DENVER -- National Guard soldiers used a Chinook helicopter to recover an injured hiker during a nighttime rescue in the Sangre De Cristo mountain range early Tuesday morning.

Roy Knoedler of Boulder was descending 14,165-foot Kit Carson Peak in southwestern Colorado Tuesday when he lost his footing. His son, Matt Knoedler, a former Colorado legislator, told The Denver Post that his father fell about 1,500 feet, breaking his right arm and several bones in his face.

Two hikers from Indiana found Knoedler at about 12,600 feet on the mountain and notified authorities.

Seven Army National Guard members flew from Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora to the mountain in complete darkness to look for the man.

Using night vision goggles, the team was able to find the hiker and lowered medic Sgt. Josh Moyer down to him.

"It took an hour and a half to prepare the patient on the steep slope," said Pilot Chief Warrant Officer Curtis Hathcock. "If the other two hikers hadn't been there to help Sgt. Moyer, the patient could have slid down another 1,000 feet," Hathcock said.

The medic and hiker were then lifted up into the Chinook.

"We had approximately 15 to 20 feet of clearance between our rotors and the side of the mountain while hovering," said Sgt. 1st Class Greg Riss.

The hiker was taken to Cottonwood, Colo., and transferred to a civilian Flight-for-Life bound for Pueblo, Colo., at about 3:30 a.m., O'Bryan said.