LA GRANDE, Ore. — Heroic actions from a boy scout group helped save a man who was seriously injured after falling 60 feet down a slope from a trail in Hells Canyon.
Eighty-year-old Eric Valentine tried to kick weeds off of the path when he lost his balance and fell down the side of Hells Canyon.
"All I recall is seeing light and dirt and light and dirt," Valentine said.
Valentine has been an avid hiker for 20 years, and has hiked most of the Pacific Crest trail in Oregon, Washington and California. He also serves on the board of directors of Oregon Parks Forever.
But his fall last month put him in a tough spot and resulted in a broken ankle and knee. He also fractured his C-1 and C-2 vertebrae.
Once he fell, Valentine said he began crawling up the side of the mountain. Eventually a driver passed by and spotted Valentine.
"I heard a voice calling, are you alright?" Valentine said. "And I shouted 'No, help!'"
The driver was able to flag down an boy scout troop from Eagle, Idaho that was traveling along the Snake River in canoes. The Troop 77 scouts took over, giving Valentine first aid.
"If no one saw him, it might have been a pretty miserable night out on the trail," Troop 77 Assistant Scoutmaster Brian Cavanagh said.
Valentine has been involved with the Boy Scouts for America for more than 40 years. For 20 years, he said he served as a scoutmaster himself.
Troop 77 looked after Valentine for three hours, stabilizing his broken knee and tending to his wounds, while radioing for help.
"I feel they are the gold standard of scouting, as far as being prepared," Valentine said.
Valentine was eventually life-flighted to Boise, Idaho for medical treatment. His wife, Meg Valentine, was home in La Grande, Oregon when she received a text that her husband was being air-lifted to Idaho.
"Not knowing what I would find, even though they said he was stable and conscious and all that, you still wonder what can happen in those hours," she said.
Without the help of the scouts and the passing driver, Eric Valentine realizes his fate could have been starkly different.
"What I do recall coming to my mind is just wondering how it would end," he said.
Valentine is recovering from his injuries. He said he has little pain, considering the circumstances, and is hoping to make a full recovery by late August.