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Seventeen hikers spent Saturday night atop Mount San Jacinto after fierce winds forced the closure of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway earlier that day. Here the group is making its way through snow during the descent from the peak in strong winds. Photos provided by Mountain Adventurers
TOP AND BOTTOM: Seventeen hikers stranded on the top of Mount San Jacinto spent Saturday night huddled in an old corral shed after fierce winds forced the closure of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway earlier that day.
Seventeen hikers spent Saturday night huddled in an old corral shed on Mt. San Jacinto after fierce winds forced the closure of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway earlier that day.
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They huddled together inside a drafty old mule shed, took turns standing by a campfire and made practical use of hammers, nails and anything else they could find.
“We put planks on the ground, covered the windows with cardboard, and proceeded to spend a very long 14 hours,” said Mihai Giurgiulescu.
The 28-year-old from North Hollywood was among 17 hikers who were stranded Saturday 8,500 feet up atop Mount San Jacinto when fierce, whipping winds — up to 90 mph — forced the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway to quickly evacuate. The last tram went down at 2 p.m.
When the hikers, who had food and the right clothing for a day hike, finally battled their way back from the mountain's peak a few hours later, the tram mountain station was locked.
Giurgiulescu said they just couldn't believe it.
“We were not stranded at the top,” he said. “We were abandoned.”
Lena Zimmerschied, spokeswoman for the tram, and Garratt Aitchison, superintendent of Mount San Jacinto State Park, said they were aware hikers were left behind. Hikers have to fill out permits at the ranger's office, the tram counts how many people go up and down, and they also check the parking lot for cars.
The mountain station, with restaurants, gift shops, displays and the tram equipment itself, is locked for security and safety, Zimmerschied said.
And “if we know we've got people out there, we'll keep somebody behind,” Aitchison said.
Bart Grant, supervisor of the Long Valley ranger station near the top of the tram, volunteered for the job.
Trying to figure out what to do, he remembered that the mule corrals are used by California Conservation Corps crew members though in the summer.
He brought the three women and 14 men blankets, sleeping bags and tarps to spread on the floor.
What they did was ingenious, he said.
“They took leftover panels of plywood from one of our projects. They lined the inside of the corral and made double-layered walls. They made a subfloor, and they used three pieces of plywood panels to make a sliding door.
“They organized really nice in there,” he said.
The low temperature for the night was 33 degrees, and the highest gust was 118 mph by evening.
But they were lucky, Grant said. At this time of year, temperatures normally are in the single digits.
Some of the hikers complained that he stayed in the heated ranger station, though it lost power at 8:20p.m.
He said he could not let them stay in the tiny station.
“It's a security concern,” he said. “I'm a law enforcement officer. I'm armed. I don't know who these people are. And we keep weapons in the station.”
Tram and park authorities said they're planning a debriefing to see what better plan can be put in place.
“It's a very rare occurrence,” Zimmerschied said, noting the hiker's ticket fees will be reimbursed.
The hikers said they came down the mountain on the tram at 8 a.m. Sunday, bone-tired. One of their car windows had been smashed by lashing debris.
“Our feet were freezing and nobody slept,” said hiker Elena Northroup, 45, of Laguna Niguel.
“If it happens in the future, they should have a place for us to stay.”
