BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. – A man traveling from Texas to Colorado wanted to find the perfect spot to propose to his beloved this weekend, a place “away from any other people,” as he put it. But in the quest for love, mishaps are bound to happen.
Joshua Mason and Katie Davis, both in their late 20s, flew from Denton, Texas, to Denver on Friday to get away from the world and be together, alone, in the Colorado mountains.
The pair began their trip from the 4th of July Trailhead northwest of Nederland, Colorado to Jasper Peak at around noon Saturday, hiking more than eight miles and gaining over 3,000 feet of elevation to the summit of the nearly 13,000-foot mountain on the Continental Divide, a spokesperson for the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Sunday.
Mason was able to find the perfect spot and proposed to Davis. Surprised, the woman accepted. But the adventure was far from over for the Texas couple.
Carrying little water and unprepared for cold weather, the couple got lost trying to get back. Deputies say there is no readily identifiable trail to Jasper Peak, so when the sun set and darkness took over, the newly engaged couple embarked on what could possibly be described as one of the many tests of love they will have to endure together as one.
Showing signs of altitude sickness as well as severe dehydration, the couple was found by a lone hiker who took them back to Diamond Lake, where he and his friends were camping for the night. The campers gave them water, food and let them stay in a tent so they could get warm, deputies said.
One of those campers then hiked down from Diamond Lake to her car at the 4th of July Trailhead and drove to Nederland, arriving just after 2 a.m. to call 911.
Boulder County Sheriff’s Deputies, the Nederland Fire Protection District and the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group responded to the call. More than two hours later, a Nederland Fire Protection District paramedic found the campers and helped them get back to the trailhead.
Mason told the rescue group he did not allow enough time to complete the hike before dark, and they did not carry enough water or food.
“Despite the memorable ordeal,” reads the news release from the sheriff’s office, “the couple’s engagement was still on.”