Two PCT Backpackers Lost and Located on North Side of San Jacinto Peak

Two backpackers on the Pacific Crest Trail who got lost on the steep north side of San Jacinto Peak, ran out of water, and called 9-1-1 for help were located and escorted to safety Wednesday morning, a sheriff's sergeant said.

Derek Calvano, 19, of Philadelphia, Pa., and Christopher Simmons, 20, of Greenfield, Calif., started their journey on the PCT in Tijuana, Mexico, and intended to walk all the way to Canada, Sgt. Al Meservey of the sheriff's Cabazon Station said.

According to a sheriff's department account, Calvano and Simmons called 9-1-1 about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and deputies were dispatched to Snow Creek Village, near the base of the steep Snow Creek watershed.

Calvano and Simmons were believed to be stranded in the federal San Jacinto Wilderness, according to Meservey.

The backpackers said via cell phone they had "encountered heavy vegetation where they became disoriented and wandered off the trail," Meservey said.

Calvano and Simmons were in rugged terrain with sheer drop-offs, Meservey said. One of them fell about 20 feet and got stuck, but he was not hurt, Meservey said.

Search-and-rescue personnel and sheriff's deputies remained in contact with the backpackers overnight and directed them to stay where they were.

About 8 a.m. Wednesday, a sheriff's helicopter crew joined the search with Riverside Mountain Rescue volunteers, and in clear conditions they located the men about a quarter of the way up 10,804-foot San Jacinto Peak, according to Meservey.

Volunteers walked and scrambled to reach Calvano and Simmons at about 2,500 feet elevation in the Snow Creek drainage, and escorted them to safer ground, Meservey said.

The men had minor bumps, scratches, and were suffering minor dehydration, but they did not require medical attention, Meservey said.

San Jacinto Peak is the second-highest point in Southern California, and its north face is considered one of the steepest escarpments in the continental United States.

Anyone with further information about the incident was urged to call the Cabazon Station at (951) 922-7100 or send an email to cabazonstation@riversidesheriff.org.