Latest news with #NewYorkDepartmentofEnvironmentalConservation
Toronto Sun
2 days ago
- Health
- Toronto Sun
Hikers high on magic mushrooms falsely report friend was dead
Gorgeous view of the sun over the Adirondack Mountains in New York. Photo by New York Department of Environmental Conservation / Instagram Two friends had quite the adventure during a hike in upstate New York. The two were hiking on Cascade Mountain, part of the Adirondack High Peaks, in Essex County, on the morning of May 24 when they reported that a third member of their hiking group had died, according to a news release from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. The two hikers also came across a Cascade Summit Steward, and informed the steward they were lost. The steward, however, determined the pair was 'in an altered mental state.' Forest ranger Robert Praczkajlo escorted the two hikers, who had ingested hallucinogenic mushrooms, to a waiting ambulance and New York State Police officers, the agency said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Magic mushrooms contain hallucinogens, usually psilocybin and psilocin, according to Health Canada. Taking magic mushrooms may cause an individual to see, hear or feel things that are not there, or to experience anxiety, fear, paranoia, nausea and muscle twitches accompanied by increased heart rate. RECOMMENDED VIDEO As for the third member of the hiking party, they were neither dead nor injured — after the state agency received a call from them. They were escorted back to their camping site by the ranger. Read More Toronto & GTA Other Sports Ontario Toronto & GTA Golf
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Two Hikers Called 911 to Report One of Their Buddies Died. It Turns Out They Were Only Tripping on Shrooms
Two hikers in New York's Adirondack Mountains sparked a rescue mission over Memorial Day weekend because they ate psychedelic mushrooms, got lost, and were convinced their friend had died. The incident occurred Saturday on Cascade Mountain, a popular trail near Lake Placid, according to a press release from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. Two hikers had dialed 911, claiming the third member of their party had died. The pair also encountered a summit steward, who quickly realized they were in an 'altered mental state.' The Summit stewards are volunteers or staff members of the Summit Stewardship Program, which is a partnership between the Adirondack Mountain Club, the Adirondack Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. Summit stewards conduct research and trail maintenance, encourage Leave No Trace principles, and educate hikers about alpine ecology. Forest ranger Robert Praczkajlo responded to the hikers' call for help and escorted them off the trail, where an ambulance — and the New York State Police — were waiting. The friend who they thought had died also called during the rescue. Happily, authorities determined them to be alive and well, and they were helped back to their campsite by a forest ranger. It is illegal to grow or possess psychedelic mushrooms in the state of New York. Even as psychedelics are growing in popularity for both recreational and medicinal uses, first responders caution against tripping in the woods. The Canada-based volunteer group North Shore Rescue puts it bluntly: 'The combination of mind-altering drugs and being in the wilderness is a terrible and dangerous idea.' Read Next: 5 Poisonous Mushrooms You Should Learn to Identify Unfortunately, these mushroom-munching hikers aren't the only ones who've needed search-and-rescue assistance after making ill-advised decisions in the woods. On Monday, a hiker at Virginia's Crabtree Falls fell to her death after crossing a safety railing to snap a photo. And in November, authorities rescued two hikers in New Hampshire whose cell phone batteries died on a 16-mile snowy hike on Mount Charleston. One of the hikers was wearing Crocs.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
2 lost hikers report friend dead. Ranger learns they were actually just on mushrooms
**Related Video Above: Cleveland Clinic testing 'magic mushrooms' as treatment KEENE, N.Y. (WJW) — What began as a fun Memorial Day trip through New York's Adirondack High Peaks for a group of friends turned into another kind of trip. A ranger was dispatched to Cascade Mountain Saturday around 9 a.m. after two hikers called 911 to say a third person who was hiking with them had died, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation said in a news release. Ohio hiking trail voted one of the country's best The two then reportedly ran into a Cascade Summit Steward — who is part of a park program that works to help visitors and keep the mountain ecosystems healthy — and told them of their plight, adding they were lost. Once a ranger arrived on scene, the steward told them the two 'hikers were in an altered mental state,' according to the release. The two hikers reportedly took hallucinogenic mushrooms. These types of mushrooms, according to the Cleveland Clinic, lead to heightened sensory awareness, but can also lead to a 'bad trip,' which can 'cause frightening hallucinations, terror, depression or panic attacks.' Discover Ohio's 3 best staycation spots for summer fun A call then came in from the third hiker, who confirmed they were alive and uninjured. The ranger said they escorted the two friends to a New York State Police unit that was waiting with an ambulance and then took the third hiker back to their campsite. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
29-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
‘Dead' friend turns up alive: How a mushroom triggered an 'emergency' panic call to 911 by lost hikers in NY
