SARANAC LAKE, N.Y. -
Stephen Mastaitis says forest rangers saved his life after he was stranded on Mount Marcy for nearly 20 hours this week.
"I never thought I was going to survive the night," he said.
The 58-year-old lawyer from Saratoga Springs climbed to the summit Monday with his two sons and a family friend. But as they began to descend down the mountain around noontime, the weather conditions took a turn for the worse. The elder Mastaitis was separated from his hiking group about 500 feet from the summit.
"The trail was gone. The wind was blowing so bad. You couldn't hear anybody, that was the horrible thing," he said.
Mastaitis was able to communicate with 911 that he was lost. They told him to stay put and forest rangers were looking for him.
"I thought despite everybody's best efforts that they would never find me," he said.
When darkness began to settle in, the father of three knew he may be stuck on the mountain for the night and dug a snow cave, where he would sit for 10 hours without food and water. Fortunately, he was wearing four layers of clothing.
"It really hurt, the pain I was going through, shivering, it was tough," he said. "I did not want to go to sleep, I was afraid if I went to sleep I would never wake up."
When the sun came up the next morning, Mastaitis climbed 200 yards in chest-deep snow to a cliff, hoping rescuers would spot him. "As I got to a rock ledge, I heard voices and they were above me, and I turned and I saw one person going up the mountain and I yelled help. He asked are you Steve, I said yes, and he said we are looking for you."
From there, a N.Y. State police helicopter lifted him off the mountain and to the hospital for treatment. His fingers and toes are swollen and doctors are monitoring a pre-existing heart condition. But they think he will make a full recovery-- due in part to his ironman training.
Mastaitis apologized for putting so many lives at risk.
"To put them in danger, I can't believe they were up there that time of night looking for me," he said. "I owe my life to them."
Mastaitis expects to leave the hospital Wednesday night or Thursday morning. He is looking forward to hiking again, just not in the winter.
He will not be billed for his rescue. Some states do bill people for their rescues, but New York is not one of them.
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