A family of six hiking in Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest got stranded and were rescued Wednesday after waiting in snowy conditions overnight.

The family was first reported missing on Tuesday, and a member of their hiking party was able to contact the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office dispatch using an emergency feature on their phone around 7:30 p.m. local time.

Conditions precluded law enforcement from initiating a rescue that night, so the family had to wait, the sheriff’s office said in a release.

The unnamed family, consisting of two children aged 9 and 11 years old and four adults aged 19, 32, 47 and 52 years old, started on the Salmon River Trailhead and hiked nearly eight miles, climbing nearly 3,500 feet on the mountain, the sheriff’s office said.

“It appears they were lost and unable to find their way back in the heavy snow, as well as experiencing the effects of fatigue and exposure due to the weather conditions,” CCSO spokesperson Brian McCall told The Oregonian.

Ground crews first reached the stranded family at around 6 a.m. local time Wednesday. Taking them back would take most of Wednesday as a snowcat, a truck-sized vehicle with a full cab driven on tracks, made its way out to them and back. 

The hikers reached a search and rescue post at around 7:30 p.m. local time.

“This was a challenging rescue due to the amount of snow, fallen trees, steep terrain, and number of people who needed to be rescued. We would like to remind anyone planning a visit to the wilderness and higher elevation areas to be prepared for unexpected weather conditions with warm clothing, extra food, and water,” the sheriff’s office said.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.