Elderly Snowmobiler Goes Missing For Hours In The Woods of New York, Here’s What Happened

Temperatures may be warming across New York State this week but up in the Adirondack mountains the snow is thick and you never know when a storm is going to blow in. If you are heading out snowmobiling, this story proves it's best to stick together.

Recently an elderly snowmobiler got separated from his party, had mechanical issues and was left stranded. Hours after getting lost New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) officers set out to locate the missing snowmobiler.

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On Friday February 28th, according to a NYS DEC press release, DEC officers Hamm and O'Connell received a call, at approximately 8:20p, regarding a missing snowmobiler. A 70-year-old man from New Jersey had last been seen on Mason Lake in Hamilton County, NY.

Members of the snowmobile party indicated that the missing man had gotten separated from the group following some mechanical issues. While the man attempted to get the machine running again the rest of the party continued on.

Allegedly the 70-year-old was able to get his snowmobile started again and set out to catch up to his party but was unable to locate them. Forest Rangers were looking for the man at the same time and they too had no luck connecting.

Additional Forest Rangers joined the search which was hampered by snow, heavy winds and darkness making trails impossible to follow. The search continued into the early morning hours of the next day.

Finally at approximately 12:30am Forest Rangers were able to located the snowmobiler! Officers replaced the drive belt on the snowmobile and assisted the 70-year-old to safety.