Two Air Force Academy cadets were rescued this morning after spending a night in waist-deep snow on Pikes Peak.
The couple were unprepared for wintry weather and lost the trail to the summit as snow began to fall, according to Brian Kinsey, a volunteer with El Paso County Search and Rescue.
Jesse Mortensen, 21, a junior from Michigan, and Jessi Leuschen, 22, a senior from Iowa, were wearing “lightweight clothing, a lot of cotton, tennis shoes,” said Kinsey.
Leuschen had been trying to follow Mortensen’s footsteps, according to Academy spokesman John Van Winkle, “but if she didn’t keep up, they’d fill with blowing snow and hail.”
“They got soaking wet and just realized they finally had to stop,” Kinsey said.
The two spent Monday night at Barr Camp in a tent and sleeping bags. They took off their wet clothing and camped at about 13,400 feet. They also called 911.
Rescuers had to plow the road to the summit to get their vehicles up the mountain, said Steve Sperry, spokesman for El Paso County Search and Rescue.
A team began hiking down overnight and reached the couple’s tent around 8 a.m., said Kinsey.
“We were able to get them some extra clothing and stuff, and they were able to move under their own power downhill about a mile to an area where we were able to land a helicopter,” he said.
The helicopter came from Buckley Air Force Base. It picked them up about 9:15 a.m., Sperry said.
Both cadets are in good shape, according to Van Winkle.
Leuschen will graduate next week a bit wiser, he said. “They had a really miserable time. … They learned a very cold lesson in trip planning and preparation.”
“They did the smart thing, staying put where they were reasonably safe and warm” until rescuers could reach them with dry clothes, Kinsey said.
