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Subscribe to RSSTwo men missing in Montana's Glacier National Park were reunited with family after rescue. WECI's Scott Zoltan reports.
Two Virginia hikers are happy to be home after surviving in the Montana wilderness for six days.
The men endured winter conditions and rugged terrain while stuck in the backcountry of Glacier National Park.
“I don't think our wives will let us go for many years,” said Neal Peckens, of Herndon, Va.
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He and Jason Hiser can laugh about it now, but for six days the avid hikers were lost in wintry conditions in the mountains. Snow on the ground covered their trail, and their topographic map blew away from them.
Rescue teams located the two men on Monday, after searching back country near Two Medicine, Mont. for days, according to The Associated Press.
Related: 2 missing hikers found alive in Montana
Stranded more than 2,000 miles from home, the hikers' thoughts were with their families.
“My wife was having a baby shower on Saturday when I still wasn't home yet so I was worried about ruining that as well,” Hiser said.
He is expecting his first child.
Peckens’ wife anxiously waited with their son, who just turned a year old.
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The families called authorities when the men didn't return on time.
“I think that the people at home had it worse than we had it, sadly,” Peckens said.
Peckens and Hiser were finally rescued Monday.
“We saw helicopters,” Hiser said. “We had a couple fly over our heads, but they couldn't see us through the fog.”
With the two-day food supply running low, Hiser was in charge of rationing the food.
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“For four days in a row we each ate a quarter of a Clif bar per day,” he said.
Hunger was constantly on their minds. They each lost about 15 pounds while waiting for rescue. They said the days they spent together hunkered down in a tent mostly consisted of talking about the first meal they would eat once they were rescued.
The ordeal was a test in endurance and friendship.
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“We never got in any arguments,” Hiser said. “We never got irritated. We just kind of used our heads and thought through things. There are a lot of people out there that would take that situation a lot differently. So I think we learned that we were with the right guy.”
Mostly, they learned the best thing about being home.
“It’s a lot warmer,” Hiser said.
“And drier,” Peckens added.
“A lot more sunshine,” Hiser said.
“It’s really nice to be home,” Peckens said. “We are very grateful for everyone that has shown us so much support.”
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Leave a Comment:
Good grief NBC do you realise what you've done? rescue teams are overworked as it is ...and now they are going to have fat chicks running into the woods!! after all they don't have oprah to tell em not to or to sell em the latest fad "fat loss" plan.
For goodness sake watch what you report..............:)
Good one !!!
Hiking in Glacier Nat'l. in October is just downright STUPID !!!!!!!!!!!
Too bad they're breeding STUPID .
I only want to lose 5 lbs so that means I only need to get lost for 2 days!!
Send in the fat chicks, the bears need to eat their fill before winter hibernation.
"I don't think our wives will let us go for many years," said Neal Peckens, of Herndon, Va.
Really? I beg to differ sir, I could have sworn this was one of those "Brokeback mountain" thingis...
Well Doc they had to stay warm somehow.. why not a little cuddling between two grown nekked men? lol
So, I wonder what their first meal was?? And I wonder if a Clif bar sponsorship is in their future?
These two are very, very lucky they didn't become Darwin Award winners. Hiking in GNP in October is dangerous and the Two Medicine area more so.
Joe should know! Montana is a whole different world than where these guys come from. I had the pleasure of visiting GNP this past July, and although I stayed at West Glacier, I was fortunate to have a week to day hike some of the remote areas. We even got across the Sun road to East Glacier a couple times.. This place is extreme wilderness.. One of the most beautiful unspoiled places on the continent. Temperatures can drop of 20+ degrees in summer. These guys are very lucky to be alive. Even here in the somewhat less remote forests of the North East where I do most of my climbing and hiking, we always leave a very definite itinerary, with enter point, exit point, time on trail, and trails used. We always stick to the plan, stick to the route, and call when your out. Anything more than a 24 hour no show, and rescue crews should know EXACTLY where you are.
I think these men were very foolish. If they had a plan, and got off track, they should have immediately returned. I know, it happens, even to the best. But I think these guys were over thier head, and not as well prepared as some are saying.
I lived in MT and omg I would never hike GNP in October. They are lucky they were found.
Just Great... now the back country will be full of FAT people...
m
Rule 1 when you're lost: STAY WHERE YOU ARE.
Rule 2 when you're lost: Build a big fire and create LOTS of smoke.
These guys only had one map, no GPS, no food backup (always take at least two more days worth of food) and apparently had not studied any survival techniques before the headed out during one of the most dangerous months of the year for their specific location. They really are lucky.
This sound far superior to my tape worm diet...
skunky-shoes...where can I get a tape worm?
if these absolute morons had bothered to take a personal locator beacon with them just maybe this would have been a tad different. What are their lives worth a decent PLB is only 200 dollars and registration is FREE! I think they need to slapped with the cost of the rescue. I am tired of footing my dollars for rescuing morons from diaster.
I may be wrong, I moved away from MT a few years ago, but I think that those who don't have a hunting and fishing license DO pay the costs (or at least a sizable portion) of their rescue costs. I had a friend who was a wildland fire fighter out of Dillon, but the crew helped on a lot of search and rescue missions as well. According to him, that's the deal, although I have no back up and the info could be wrong...
In CO the rescued folks pay for S&R unless they bought S&R insurance or have a hunting/fishing license; I'm pretty sure MT is the same.
If these guys came from VA to backpack in MT I think they can afford the S&R bill but the bigger problem is that S&R resources are limited and it's morons like these that consume the resources needed by folks who encountered a real problem like an avalanche, predator attack, or injury.
Northern Montana in October? These two nitwits need to be arrested for impersonating intelligent people. No food, no location device and it appears no map or compass.
