Hiker Lost Near Lake Hemet
September 7th, 2026
Lake Hemet, CA
2026-29
Written by: Eric Holden
A callout came around 3pm for a hiker that was lost and stuck in vegetation near Lake Hemet. He had parked his car near Keen Summit and ended up on a slope heading down towards the lake. The USFS had a brush team in the area and as RMRU was headed towards the Mountain Station, the USFS team started hiking towards the lost subject.
I pulled into the Lake Hemet Forest Picnic area and spoke with the chief of the crew that had headed up towards the lost hiker. As I was speaking with him, the USFS team made it to the subject. He was fine, uninjured and in good spirits. I asked if they wanted us to help extract him but the USFS had enough personnel on scene to make the rescue. I thanked him for the assist and all team members went home.
RMRU Members Involved: Matthew Dunlap, Matt Frenken, Edgar Gelabert, Glenn Henderson, Eric Holden, and Dave Kosmal
Other Agencies Involved: United States Forest Service