Forest rangers with the state Department of Environmental Conservation responded to one rescue in the High Peaks Wilderness over the past week. In addition, rangers, along with a long list of other state and local emergency response departments, engaged in a multi-day search effort that eventually turned into a wilderness recovery mission.

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Missing Columbia University student found dead in Saranac

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SARANAC — On Sept. 12 at 8:15 a.m., State Police notified Ray Brook dispatch that they had found a vehicle at the Cold Brook Public Use Area belonging to Brandon L. Christie, 29, of Appleton, Wisconsin. He had been reported missing by his family on Sept. 9. They had not heard from the subject since Aug. 31, and he failed to report to Columbia University after enrolling for the fall semester. Over the next four days, 34 Forest Rangers joined Environmental Conservation Police Officers, recruits from the Forest Ranger Academy, NYSP, New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, Clinton County Office of Emergency Services, multiple fire departments, Search and Rescue of the Northern Adirondacks, Adirondack Mountain Rescue, Niagara Frontier Search and Rescue, Community Search and Rescue, state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and Clinton County Technical Rescue in the search.

Drone crews covered 89 acres. State Police and rangers conducted two aviation flights. Search crews covered 240 miles of linear searches via ATV and foot, and 466 acres by foot. The search included hiking trails and the areas with the best views where an accidental fall is most likely to occur. On Sept. 15 at 1 p.m., crews located Christie deceased in a thick, swampy area and turned him over to the Clinton County coroner. He was found with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound and an autopsy is scheduled at Glens Falls Hospital, according to a state police press release.

Christie was enrolled in Columbia’s School of General Studies where he had been pursuing a major in mathematics-statistics and served as a director of community for the U.S. Military Veterans of Columbia University, according to an article published in the Columbia Daily Spectator, the school’s student newspaper. He matriculated in 2021 after serving in the United States Marine Corps for four and a half years, the article adds. Christie was involved in several nonprofit organizations that helped veterans apply to and navigate through college.

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Hiker slips, loses consciousness near Lake Colden

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NORTH ELBA — On Sept. 15 at 11:10 a.m., Assistant Forest Ranger Jackson was at the Lake Colden Interior Outpost, in the High Peaks Wilderness, and heard a loud bang followed by yelling across Lake Colden. At 11:45 a.m., AFR Jackson found a group of hikers. One of them slipped on a plank bridge and temporarily lost consciousness. AFR Jackson helped the 60-year-old across the lake via boat.

AFRs Jackson and Patnode walked the subject to Marcy Dam. The trail from Lake Colden to Marcy Dam first climbs about 300 feet to Avalanche Pass over 1.3 miles. The trail to Avalanche Pass follows the northwest shore around Avalanche Lake. While the mileage is relatively short, the terrain around the lake is rough and requires several scrambles around large boulders, some of which use ladders.

It is unclear if AFRs Jackson and Patnode also used a boat to cross Avalanche Lake, which would have eliminated the need to hike the technically demanding stretch of trail around the lake. After reaching Avalanche Pass, the trail drops roughly 700 feet over 1.6 miles from the pass to Marcy Dam. There, they were met by Forest Rangers Nicole DuChene and Evan Nahor.

Ranger DuChene gave the injured party a ride to his vehicle and Ranger Nahor escorted the rest of the group to Adirondak Loj, an approximately 2-mile hike from Marcy Dam across fairly level terrain. The injured subject said he would wait for the rest of the group and seek medical attention on his own. Resources were clear at 3:20 p.m.

The Loj to Lake Colden hike is one of the most popular in the High Peaks. It features ample views of several prominent High Peaks and traverses the shores of several alpine lakes.