Hiker using Google Maps to navigate gets stuck all night in NC gorge, rescuers say
A hiker spent Saturday night lost in the treacherous Linville Gorge after relying on Google Maps as his only source of navigation, North Carolina officials say.
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It happened Saturday in the Chimney Gap area of the gorge, after the hiker took a wrong turn and made a risky decision to cross the Linville River, according to Wes Taylor, chief of Burke Rescue Squadron.
“He followed a side trail from Chimney Gap that dead-ended at a water source. He continued off-trail into the gorge until dark when he could no longer navigate safely,” Taylor said.
“(He) spent the night stranded without food, ran out of water, and lacked a water filter, shelter, or navigation tools. He was using Google Maps – not suitable for hiking.”
The hiker called 911 for help on Sunday morning, after realizing he could not find his way out of the gorge, officials said.
Burke County Search and Rescue dispatched crews on foot from the Table Rock Picnic Area along the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, and a second team set out on ATVs and UTVs.
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It took about an hour of heavy off-trail bushwhacking to pinpoint and reach the hiker, who was found “a half mile down from the ridgeline from an established trail,” Taylor said.
“Rescuers provided water and electrolytes and then assisted the hiker back to the Mountains-to-Sea trail and to the ATVs for the ride out, just as thunderstorms entered the area,” officials said.
The hiker was not injured during the ordeal, officials said.
Linville Gorge is part of Pisgah National Forest and is bisected by the Linville River, “which drops 2,000 feet in the valleys below,” according to the U.S. Forest Service. “The terrain is steep and rugged with numerous rock formations. It is covered by dense hardwood/pine forest,” the USFS says.
The gorge is about 110-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.
The rescue operation included assistance from Burke County Emergency Services & Emergency Management Office, Oak Hill Fire & Rescue Protection Association, Inc., and Lake James Fire and Rescue – Station 68.
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This story was originally published September 7, 2026 at 1:41 PM.
