BELLINGHAM, Wash. — A confrontation on a Whatcom County trail leaves a mountain biker stabbed and a hiker facing serious charges.
A Sheriff’s Department spokesperson says a group of hikers were descending a trail off of Y Road on March 6th when they encountered a biker going uphill.
69-year-old Dake Traphagen of Bellingham told deputies the biker attacked him during an argument over right-of-way and he stabbed him in self-defense.
The bike rider wasn’t on the scene when deputies arrived but an ambulance was later called to a Bellingham home for a man with multiple stab wounds.
He told deputies he was trying to slowly ride past the group when one of the hikers grabbed his handlebar and caused him to fall on the man who then began stabbing him.
The bike rider was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle because of the severity of his wounds.
Traphagen faces assault and a weapons charge for possessing an illegal knife and turned himself in Tuesday.