Braden Meadows
The cliff Miles fell from
It was an everyday exploration of Seawood Cape, a rough shoreline nature preserve just north of Trinidad. Cooper Miles, accompanied by Rye Davis and Kyler Coelho, took advantage of a clear spring day by traveling to a beautiful Humboldt coastal location to hike.
Coelho stood on a bluff overlooking the coast as Miles went out of view onto the peninsula’s spine that stretched out to the ocean. Davis wrapped around the peninsula, taking the safer and slower way, while Miles decided to test his luck with a steep cliffside descent.
“I don’t even remember falling, I don’t know for sure if I was even trying to go down to the beach. Somewhere in there, I must have slipped,” said Miles. As Miles rag-dolled down the cliff, Davis wrapped around the side, unable to hear Miles scream in pain. With a bad feeling in his stomach, Davis rounded the corner.
“My heart sank when I found him. He was just sitting there with his face covered in blood,” Davis said. “You would have thought he got hit by a train.”
With Davis and Coehlos’ help, the three managed to hike the slippery trail uphill to Coehlos’ vehicle, where Miles was rushed to Mad River Hospital’s emergency room. “We were going like 100. Allegedly,” Coelho said.
As they flew down the highway, Miles started to come to. “The shock started to wear off during the drive. I don’t remember the fall or the hike out at all,” Miles said. “I got a major concussion, 72 stitches on my knee, stitches on my lip, and I dislocated my shoulder.”
Miles was the second person to be admitted to Mad River Hospital after falling off a cliff. He was given extensive care and fully recovered physically. Miles is the only cliff-fall survivor in Mad River Hospital’s history. Without the company hiking that day, Miles arguably would have died. As rare as they seem, injuries when out-and-about can happen when you least expect them, and if you’re alone and vulnerable, you can be seriously hurt.
Miles’ life and senior year changed in an instant. As blunt as it is, I bet many of you reading are not surprised in the slightest. Miles is friends with many and is infamously recognized for being a little clumsy from time to time. Miles was awarded the senior superlative “most likely to get hit by a parked car,” and lives up to it as he manages to hurt himself consistently.