Pay it forward

One year ago local hikers Curt Campbell and Jack Riddick were rescued after being trapped on Medicine Bow Peak overnight. The date was Aug. 31, 2014. On Sept. 1, 2015 the hiking pair were able to lend a little help to an injured Dave Jeffers, his brother Bill and Scott Randall.

The trio had been mountain biking on the Coon Creek trail along the east fork of the Encampment River. Jeffers said he flipped over his handle bars, landing with his weight on his left hand. At the time Jeffers said he was not sure if he had sprained it or broken a bone. Randall helped Jeffers wrap his hand for the ride back to their truck but the end of the ride was a long uphill.

As the trio was heading up, Riddick and Campbell were coming down from a walk up to the Blackhall Mountain fire tower. According to Riddick, "It wasn't a hike, it was a walk," adding that with his health these days he does not go for real hikes anymore.

Randall and Bill waved down Campbell and Riddick and told them they had an injured biker following them. Campbell drove Bill to his truck, saving him from the last uphill part of the ride. "They were played out, they were tired out," Campbell said of the mountain bikers. Jeffers noted that they were already over 20 miles into their ride when they encountered Campbell and Riddick, adding it looked like it was about to start raining.

"It was fortuitous to come upon those guys in the jeep and then they gave my brother a ride back up to the truck," Jeffers said.

On their way back down from taking Bill to his truck Riddick and Campbell came across Jeffers riding one-handed up the road. They stopped to make sure he was OK and advised him to get medical help once he got back to town.

Campbell said he thought the timing of the events Aug. 2014 and being able to help an injured Jeffers one year later was a little ironic. Riddick said that helping out was the only thing to do. "Anybody would have stopped ... in this country you always stop," Riddick said.

Even though the incident on Medicine Bow Peak has taken its toll on Campbell and Riddick, they plan to keep walking together. "I still have problems with my hands. They're still frostbit, and they're still numb," Campbell said.

Riddick had a stroke in January that he said may have been the result of the stresses from that night on Medicine Bow Peak. On July 13, 2015 Riddick had a heart attack and had a pacemaker implanted. Because of this he said he is in the worst shape of his life, but he still gets out for walks.

On July 18, Campbell went for a hike below Medicine Bow Peak to see what the trail was like that he and Riddick had been carried down the year before. "It was brutal, I'll tell you," Campbell said. The trail is very steep and narrow. It would have forced most of their rescuers to walk off trail holding the two on back boards. Campbell and Riddick both expressed their admiration of the men and women who performed their search and rescue.

The hike was also an eye opener for Campbell.

"After I made that walk that day I said I can't do these damn things no more ... I'm 84 years old it's time to quit. I'll just walk the roads with Jack and that's what we're doing," Riddick said.