call ,, I question why send a
dozen teams out,,, sounds like there bored or
spending a little too much money on people
hanging around just waiting to hang the tab
on someone.
karte Apr 13th 2010 11:00AM
It's they're...as in they are, stupid!
karenione Apr 8th 2010 1:39PM
karte It's they're...as in they are, stupid!
Hey Karte, who gives a shit. You understood what jitterbopper meant. I am fairly sure that everyone gets extremely tired of people trying to correct the spelling by others. Let it go!
Inga Apr 8th 2010 8:40AM
Finally! Someone being held accountable for their (stupid) actions. Bravo New Zealand!
sally Apr 8th 2010 5:40PM
They weren't fined. The author said they should be. People can't read for comprehension anymore.
Barb Apr 8th 2010 8:49AM
Where does it talk about the hikers being fined?
LaLa Apr 8th 2010 11:40AM
Second to last sentence...they were fined $10,000.
renee Apr 8th 2010 12:58PM
It says the operation cost 10,000, not that they were fined that much. So, who knows.
BTDT Apr 8th 2010 9:07AM
The air's pretty thin at seventy five hundred feet.
Think Ryan and Sam were gentlemen and made Violet air-tight?
george9448 Apr 8th 2010 9:26AM
Maybe they're related to the same idiots who decided to take that hike through Iran and were detained,and still are, I think.
natosha Apr 8th 2010 9:29AM
my goodness people! and the writer of this artical as well. They had a good reason to call for help. They didnt get lost because of stupidity, one of the hikers sprained their ankle, which caused them to slow down and get caught in the storm. im sorry but getting hurt, slowing down and not being able to make it sounds like a good reason for help to me. its not like they got lost, or were in an area they were not supposed to be in..geez
kelly Apr 8th 2010 11:51AM
They were stupid, they hiked to an ACTIVE VOLCANO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They are no different than the idiots who run with the bulls. Nature is unpredictable. Suppose the lava flow changed and then they really would have been in trouble. Not to mention, How serious of a hikers were they if they met in a web room called couch potato. They deserve to be fined for the entire cost of the rescue.
Frank Apr 8th 2010 10:00AM
They forgot the first rule of survival hiking. Pull a ball of string behind them.
So Glad these adventurers are being held responsible for their actions. I think when people do these type of things, they should have to post a bond, or buy insurance just in case things go wrong.
The taxpayers "we" shouldn't have to pick up the tab for their irresponsible behavior.
OK, I'm headed back to my mom's couch with my coffee. I hope a spring doesn't "pop" and cause me to call an emergency team.
franklin Apr 8th 2010 10:23AM
The US should also back charge for rescues when people do foolish risk taking crap like that. every year the US spends millions on rescue attempts on idiots.
Kayla Apr 8th 2010 10:30AM
franklin..i agree
joel Apr 8th 2010 12:57PM
They do in Europe for every climber........
denise Apr 8th 2010 10:52AM
The US does in fact charge for SAR teams sent out. Recently a young man in the west just simpley dissapeared, they sent out SAR and unfortunately found him dead, and the family while dealing with the loss, funeral and such received a bill for $30,000.00 the cost of the SAR effort.
CW Apr 8th 2010 10:55AM
Couchsurfing, is that a clue to the prep taken prior to launch of this mission?