Hikers, dog 'stranded in the dark' rescued from Columbia River Gorge trail

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Two hikers and a dog were rescued on Friday after becoming stranded on the Columbia River Gorge's Larch Mountain Trail in the dark, the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office announced.

The hikers found themselves unable to call for help with spotty cell phone service and relied on Multnomah County's Text-to-911 service to reach help, officials said.

Around 6 p.m. Friday, dispatchers received a text message from the hikers, reporting they were "stranded in the dark" and that a landslide damaged part of the trail about a quarter mile south of the junction of Wahkeena Falls and Larch Mountain Trails.

MCSO deputies and search and rescue volunteers were able to find the stranded hikers using the text message service to track their GPS coordinates -- which pinpointed the hikers about two miles from the trailhead at Multnomah Falls -- and helped guide them to safety.

The hikers and the dog did not have any injuries, officials said.

Multnomah County Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer Chris Liedle lauded the text-to-911 service, explaining “Text to 911 is a lifeline for those needing help and can’t make a call for safety reasons, or because they do not have strong enough cell service."

Liedle added, “The hikers, in this case, also did the right thing by staying put until rescuers arrived, which made it easier for the crews to locate them."