Members of the AVSAR Winter Below Treeline Team responded to a call-out involving a Nordic (cross-country) skier on the Avalanche Brook Ski Trail. Other respondents included members of the AVSAR Winter Above Treeline Team as well. We’d like to thank all who responded and supported this mission. Here’s the official report:
Feb. 9, 2026: Injured Nordic Skier Rescued from Avalanche Brook Trail
Sargent’s Purchase, NH – On Monday, February 9, 2026, at approximately 11:55 a.m., NH Fish and Game was notified of an injured Nordic skier on the Avalanche Brook Trail in Sargent’s Purchase. The skier was part of a group who had started at Pinkham Notch Visitor Center (PNVC) and were intending to ski south to the Rocky Branch parking lot. About halfway between the two locations, a male skier in the party suffered an unknown leg injury that prevented him from continuing. The injury occurred over 2 miles from PNVC and 3.2 from the Rocky Branch Trailhead. A member of the group called 911 and a rescue response was initiated. While awaiting rescuers the group placed the injured skier into a sleeping bag with multiple layers and started a fire to keep him warm. They were very prepared for the ski trip they were attempting.
Conservation Officers and volunteers from Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue (AVSAR) responded. Conservation Officers attempted to access the patient via the Rocky Branch Trailhead by using snowmobiles, while an initial AVSAR member snowshoed up from Route 16 in deep snow to access the location and provide initial medical care. The snowmobiles could not make it to the skier, so all other responding rescue personnel had to hike up off trail via steep terrain from Route 16 near the Pinkham’s Grant/Jackson town line. Once the rescuers arrived on scene, the patient, identified as Mark Rossi, 63, from Medford, MA, was placed in a litter and carried down through the off-trail access to the side of Route 16 arriving at 5:15 p.m. Rossi opted to forgo an ambulance and sought medical care on his own. —NHF&G
Read the full NHF&G press release »