Hiking 1:10:00 [1] 2.5 mi (28:00 / mi) +70m 25:46 / mi
Packed up my bag and took a nice, easy hike down the LLT. About halfway down I passed the party of guys I'd seen on North Kinsman a few hours earlier, one injured (ankle, state unknown but not walkable), and they were carrying him down. I offered to help out but they said they were fine, I offered to go down and get ice for them and maybe some other supplies; there are so many search and rescues out of that parking lot I figured maybe the state park would have some SAM splints or something.
Ran down to the state park office: nothing. Great. It didn't seem worth calling in Fish and Game or Pemi SAR; by the time they got there the party would probably be most of the way down; they were moving, but slowly. But there was a guy who had gone down for their party to drive a car to the trailhead. I went to check the packhouse to see if there was anything—a SAR box, perhaps?—but figured it would be empty. It very nearly was. There were three items: a gallon of bleach. A camp stove propane canister. And a litter. With shoulder straps! Well that might be useful. Drove it to the trailhead, and while the other guy (an older fellow; most of the party was although the patient appeared to be in his 30s) called them to tell them to wait I shouldered it and ran up the trail.
They were about a third of a mile in. We put the patient on the litter, packaged him in (okay: everyone with extra clothes, take them out of your packs!), and began the much more comfortable (for everyone, especially the guy with the sprained/broken ankle) walk down to the car. Strava weirded out but it probably took 20 minutes, not bad for a litter carry with only about 8 people who had never done one before. It took a couple of tries to get protocol down ("one two three, lift on three") and get people using the shoulder straps, but it worked. Definitely worth it, prevented other injuries, and was safer for everyone. Wished them well and walked the litter back to the packhouse.
Now, I have no idea if I was supposed to grab a litter like that from the packhouse (my guess: no, probably because lawyers), especially without a radio or a go-ahead from the AMC or Fish and Game. But it seemed like the best thing to do, and in retrospect all worked out well, so I was happy to help out. And while this is filed under hiking, it is a good strength workout too (both "running" up the trail with a litter over your head, and carrying a guy down it.