A false alarm at 4,098 feet Live Events Mushrooms, not mountain missteps Stewards on the summit A walk that ended with a ride (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Two hikers in New York's Adirondacks sparked a dramatic emergency response last week after calling 911 to report a tragedy that never occurred. The men, found on Cascade Mountain on 24 May, claimed their hiking companion had died and they were lost. According to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the rangers quickly launched a what they discovered wasn't a body — it was confusion, hallucinations, and a still-very-much-alive friend.'The two hikers were in an 'altered mental state' and had ingested ' hallucinogenic mushrooms ,'' stated the DEC in a press Ranger Praczkajlo responded to the distress call at 9 a.m., near the summit of Cascade Mountain in Essex County. The trail, sitting at 4,098 feet above sea level, is the 36th-tallest of the Adirondack High Peaks. According to it's considered a 'challenging route' that is 'very popular for hiking and snowshoeing.'But for this group, the danger came not from the terrain, but from what they had placing the emergency call, the two hikers encountered the Cascade Summit Steward. In addition to reporting the supposed death, they also said they were lost. The steward immediately noticed something was off and flagged their mental state to the authorities.'Rangers eventually found the third person sober and uninjured and walked with them back to the group's campsite,' the DEC source of the panic was not altitude sickness, but psilocybin — the chemical compound in certain mushrooms, often referred to as 'magic mushrooms.' According to Medical News Today, psilocybin can cause effects ranging from euphoria and distorted thinking to full-blown seems the two hikers had taken these mushrooms during their Memorial Day weekend trip, unaware of just how far from reality it would take DEC added, 'Forest Ranger Praczkajlo escorted the two hikers who had ingested the hallucinogenic mushrooms to a waiting ambulance and a New York State Police unit.'Their friend, who had been presumed dead, had simply gone on ahead and was later found alive and Mountain is regularly visited by volunteers and professionals under the Adirondack Summit Stewardship Program . Started in 1990 with only two staff members, the programme now includes five full-time stewards, three botanists, and 20 volunteers (as of 2024). Their role is to assist hikers, conduct scientific research, and help maintain the ecological integrity of the this case, the steward's presence helped avert further emergency call ended not in grief but with a reunion — and an ambulance ride for the two men under the influence. No charges were reported, and the DEC has not released the identities of those was, in the end, a false alarm rooted not in injury or misadventure, but in the forest officials put it, the hikers had mistaken 'tripping' for tragedy.
Economic Times
29-05-2025
- Economic Times
‘Dead' friend turns up alive: How a mushroom triggered an 'emergency' panic call to 911 by lost hikers in NY
A hike in New York's Adirondack High Peaks took a bizarre turn when two men, under the influence of hallucinogenic mushrooms, called 911 to report their friend's death. Forest rangers later discovered the 'dead' friend was alive and well — while the callers themselves were disoriented and lost. The incident unfolded on Cascade Mountain and ended with a rescue mission that involved no fatalities, only a sobering ambulance ride for the two hallucinating hikers. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A false alarm at 4,098 feet Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Mushrooms, not mountain missteps Stewards on the summit Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A walk that ended with a ride Two hikers in New York's Adirondacks sparked a dramatic emergency response last week after calling 911 to report a tragedy that never occurred. The men, found on Cascade Mountain on 24 May, claimed their hiking companion had died and they were lost. According to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the rangers quickly launched a what they discovered wasn't a body — it was confusion, hallucinations, and a still-very-much-alive friend.'The two hikers were in an 'altered mental state' and had ingested ' hallucinogenic mushrooms ,'' stated the DEC in a press Ranger Praczkajlo responded to the distress call at 9 a.m., near the summit of Cascade Mountain in Essex County. The trail, sitting at 4,098 feet above sea level, is the 36th-tallest of the Adirondack High Peaks. According to it's considered a 'challenging route' that is 'very popular for hiking and snowshoeing.'But for this group, the danger came not from the terrain, but from what they had placing the emergency call, the two hikers encountered the Cascade Summit Steward. In addition to reporting the supposed death, they also said they were lost. The steward immediately noticed something was off and flagged their mental state to the authorities.'Rangers eventually found the third person sober and uninjured and walked with them back to the group's campsite,' the DEC source of the panic was not altitude sickness, but psilocybin — the chemical compound in certain mushrooms, often referred to as 'magic mushrooms.' According to Medical News Today, psilocybin can cause effects ranging from euphoria and distorted thinking to full-blown seems the two hikers had taken these mushrooms during their Memorial Day weekend trip, unaware of just how far from reality it would take DEC added, 'Forest Ranger Praczkajlo escorted the two hikers who had ingested the hallucinogenic mushrooms to a waiting ambulance and a New York State Police unit.'Their friend, who had been presumed dead, had simply gone on ahead and was later found alive and Mountain is regularly visited by volunteers and professionals under the Adirondack Summit Stewardship Program . Started in 1990 with only two staff members, the programme now includes five full-time stewards, three botanists, and 20 volunteers (as of 2024). Their role is to assist hikers, conduct scientific research, and help maintain the ecological integrity of the this case, the steward's presence helped avert further emergency call ended not in grief but with a reunion — and an ambulance ride for the two men under the influence. No charges were reported, and the DEC has not released the identities of those was, in the end, a false alarm rooted not in injury or misadventure, but in the forest officials put it, the hikers had mistaken 'tripping' for tragedy.
