Andrew Gatlin (24) and I, Peter Magnin (24), hiked in to climb at the North Side of Looking Glass Rock during the morning of September 21. We decided to attempt Invisible Airwaves. I started leading and was a majority of the way up the 80-foot first pitch (5.10c) when my foot slipped and I fell approximately 12 to 15 feet. During the fall, my right foot impacted a small ledge about three to five feet below me, and two small cams (a yellow 0.8 Totem and a 0.4 Black Diamond X4) in shallow placements above the ledge blew, causing me to fall an additional ten feet. My right ankle began to swell immediately, and I was lowered to the ground. I’m a Wilderness EMT, and with my training and Andrew’s help, I was able to splint the ankle. It took us about 1.5 hours to hike out. I went to the hospital where an X-ray revealed no fractures.

ANALYSIS

I should have looked for better gear placements. I had placed four pieces in the first 30 feet, got to a small traverse, and then placed two additional cams (1 and 0.75 Black Diamond), both of which were super-secure in a nice crack directly underneath the cams that blew. Careful placement of gear (especially small cams) along with doubling up pieces when placements are not ideal can help prevent dangerous falls. (Source: Peter Magnin and the Editors.)