Monday, May 20, began as a normal day of work for San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) Biologist, Nick Hood, and AECOM Sustainability and Climate Resiliency Consultant, Tayler Tharaldson. They were set to collect water quality samples on Calaveras and San Antonio Reservoirs, which hold water that is treated and delivered to customers across the Bay Area.

“I loved fishing and water sports as a kid, so that’s what motivated me to pursue fishery work. As a fisheries biologist, I study limnology, frogs and reptiles, hydrology- everything related to water," explained Nick. Tayler also shares a love of the outdoors, with her time in California’s diverse wilderness inspiring her to study the intersection of ecology and climate impacts to ecosystems. 

As part of the SFPUC’s rigorous water quality monitoring, Tayler and Nick ensure that levels of dissolved oxygen, conductivity, turbidity, plankton, the temperature of the water, and several other factors are within state and federal regulatory standards. Their analysis helps protect public health and provide insights into the reservoir’s condition. 

Their routine day first became a bit unusual when Nick received an alert from the SFPUC that a hiker, Alex Stecher, and his dog, Apollo, had gone missing in the area. Later when leaving Calaveras Reservoir, an East Bay Regional Park District police officer notified them of the missing hiker and that the park was closed to the public. But it wasn’t until Nick and Tayler were on their boat in the middle of sampling San Antonio Reservoir that their day turned truly extraordinary.

“We had just dropped down our equipment when I thought I heard someone yell for help. I immediately asked Tayler if she heard it too," said Nick. “I was trying to listen for the clicks of our instrument, so I didn’t hear it the first time. But when we both stopped and listened, we clearly heard someone yelling for help. It was a moment of, ‘Wow, okay, this is actually happening.,’” explained Tayler.

They quickly pulled up their equipment from a depth of 140 feet and drove their boat closer to the call, but it was hard to identify where it was coming from on the shoreline. “We turned the motor off and kept yelling out for him. Then, we heard him call out and spotted him waving his arms,” Nick said. “We told him we were coming, that we’d be right there.”

When they found a place to pull the boat on the shore, the gravity of the situation became clear. “He was very distressed. He hadn’t had food or water in over a day after giving the last of his supplies to his dog. Both were covered in ticks and grass stickers, so we were really lucky to find them when we did,” said Tayler.

Alex had gotten lost when Apollo chased after a deer, and both fell down a ravine. It was too steep to climb back up to the trail, so he decided to walk along the ravine hoping it would reconnect eventually. Injured and having lost his phone and map in the fall, Alex was unable to locate the trail and instead found himself far off-path at San Antonio Reservoir. He had seen rescue helicopters overhead miss him- unbeknownst to him, his clothes and tent blended into the dry brush.

Tayler gave Alex a hug and reassured him that they’d get him to safety. “It was an emotional moment. I think it was the first time he was really able to take a breath and know: ‘I’m going to be okay.’” Meanwhile, Nick called SFPUC Watershed Keeper Supervisor Rick Duffey to decide next steps. Rick had already been coordinating with the area’s Incident Command team set up to recover the hiker. “Rick knew exactly what to do. He was so calm and collected and it was great to have someone with so much emergency response experience.”

Tayler and Nick got Alex and Apollo into their boat and drove to the boat ramp, where they waited for SFPUC Watershed Keeper Nick Arnold and East Bay Regional Park Police to meet them. Once ashore, Nick started making calls to organize the response. “We made a good team; Nick knew exactly who to contact. I focused on getting the two water and food and comforting them that help was on the way,” Tayler said. She added, laughing, “I gave the dog all my tortellini.” During this time, Alex also told Tayler and Nick that it was his birthday which was both an exciting and touching moment for everyone.

When emergency services arrived, Alex was taken to the hospital and a police officer offered to drive Apollo there. Amidst the chaos, Tayler realized that no one had contacted Alex’s friend that had reported him missing. She gave Alex her phone so he could give his friend a call and let them know he was safe. Alex was extremely grateful to Nick and Tayler and was still in shock that the experience was all real.

After everyone left, Nick and Tayler’s acts of public service for the day weren’t over: they went back out to finish sampling. “It was quite the experience. I just kept thinking ‘How did that just happen?’” Nick said. “We were really lucky to be in the right place at the right time.” This is especially true as the search party had been looking miles away where his lost cell phone was pinging.

Nick gave special thanks to SFPUC employees Rick Duffey, Miranda Maupin (Alameda and Tuolumne Watershed Resources Manager), and Clayton Koopmann (Rangeland Manager) for their support. He also commended Eric Sanchez (Watershed Keeper) and Hector Rodriguez (Senior Stationary Engineer) for boating back across the reservoir to retrieve Alex’s belongings.