CONTACT:
Lieutenant Mark Ober
603-788-4850
603-271-3361
November 10, 2025

Bean’s Purchase, NH – On Saturday, November 8, 2025, at approximately 5:00 p.m., NH Fish and Game was notified of a lost hiker on the Black Angel Trail in Bean’s Purchase. The hiker, identified as Steven Diroff, 52, of Hoboken, NJ, had been attempting to hike the Baldface Loop with his teenage son when they took a wrong turn and ended up several miles out on Black Angel Trail without a flashlight or headlamp. Diroff had a cell phone with plenty of battery life, but due to the remote location, was unsure they could make it out before his cell phone battery died.

He was instructed to continue toward the Basin Trail, a distance of 3 miles, and the shortest route out, while a small team of rescuers consisting of a Conservation Officer and volunteers from Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue (AVSAR) responded to the Basin Trail in Chatham to assist them.

By the time the rescuers started in on the Basin Trail, Diroff and his son had made it to within a few hundred yards of the trailhead. They were given a courtesy ride back to their vehicle, which was parked at the Baldface Trailhead. This is a good reminder to always bring a spare headlamp or flashlight and extra batteries whenever you go for a hike, no matter how long you expect to be out.