On the afternoon of Saturday, December 29th, Randy Kraxberger, 53, became disoriented while skiing in blizzard conditions near Hurricane Hill. He stopped and dug a snow cave, then called the park via cell phone to report his situation. Rangers were able to talk to him only briefly before the call was dropped, but were able to gather some information about his surroundings and probable location. A search was conducted for him the evening, primarily along Hurricane Hill Road, and two rescuers attempted to sky beyond the road’s end. They had to turn back, though, due to the blizzard and hazardous avalanche conditions. Six rescuers skied to the hill on Sunday morning in three to four feet of deep powder snow, high winds and very poor visibility. They reached Kraxberger around 1 p.m. and found him to be in good condition. He was able to ski out with his rescuers. About a dozen park staff, ten volunteers from Bremerton-based Olympic Mountain Rescue, employees of the Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club and personnel from the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles participated in the search and rescue effort.
