Sonoma County sheriff’s helicopter rescues man on remote Marin County beach

The Sonoma County sheriff’s helicopter on Saturday rescued an injured hiker from a remote beach in the Point Reyes National Seashore, according to a Marin County fire official.

The man apparently had fallen from cliffs near Alamere Falls onto Wildcat Beach. Rescuers were called at 5:45 p.m., Marin fire Battalion Chief Mike Giannini said.

Details regarding the man’s fall weren’t initially available. Point Reyes park advisories warn hikers of tricky trail areas near Alamere Falls, including rock scrambles and loose dirt and rocks.

The helicopter crew flew from the Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport to the distant Marin County beach, landed on the sand, tended to the injured man and flew him to a waiting ambulance on Highway 1. The flight and rescue took less than one hour, according to reports.

The man was taken to Marin General Hospital. His identity wasn’t available Monday morning. He’d reportedly suffered a lower leg injury, according to Point Reyes National Seashore spokesman John Dell’Osso.

The Marin County sheriff’s search and rescue team had been mobilizing for what would have been a lengthy response due to the location and no easy way to get to the man. But a break in the fog allowed officials to request the county’s helicopter, Dell’Osso said.

Randi Rossmann