![]() ![]() ![]() Not much more than a mile upstream from where Hazel Creek flows into Fontana Lake, I heard a Park dispatcher's voice from my radio. An individual with an injured knee needed assistance on Eagle Creek. Visions of fishing and camping faded from my mind as I realized that I was one of the closest employees able to respond to the incident. Eagle Creek is the next major drainage into Fontana, just to the west of my location. I turned around and headed back down the creek. After a short trip down the lake, I found myself at backcountry campsite #90, a lovely, wide-open spot on the mouth of Eagle Creek. An on-duty ranger and I proceeded up the Eagle Creek Trail, on the lookout for the knee injury that had been reported by hikers in the area. Less than a half mile up trail we encountered a unique sight... a young man, perhaps 5'6" or 5'7" in height, about 140 lbs or so, carrying a much larger young man, perhaps 6'1" or so, and weighing at least 200 lbs. The larger man had his arms around the smaller man's neck, and the smaller man was bent over so that the larger man's feet wouldn't drag the ground. A crude, but well constructed splint of sticks and bandages was on the larger man's knee. It seems the injured party had made it out on their own. ![]() The gentleman with the injured knee informed us that he had shattered his kneecap in a snowboarding incident the previous winter. He had received reconstructive surgery and several months of rehabilitation, and had received clearance from his physician to undertake a lengthy hiking trip. Nevertheless, his knee had given out this morning in a deep and swift stream crossing. Unable to walk on his own, his friend had carried him an impressive two miles to our current location. The third member of their party was in route, carry out the large packs they had carried into the backcountry the day before. ![]() After a few minutes, I encountered a second unique sight... another small young man, maybe 5'6" or so, between 140 and 150 lbs, carrying two large internal-frame packs, one strapped to his back, the other strapped to his front. This was obviously the third member of the party, so I stopped to speak to him. Much to my amusement, he lamented about how he had been unable to manage carrying all three fully loaded packs out on his own. He had left the third pack at campsite #96 with another party of hikers. He also commented that the group he had left the pack with had seen his friend's horribly swollen knee, were well aware of their predicament, and had made absolutely no effort to help. They took one look at his friend's injury and said something to the effect of, "Gee, that looks like it really hurts... have you all done much fishing around here? Did you catch anything?" Needless to say, this information irritated me a bit. I thanked him for the information, made certain he thought he could continue to manage the two packs on his own, and continued upstream to retrieve the third pack. ![]() To make a very long story short, I retrieved the pack and met the group back at the boat for our trip across the lake. The young man with the injured knee made it back to his home in Atlanta safe and sound, and no doubt made a prompt appointment to see his orthopedic surgeon. And while I can only speculate, I hope that the boys from Mississippi learned a valuable lesson in backcountry ethics. ![]() HOME ~ STORIES ~ HIKING ~ LINKS ~ INFO ~ E-MAIL ~ GUESTBOOK |