Town of Hunter
Greene County
Wilderness Recovery: On Oct. 6 at 4 p.m., Forest Rangers Mark Brand, Kenneth Gierloff, and Christine Nelson responded to a search for a missing 50-year-old male in Platte Clove.
Based on information provided by a friend, the man was dropped off on Platte Clove Road and planned to hike down to the Plattekill Creek, camp, and then hike through to meet a friend at Saugerties Bridge on Becker Road.
Using this information, Forest Rangers began a search of Plattekill Creek. At 7:33 p.m., Forest Rangers located the hiker deceased in the town of Hunter approximately 1.25 miles upstream from Becker Road.
Forest Rangers Nelson and Gierloff secured the scene overnight. New York State Police (NYSP) and DEC’s Bureau of Environmental Crime Investigations (BECI) were notified. On Oct. 7 at 6 a.m., NYSP and Forest Rangers began investigating the scene and recovering the subject.
A technical rope system was set up on Platte Clove Road and involved multiple high and steep angle rope systems over the course of approximately 700 feet of elevation gain. Seventeen Forest Rangers from Regions 3, 4, and 5 completed this mission. The man was successfully recovered from the clove and turned over to the coroner at approximately 5 p.m.