I live in Montana and in my car at all times is a PLB never had to use it but why take a chance. I hope they have to pay for the rescue. You will never read these stories about local being so stupid.
Yep--you two have it right (as does Joe, From Kalispell who posted above)! While I only had the pleasure of living in Montana for a few years (Bozeman area), I have family in the Kalispell area and have spent summers there since I was born. GNP is one of the most beautiful places in the world, and very dangerous, especially during the changes between seasons. The area around Two Medicine is especially dangerous at any time--it's true "wilderness", the likes of which most people never see. I've never hiked in any wilderness area in MT without the proper equipment and there are areas that I avoided during certain times of year. It's asking for trouble!
Lucky guys. Not sure how they packed for the trip but always prepare for worst situation. Maybe a back up map. Good compass, more food! Fortunate they are not bear meat right now.
It’s good to know there are those among us that still have the adventurous pioneering spirit. More power to them. I’m thankful they are safe.
Present and Future Darwin breeders no doubt. It unfortunate that they survived. How many millions does the taxpayers spend on saving fools like that each year.
you are a hack. The people that were out looking for them were going to get paid anyway, wether they were playing cards at the office or were out actually looking for someone. I hope that you never need help out in the woods. But if you do, I hope that you receive the same help they did. I am sure you felt the same about the astronauts or people on cruse ships that go down. Or even the people in airplanes. Now GET A CLUE jackwagon....
Just to clarify, MT SAR (as well as most other SAR across the country) are unpaid volunteers. We buy our own gear and sacrifice our work, family and personal time to train and deploy. We do not "get paid" and are not "playing cards at the office" in between missions.
These guys may have made some mistakes but they also did some things right that contributed to their survival most important of which was staying put with their shelter. The park officer in charge is quoted - “These hikers were prepared with appropriate equipment and they used their situational awareness skills to determine how to respond to the unexpected in the backcountry,”. It appears that their primary failure was a lack of awareness of the weather outlook - other than that they appear to have done things right.
BeartoothPass, I have to dispute what you say just a tad. First and formost is to not go into an area that is prone to un predictiable conditions. If you must go into those areas being prepared means the difference between life and death. They placed themselves in this condition. They may have done the sensible to stay alive but never the less that could have had a different outcome. Survival gear communication equipment and a plan doesn't seem to have been a part of this trip. If this happened in July like it does there I would say that they had no reason to suspect that weather would change, no one would. But locals know that past september its not avisable.
PLB user,
The primary intent of my post was to point out that SAR is an unpaid volunteer effort. It seems that these guys did a better-than-average job of dealing with the challenges they faced, resulting in a positive outcome for everyone. Having not been there I can't comment on the details of how prepared they were - clearly a PLB, backup navigation tools and winter hiking gear would have helped them. From the little that's been written it looks like their check-in plan left a lot to be desired. I will say that the weather was not unpredictable - folks across the state knew snow was likely in the mountains well in advance of it getting here. This article has more detail on the facts of the incident: "billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/glacier-officials-say-rescued-hikers-hunkered-down-waited-for-help/article_e4163747-0aac-5c77-b934-5cf9e2dc15bb.html"
Wow, they really are lucky to be alive!
Wanna-be yuppies from Virginia.
Stay home and jog the burbs boys, your not man enough to take the real wilderness.
Wow six whole days?...LMAO
Try humping the Pamir range in Crapistan looking for Taliban.
I bet the first thing you did was run to Starbucks for a Latte'.
Our military force is strictly voluntary.... it's a shame your so bitter about your experience with it.
For goodness sake people, lay off the criticism. We all make mistakes. I am glad they are safe.
Thank God they are safe. Y'all are so critical to people and mean. I wonder why they say that about northerners.
Finally a good outcome of someone missing. Just goes to show you should always have a plan B just in case.
Every time this story comes up I have only one things to say to theses @!$%#s.
So you want to climb a mountain, get in middle of the ocean, swim with sharks, run with the bulls, whatever. Guess what when you do these kind of activities, you should be on your own. If you make it you'll have a story to tell, if you don't, you can only improve the survival of the species.
Anytime from Sept. on is not a good time to be hiking in Glacier especially if U don't know what U R doing as these two were!!!
Y'all are so cruel. Thank God these people are Okay. I am reading these comments and I cannot believe some of the stuff you people are putting. I am so glad you guys are okay and your family has you back. For the rest of you idiots, you should be thankful, and your saying this right before Thanksgiving. What if that was you and your child was at home. I seriously doubt you'd be saying it then. That's why they say Northorners are so cold and mean.
Great that you guys made it out alive! I am an avid hiker and snow is scary. Being in the wilderness also makes you apprciate the small things. BUt don't give up on hiking. Let it be a lesson and move on to other outdoor adventures. Blessings to you:)
Snow is scary? Don't get me wrong, but they are hiking in the mountains....if snow is scary perhaps they and you should stay home.
Im from Colorado princess, you dont go up in the high lonesome unprepared. If you do, you die.
You cant fix stupid.....
These fools give hikers a bad name! This hike should have been done in July or August, not October. Why don't you guys take up some other sport.
I have lived next to GNP for 47 years, guess what people ....it can snow in June July and aug.so back off of these men. It was a good out come,stop being so mean.
Lucky guys x 2. Now... Listen to your wives. ha ha.
My husband and I do alot of hiking and we KNOW we're not tough enough to go into the high mountains in October. You have to know your limitations and go prepared. We always have enough food for 3 days even on a day hike because you never know what might happen. Just stupid for these two guys to even think about going into GNP in this time of year. It's not right for other people to have to risk their lives and spend my tax dollars to save people who put themselves in this position through their own obvious ignorance.