Three hikers were airlifted from the Big Sur wilderness overnight after a five-hour rescue operation that required a Navy helicopter and crews hacking through dense vegetation with machetes and chainsaws.
The incident began around 7:30 p.m. Sunday when Big Sur Fire received a satellite 911 call from three hikers who had become lost and disoriented inside Limekiln State Park, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. One member of the group was also experiencing an unspecified medical emergency, adding urgency to the already difficult operation.
Seven members of the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue team launched a joint effort with Big Sur Fire, heading roughly 2.5 miles into the park at an elevation of about 2,000 feet. The rescuers spent approximately 90 minutes navigating trails so heavily overgrown that they needed machetes and chainsaws simply to clear a path through the vegetation.
With darkness falling and the hikers stranded in difficult terrain, officials called in “Lasso 3,” an MH-60S Seahawk search-and-rescue helicopter from Naval Air Station Lemoore. The Navy crew joined the operation to provide air support that ground teams alone could not deliver in the rugged conditions.
At around 12:30 a.m. Monday, five hours after the initial distress call, sheriff’s rescuers finally located all three hikers. The Navy helicopter crew then hoisted the stranded trio from the wilderness and transported them to a safe location where Big Sur Fire and ambulance personnel were waiting to receive them.
The rescue highlights the mounting dangers in the Big Sur backcountry following a brutal summer of wildfires that have transformed the landscape. In August, roughly 1,000 firefighters battled the fast-moving Timber Fire as flames threatened hundreds of structures, including homes near Partington Ridge Road. The Plaskett Fire then erupted and rapidly ballooned to 29,993 acres, surpassing the Timber Fire’s 25,349-acre burn.
Officials noted that the region had gone more than half a century without a major wildfire, allowing thick vegetation to accumulate across the notoriously rugged terrain. That accumulated growth now poses obstacles for both fire suppression and emergency access, as Sunday night’s rescue demonstrated when crews were forced to cut their way through the overgrowth.
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office used the incident to issue renewed warnings about backcountry hazards. The agency urged hikers to understand their physical limitations, prepare thoroughly before setting out, and remain on established trails rather than venturing into remote areas where rescue access becomes severely complicated.
The three hikers’ conditions following the airlift were not detailed in the agency’s account of the operation.