Rescue At Jay Cooke State Park

We decided to head to the North Shore on an adventure today. Fall colors are near peak and we wanted to visit our marina home port at Knife River. We stopped in the tiny town of Willow River for breakfast at Peggy Sue's Cafe. This cute little restaurant was super busy with no open tables. We sat at the counter and waited a half hour to be served. The delicious veggie omelet was worth the wait.

Peggy Sue's

Great food, warm environment

Peggy Sue's Cafe, Willow River, MN

We planned to stop off at Jay Cooke State Park to hike and view the fall colors on our way north. It was so crowded that we couldn't park so we drove past the lot and found a spot on the side of the road near a bridge overlooking a beautiful gorge. We walked up to the bridge and I started snapping photos while Dave took in the glorious view. As I scanned and focused on the landscape I noticed a woman sitting in dirt with one leg tucked under the other and her phone at her ear. She had made her way down a steep trail and appeared to have slipped on the wet grass. She was perched just above a serious dropoff. She looked uncomfortable and in distress. Several groups walked toward her but no one stopped to speak with her. I was certain something was wrong. I pointed her out to Dave and asked if we should see if she needed help. 

Beautiful gorge view from the bridge,
lady in distress bottom left

We watched as she looked back up the hill and adjusted her sitting position. I thought she might just go over the cliff if she moved the wrong way. Suddenly, three men and a woman carefully made their way to her. She rolled over and began crawling up the steep bank. When they could reach her, the men helped her to safety then lifted her to her feet. We could see that she didn't put her left leg down. She was definitely injured.

Help arrives

Moving her to safety

Now that they had her out of danger, they had to get her out of the gorge. The men were trying to get her up the hill by supporting her as she hopped on one foot. She'd make it a couple of steps then had to stop to rest. I asked Dave if we had anything we could use in the car to carry her. He said he'd thrown a moving blanket in. Dave ran back to the car to grab the blanket and I carefully worked my way down to where she was trying to catch her breath. I told her that Dave would be there soon and we would create a hammock to carry her up. At first she said she would rather hop or crawl out. She was pale and in pain, maybe even suffering from shock. With help from her friend and the men, who turned out to be college students from St. Scholastica, we convinced her to wait for Dave. Finally, with relief flooding her face, she let the young men help her to a sitting position to wait. I asked if she wanted to take her shoe off. When she did so, it was clear that her ankle was broken. We chatted with her to keep her calm and I joked that I saw her taking pictures with her phone while she waited for help. I said, "at least you got the shot," which made us all laugh together.

Another couple showed up and offered assistance. When Dave arrived we slipped the blanket under her making sure that she was comfortable and her weight was centered. Dave, the three college kids and the newest good samaritan grabbed the edges of the blanket and carefully carried her up the hazardous embankment. It was difficult because the path was narrow causing them to have to walk in the weeds alongside. To make matters worse, they could not see where their feet were landing. They moved slow and steady, making sure she was doing ok as they went up.

When we finally made it to the top, they set her down alongside the road. We stayed with her while her friend went for their car. One of the rescuers said, " Hey we should take a photo of all of us." A lady standing nearby offered to do so with my camera.

Good Samaritans at Jay Cooke State Park

When the car arrived we tucked her into the back seat, making sure she was comfortable and then bid her well. She kept thanking us. Her friend commented that this was a perfect example of Minnesota Nice; strangers helping someone in need just because they could. 

As the car drove away, we stood there, grinning at each other. Someone commented on how rewarding the experience was. We just happened to be in the right place at the right time and each of us made the decision to get involved. We never exchanged names but one of the college boys ran to catch us as we walked away. He gave me his contact info and asked me to forward the group photo to him.

When we told our kids about the experience our son noted, "Mom, that's awesome! You got to pay it forward for the lady that helped you when you broke your ankle." He was referring to someone who saw me crawling down the sidewalk and made the decision to circle back to offer me assistance. Life is magical when it comes full circle. In these times of social distancing and pandemic concerns, four groups of strangers made a special connection today. It felt great!