A mountain biker had to be rescued after a wrong turn during an extreme training session led to being stranded in the Northland bush as hypothermia set in.
Northland Police SAR lead, Detective Sergeant Paul Overton, said the biker had set off from Kerikeri on Saturday.
“He was aiming to push his limits on the Department of Conservation tracks in the Waimamaku Range,” Overton said.
“Unbeknown to him, he missed a crucial turnoff and underestimated the terrain and weather conditions.”
The mountain biker raised the alarm with police around 8.30pm that night.
Overton said the biker intended to hunker down overnight and ride out the following day. “However, police made the decision to rescue him as he only had light clothing, no shelter and the weather conditions were rapidly deteriorating.”
Police and Far North LandSAR volunteers set off to the man through “extremely challenging” tracks. The rescue team took 2.5 hours to walk the 5km to reach the biker around midnight.
“By the time we reached him, the biker was in a bad way,” Overton said. “He was soaking wet with hypothermia already setting in and struggling to walk.”
Being winched to safety via helicopter was not possible due to poor weather, so the man was warmed up and fed before beginning a four-hour walk out of the bush.
Partway through the trek, a farmer whose property bordered the ranges “helped bring the man the last few kilometres across paddocks to his home where he gave him and the rescue team hot drinks”, Overton said.
Overton said the biker “did the right thing” by contacting police and staying put but it should serve as a warning on the importance of thorough preparation when going into isolated or challenging environments.
“With summer approaching and longer days, people want to get out and about and enjoy Northland’s great outdoors,” he said.
“People need to make sure they have adequate clothing, navigation tools, and know what the weather forecast is.
“They should also have some kind of communication device like a phone and in case of an emergency situations having an EPIRB could save a life.”
Overton thanked the farmer and the Far North LandSAR volunteers for their help with rescuing the man.