For many, New Year’s Day is a time for reflection and fresh beginnings. For Dr. Dan Reardon and his girlfriend, Dina Zaky, it began with a simple hike through the trails near Escondido Falls—a chance to enjoy the crisp air, the sound of rushing water, and the promise of a new year.
But what started as a leisurely holiday stroll soon turned into an unforgettable rescue mission.
As they climbed the trail, they spotted a man struggling in obvious pain. Mark Martinez, a 280-pound hiker, had slipped and fallen, injuring his leg. Unable to put weight on it, he hopped awkwardly on one foot, desperate to make his way back down the mountain. What Dr. Reardon didn’t know at the time was that Mark had suffered a broken ankle and a fractured bone in his lower leg.
It didn’t take long for the doctor’s instincts to take over. Years in the ER had trained him to recognize the urgency of injuries, but here there were no hospital beds or gurneys—just a steep, uneven trail. Mark wasn’t going to make it out on his own.
So Dr. Reardon did something extraordinary: he crouched down and offered his back.
At one and a half times Reardon’s own weight, Mark was no small load. But the doctor hoisted him up, securing his grip, and began the slow, grueling trek down the mountain. Each step was deliberate, each shift of weight carefully measured. The trail that had once been a peaceful hike was now a battlefield of endurance.
Dina ran ahead, searching desperately for cell phone reception to call an ambulance. Meanwhile, Reardon carried the man mile after mile, the strain etched across his face, but his determination unwavering. What should have been a short descent stretched into two long hours of exertion. Every incline, every bend in the path tested his strength and resolve.
But he never faltered.
“I’m happy to have been able to bring Mark to safety,” Reardon later told TODAY. “The instinct of doctors is to help people, and I don’t like to see people struggle.”
By the time they reached the bottom, paramedics were waiting. Mark was transported to the hospital, where doctors confirmed the severity of his injuries: a broken ankle and fractured leg bone. He would need time to heal—but thanks to Reardon, he had made it out alive and safe.
What could have ended as a story of tragedy instead became one of friendship. Reardon, now the CEO of a company that uses DNA analysis to help people live healthier lives, has already pledged to help Mark beyond the rescue. Once he recovers, Reardon plans to personally guide him on a journey to lose weight and strengthen his health, turning a chance encounter into a lasting bond.
For Dina, the experience was just as powerful. Watching her partner push himself to the limits of his physical strength for a stranger reaffirmed what she already knew about him: that his heart for helping others is as strong as his hands that once worked in the ER.
What started as a holiday hike ended in exhaustion, sweat, and sore muscles—but also in gratitude, new friendship, and a reminder of the power of human compassion.
Dr. Reardon didn’t plan to become a hero that day. He didn’t plan to carry another man on his back for two miles through rugged terrain. But when faced with someone in need, he didn’t hesitate.
Because sometimes, the truest measure of strength isn’t in muscle alone. It’s in the willingness to stop, to shoulder someone else’s burden, and to carry them—literally—until they are safe again.
And for one man on a mountain trail, that act of kindness turned what could have been the worst start to a new year into a second chance.
