in a bunch of papere and the channel 7 news.... im travis and it wasnt cycling it was dirtbiking but it was illeagl so we all said bikking
BOXFORD — An ordinary bicycle ride on the trails of Bald Hill in Boxford State Forest turned into an adventure for four friends yesterday when they heard something unusual.
"I got off my bike and I heard a kid yelling for help," said Middleton 14-year-old Travis Brown, a freshman at Masconomet Regional High School.
Two 9-year-old boys from Boxford, who had been reported missing, were walking without shoes for hours after they became soaked in a puddle in the woods.
Brown and his friends Adam Tremblay, Paul Calisi and James Aloisio, all Middleton 14-year-olds, ended up rescuing the boys, giving them piggyback rides down the hill to police and fire crews, who had assembled for a wide-scale search.
"I didn't expect to save some kids' lives," Paul said of his day yesterday.
"We've been riding through the trails for a while and it's never happened before," Adam added.
Boxford police Lt. James Riter said police received a call at 4:17 p.m. from the fire chief reporting the two boys' disappearance.
Along with the Boxford Police and Fire departments, the state police and Middleton police were also notified.
Riter said the parent who called the Fire Department last saw his son and his son's friend at 1 p.m.
It wasn't until 4:45 p.m. when the teenagers heard the boys' call for help.
One of the boys didn't have any boots on, and the other had only one on after they became soaked during their hike through the woods, Adam said.
The two boys were trying to keep their exposed feet from freezing.
"They were trying to build a fire with sticks, but it was too wet. I don't think it would have happened," Paul said.
The North Shore received 2 inches of rain Friday and Saturday, which soaked woods and brush in Boxford State Forest and left big puddles. Bald Hill is rugged terrain with a lot of rocky hills, as well as a valley and swamps, police said.
After the 9-year-olds were found, one of the boys immediately asked to use Paul's cell phone to call his father. The teens were later put in touch with Boxford police and said they would be heading to Ross Lane in Middleton — a mile from where the boys were.
Travis took his gloves and put them on one of the boy's feet and carried him on his back to where police were waiting for them. The other boy, who had only one boot on, was carried part of the way on Paul's back but was able to walk the rest of the way on his own.
At Ross Lane, police and fire crews took the boys back to their home in Boxford.
The boys' parents could not be reached for comment, and it's not known if the boys received any medical treatment.
Paul, however, said he received a call from the father of one of the boys, thanking him and his friends.
