Colorado, Pueblo Mountain Park, Devil’s Canyon—On June 7, Harry

Rosenberg (30), Dick LeSage (30), and Jerry Lathrop (25) started climbing one of the cliffs in Devil’s Canyon about 11:00 a.m. Wilbur Arnold (45) having been delayed, joined the party about 11:40 a.m. At that time, Rosenberg, first on the rope, was attempting to continue a new route that had been started on a previous day by George Myers and Lathrop, who had placed one piton and one expansion bolt. To these, Rosenberg had added two pitons. Rosenberg was about 50 feet above the floor of the canyon and was looking around for a way to continue. The rope led from the belayer, Lathrop, who was on a ledge a few feet above the canyon floor and off to one side, through a piton, an expansion bolt, a vertical piton, and a horizontal piton to Rosenberg. The latter was holding himself on to the cliff with two pinch holds and when his grip weakened, he decided on a controlled fall, as he was only 3 or 4 feet above the upper piton. He called “fall” and jumped. The upper piton held him momentarily, then pulled out. The lower piton also pulled out and the fall was finally stopped only a few feet above the canyon floor by the expansion bolt, that had been placed on the previous attempt.

LeSage and Arnold carried Rosenberg to a shady spot and stanched the flow of blood from a cut on his head with a handkerchief. Assistance was offered locally and Rosenberg was evacuated to the hospital in Pueblo. After three days of hospitalization he was discharged with no broken bones but torn cartilages in both ankles.

Source: Wilbur Arnold.

Analysis (Arnold): The weather was most favorable, hot at least in the sun. The rock was dry, with a tendency to exfoliate and consequently to fracture too easily. The judgement of the party was perhaps deficient. Rosenberg would have had a better belay if Lathrop had climbed to the top of the cliff by an easy route and let the rope down to him. The strength of the party was adequate. Clothing and equipment were appropriate.

Possibly bolts should have been used instead of pitons. The lower piton did not sound good going in, but the upper one sounded good. It was in a downward slanting crack, however, which made it easier to pull out than would have been the case had the crack been horizontal.

After the accident Rosenberg stated that the route had been started in a direction he never would have selected had he been starting the route. Once the route had been started, however, Rosenberg thought he might as well try to extend it.

It was noted that Rosenberg’s hammer was in his belt at the time he jumped, but fell out of his belt during the fall. It is possible the head cuts were caused by the hammer rather than by the cliff.