Rangers rescue climber stuck on cliff at Acadia

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK – Rangers rescued a climber Sunday afternoon after he became stuck while free-climbing on the cliffs near Great Head Trail.

According to Ranger Richard Rechholtz, Nate Perry, 24, of Exeter, N.H., had hiked down to the bottom of the cliffs with friends and begun free-climbing a 50-foot section of the cliff. Free-climbing involves climbing without the use of ropes.

Perry got about halfway up the section of cliff when he ran out of handholds and was not able to go up or down, Rechholtz said.

Fortunately, the climber was in a spot where he had a good foothold and handhold and was able to hang on until help arrived. He was stuck on the cliff for about 45 minutes.

Rangers and the Mount Desert Island Search and Rescue group arrived and set up a technical rope system. They lowered a ranger down to the climber, and the ranger fitted Perry with a special climbing harness and attached the harness to the rope system. Rescuers then lowered Perry and the ranger to ground.

Perry was not injured in the incident.

In other action in the park Sunday, a motorcyclist was injured when her motorcycle struck a deer on the road up Cadillac Mountain.

The woman, Kimberly Hutchins, 38, of Boston, was about a quarter of the way up the mountain near a hairpin turn when the accident occurred, Rechholtz said.

Hutchins suffered minor injuries. Her Harley-Davidson motorcycle had an estimated $1,000 in damage and had to be towed from the site.

The deer was killed.

According to Rechholtz, this is the first time in recent memory that a motorcycle has struck and killed a deer.