CONTACT:
Lieutenant Mark Ober
603-788-4850
603-271-3361
July 9, 2026
Sargent’s Purchase, NH – On Wednesday, July 8, 2026, at 9:40 p.m., NH Fish and Game received a 911 call about a hiker with a reported knee injury who was unable to continue hiking on the Tuckerman Ravine Trail approximately 1.2 miles from the AMC Pinkham Notch Visitor Center (PNVC).
During the call it was determined that the hiker, identified as Cindy Armstrong, 67, of Maumee, OH, was hiking with her husband and had slipped and fallen several hours prior, but had been able to continue. However, once it got dark and they had no lights, they could no longer continue. When questioned about her ability to physically continue under her own power, Armstrong insisted that she could not continue hiking down.
Due to the injury, a rescue response was initated by Conservation Officers and volunteers from Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue (AVSAR). The first responding AVSAR volunteer hiked up the trail and was the first responder on the scene. She found that Armstrong and her husband were continuuing to move after they had been provided with a headlamp from another hiker that had come upon them.
When Conservation Officers arrived, they used ATVs to drive up the Sherburne Ski Trail and were able to get close enough to Armstrong’s location where she was assisted to the ATVs and driven down to the PNVC parking lot, arriving at 1:15 a.m. Medical treatment was refused.
It is important to recognize the sacrifice our SAR volunteers make every time a hiker is in need of rescue. Whether it is donating their time or money, they never fail to be there whenever the need arises.