Two Hikers Rescued on Mount Monadnock in Jaffrey

CONTACT:
Sgt. Kevin Bronson
(603) 271-3361
December 22, 2025

Jaffrey, NH – On December 19, at approximately 10:00 p.m., Conservation Officers with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department were alerted by New Hampshire State Police Dispatch of three hikers in distress on the Ferry Spring Trail of Mount Monadnock. Upon making contact with the hikers via cell phone, it became evident that one hiker was attempting to provide aid to two hikers in distress. The two hikers had fallen into a brook and were wet and freezing. High winds, dropping temperatures, and their soaking wet clothes created a life-threatening situation for cold-weather injuries. New Hampshire Fish and Game Conservation Officers along with volunteers with the Upper Valley Wilderness Response Team (UVWRT) responded for a rescue effort.

The two hikers in distress had no food, water, warm clothes, change of clothes, or any cold weather gear. They were identified as Shawn Paelian and Brendan Girouard, both 18 years old, from Winchendon, Massachusetts.

The first rescuers reached the pair of hikers at approximately 11:00 p.m. Paelian was able to walk down the mountain under his own power with assistance back to a vehicle to warm up. Girouard, however, was unable to move and suffering from cold-weather injuries. Rescue crews got Girouard out of his frozen clothes and began to warm him up. It was also found that Girouard and Paelian had started their hike at 5:30 p.m. (after dark). Along with Girouard’s cold-weather issues, he was heavily intoxicated.

Thankfully, rescue crews were able to warm Girouard enough that he could be assisted to an awaiting ambulance with Jaffrey-Rindge Memorial ambulance service around 2:00 a.m. on December 20. He was transported to Heywood Hospital in Massachusetts. Girouard was charged with minor in possession of alcohol, and it will be recommended that the hiking pair be billed for the rescue.

If you plan to hike New Hampshire’s vast hiking trails, please adhere to the hiker responsibility code as set forth by the hikeSafe program found at hikesafe.com.