A military helicopter crew rescued a German man Tuesday in the Brooks Range after his canoe was damaged while floating down a river, according to the Alaska Air National Guard.
Alaska State Troopers identified the man as Hendrick Luckey.
According to the Guard, the 32-year-old man left Anaktuvuk Pass on Aug. 13 with six weeks of supplies. Luckey damaged his new foldable canoe Aug. 19 on the Upper John River and used a beacon to request help. He was reportedly cold but not hurt.
"Over the next 36 hours, Alaska State Troopers attempted to coordinate several ground rescues, but high water levels made it difficult to get to the stranded canoeist," an Alaska Air National Guard statement says.
The Guard sent an HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter from Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks at about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday and had Luckey back at the base, uninjured, by 7 p.m.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
By CASEY GROVE
Anchorage Daily News