Lost Hikers found.............

**Lloyd Braun** · 10-04-2006, 12:53 PM

glad it wasn't the grizzley!

Mother, children found safe after hike

Tue 10/03/2006 09:01PM MST

Mother: Poncho and extra supplies were worth bringing

INDEPENDENCE PASS -- Three children and a mother were rescued here Tuesday morning after getting lost and spending the night in subfreezing weather.

A search party first located Stephanie "Stevi" Sakson, 48, at 10:15 a.m. before discovering 9-year-olds Andra Sakson, Jillian Wentzel, Matthew Palomino and a Jack Russell terrier named Nik Nik Nik above timberline 25 minutes later. The four hikers were cold, tired and hungry but otherwise in good shape, according to Pitkin County sheriff's deputies. They were found a half-mile off the Midway Trail at an elevation of approximately 12,000 feet.

"The children were fantastic," Sakson said at her Carbondale home Tuesday evening. "They were fantastic. They kept their heads on. They remained helpful and in a space of knowing that it would work out. When I asked them to do something that needed to be done, they were happily accommodating and each of them brought their gift to the trip."

The children appeared in high spirits as they slogged down the muddy trail, giggling, chatting and sticking their tongues out at news photographers. Snow fell steadily on the 9-year-olds as they made their way to the lower Lost Man trailhead wearing oversized parkas that Mountain Rescue Aspen volunteers lent to them. When they arrived at the trailhead, a gathering of friends and family exploded in hoots, hollers and applause and then they hugged and kissed their loved ones.

Tears also fell.

"I'm sorry," Stevi Sakson sobbed to another parent who embraced her tightly.

The group set out on a short hike Monday morning but they grew disoriented and could not find their way back to where they had started, authorities said. They had been expected to return at 3 p.m. and were reported missing at 6 p.m. Search teams began combing the area two hours later. Rescue dogs were also brought to the scene. In all, 25 people from six regional search teams joined in the effort, working until 2 a.m.

Rain, snow and fog made conditions difficult for searchers and grounded their aircraft. The parents of the missing children, meanwhile, drove up the pass to the trailhead where they spent the night awake and worrying about their fates.

"To have your child lost in the woods at a high elevation is terrifying," Jim Wentzel said. "We're just thrilled that this has come to an end. We're the happiest parents in the world. The (rescuers) did an incredibly professional job."

Sakson said they had begun backtracking to find their way out on Monday when, after about eight hours of hiking, she feared the children were too tired to go on. Sakson said she pitched her poncho over two rows of brush and they bedded down "like sardines" on the cold ground with Nik at their feet. The skies were clear, Sakson said, and despite the cold temperatures, they were able to get some sleep, optimistic about being rescued.

"It was chilly but it was manageable," she said. "It wasn't until (Tuesday) morning when we hoped to have clear skies and rested legs when we pulled aside the poncho that was our tent and we were socked in. ... By 8, 9 o'clock, it was a blizzard."

Fearing they would be forced to spend another night outside, Sakson said, she went in search of better shelter and hoped to catch a glimpse of rescuers when she spotted them nearby.

"They were phenomenal," she said.

Hugh Zuker, the leader of Mountain Rescue Aspen, said children are at higher risk when exposed to the elements since they have less body fat than adults.

"When there are kids involved, we're all pretty stressed about it," he said.

Snow covered the upper reaches of the trail and at Midway Pass, near where the hikers were located, it reached the knees of most adults, said authorities.

"It was a total team effort," Zuker said of the rescue.

Sakson credited extra supplies of hats, gloves and sweaters, plus her poncho, with helping them get through the night.

"It's always worth carrying those extra supplies that you would tend to leave at home because you're only going on a day hike," she said. "No matter how experienced you are, weather happens."

Pitkin County sheriff's deputy Tom Grady noted that a recent sighting of suspected grizzly bears in the area concerned rescuers. Grizzlies were believed extirpated from Colorado until one was confirmed in the San Juans in 1979. The most recent sighting has not been confirmed, however, and state officials are investigating.

George Lilly, office coordinator at Carbondale-based Waldorf School, where the rescued children are students, said classes were not in session Monday due to the Yom Kippur holiday. She said teachers informed classes at the private school of 180 students about the missing classmates Tuesday morning in "factual manner."

"I think there was an attitude from many of the kids that they'd be OK. They had confidence in their ability to be found," Lilly said. "Now we're all elated."