Getting offered a lift by a man from the sky might seem like an unusual but easy way to get out of a lengthy hike.
On the afternoon of Aug. 17, William Hamilton set off on his longest hike this year — a 34-kilometre return from Petty Harbour to the Spout, a wave-powered geyser near St. John’s.
During his return in the darkness, about six kilometres from the finish, a loud helicopter appeared and shined its searchlight on him from the sky.
“They flew around a couple times … the next thing I knew, they just kind of stopped in one spot, just hovering there,” he said. “All the lights come on inside the helicopter, and then the door opens up. I thought, ‘geez, they must be sending someone down.’ Sure enough, the rope comes down and a buddy comes down on it.”
The visitor informed him that during their training flight they had spotted his headlamp and wondered if he needed help.
Though he was exhausted, he declined the offer.
“I didn't want to ruin my hike because I was so close to being done, and it was a really long one,” he said. “I was also concerned about where they were going to take me. They probably were going to bring me to a hospital or something. So, I was like, ‘Nah, I’m good man, I can make it out.”
After showing him his route with GPS on his phone, the man went back up to the hovering helicopter just as quickly as he came down.
Hamilton, who did not take many breaks, ended up finishing his hike in seven-and-a-half hours.
At the end of September, the avid hiker did the Gros Morne Mountain (James Callaghan) Trail within two hours and 22 minutes, beating his record of three hours and 30 minutes from the previous month (Parks Canada estimates six to eight hours for the average person). Hamilton quit smoking since August and has been doing more hikes and workouts.
The helicopter was certainly a surprise, but as a member of the Canadian Armed Forces, Hamilton had already flown in one like it. Still, it was reassuring to know that there were eyes in the sky.
“I was never expecting something like that … If I was actually injured or not able to make it out of there, they would have been there to help me,” he said.
#Because2020 is a series of stories featuring the unusual things that have happened to East Coast residents this year. Have a story to share? Email [email protected].
