Two climbers found themselves in a precarious situation on a steep Big Sur cliffside on Saturday, stranded approximately 600 feet below the main roadway. Their only viable escape route involved a specialized California Highway Patrol (CHP) helicopter crew.
Footage released by the CHP captured the H-70 helicopter precisely hovering over a deep ravine near Hurricane Point. A rescue technician was then carefully lowered via cable to reach the two individuals trapped on the cliff face.
The Big Sur Fire Department initially contacted CHP’s Paso Robles Air Unit for assistance around 6:24 p.m., according to agency reports.
Due to the extreme steepness of the terrain, the technician was unable to safely detach from the hoist hook after reaching the first climber. Adapting to the challenging conditions, the technician secured the climber into a Pelican rescue harness, and both were then lifted together to the waiting rescue personnel at a designated staging area.
Following the successful extraction of the first individual, the helicopter returned to the ravine and executed the identical technical maneuver to bring the second climber to safety.
The CHP did not disclose the identities of the climbers nor provide details regarding the circumstances that led to them becoming stranded.
After video footage of the operation was posted online, social media users widely lauded the CHP air crew and all participating rescue teams. One commenter expressed, "Incredible rescue!! Well done guys!!" Another described it as an "amazing job by all involved," while a third added, "Just incredible, you guys, thanks for what you do!"
Authorities confirmed that both climbers survived the ordeal without serious injury.
“These high-risk, low-frequency rescues are exactly what CHP Air Operations personnel continuously train for,” the agency stated. “There is no room for error when operating in steep terrain, under hoist, and in challenging environmental conditions.”
A Week of Critical Missions for H-70 Crew
This dramatic cliffside rescue was not the only demanding mission for the H-70 crew recently. It followed two separate rescue operations conducted on August 9.
Earlier on August 9, the air unit had airlifted an injured 13-year-old hiker from Pinnacles National Park. This mission involved collaboration with a helicopter rescue technician from the Paso Robles Fire Department, as reported by the CHP.
Later that same day, the crew responded to another emergency, pulling an individual who had sustained severe injuries after falling from a waterfall in Big Sur Gorge to safety.
The H-70 unit then answered an additional call from the remote Los Padres National Forest. There, a hunter suffering from heat exhaustion and dehydration was brought aboard the helicopter using a hover step-on maneuver and subsequently flown to awaiting medical staff in King City.
