On April 5, a young woman (early 20s, I think) fell about 20 feet (though no one knows for sure because there were no witnesses) while being lowered by her husband off the first pitch of Cat in the Hat (6 pitches, 5.6). She sustained a head...
During the early afternoon on May 3, calls for help were reported near Realization Point on Flagstaff Mountain. Rocky Mountain Rescue Group (RMRG), AMR Ambulance, City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, Boulder City Fire Department, and ...
Ilkka Uusitalo (36) and the three other members of expedition “L10 at Denali 2012” left the 14,200-foot camp on the West Buttress route to ascend and then ski down the couloir by the upper West Rib on May 22. Due to deteriorating weather, the grou...
On May 23 an experienced climber (male, 23) fell while rappelling. He self- rescued and reported the accident when he came to the medical clinic. This is what he wrote on our form: “Rapped off ends of rope on RA descent attempting to clip last ...
On June 12, Mark Cartier (56), a highly experienced climber, succumbed after falling approximately 1,000 feet while soloing a South Side route variation. Climbing conditions were considered excellent. Cartier suffered massive head trauma an...
On March 24 a man (27) and a woman (26) were rappelling to the base of Super Slide (5.9) at the Royal Arches area. Apparently they wound up between two of the regular rappel anchors. The man built a temporary anchor for the woman to clip into w...
On July 10 an inexperienced climber seconding the First Flatiron injured his ankle while being belayed and could not move. The leader did not have sufficient equipment to effect self-rescue. Rescuers climbed to both the injured climber and bela...
Mt. Shasta had what most would say was a pretty “normal” season. The spring climbing season was very good, in the way of amazing corn skiing and firm, smooth climbing conditions that lasted into June. Climber numbers were average, with a total ...
This fatal accident on February 6 was not witnessed, so many details remain unknown. Jared Townsley (31) was reported overdue from a solo climb on the South Side Route. He was last seen by other climbers descending near Crater Rock. A search t...
Steffen Machulka (49) was a member of the three-person German climbing team “Die Bahner.” On May 18 the team was on the eighth day of the expedition and was moving from the 14,200-foot camp to the 17,200-foot camp on the West Buttress. The tea...
On September 18, Jacob van Almelo (25) was climbing the route Tigger (5.10a/b) when he fell at the crux move. His 30-foot fall resulted in several injuries. His belayer did not catch the fall, but protection pulling out may also h...
On August 29 I received a call from Siskiyou County SAR, Celeste Fowler, stating that a SPOT device had been set off on the northeast side of the mountain, near the 10,000-foot level on the Hotlum-Wintun route. The signal came from a commercial...
On February 5, while ascending the South Side Route, Meg Coker (35) lost her footing at about 10,500-foot elevation. She was unable to self-arrest and slid about 200 feet. She suffered multiple rib fractures and a collapsed lung. Nearby teams (...
Late in the day on January 15, a male lead climber was attempting to climb the Second Flatiron, a low 5th-class climb with many possible variations. The leader climbed a full rope length and could not find an adequate anchor. He untied from the...
On June 16 a middle-aged climber with novice mountaineering skills, Chinyet Lin, was reported missing after an attempted one-day climb up the Avalanche Gulch route. Lin was part of a “meet up” group off the Internet. The party was high on the m...
On February 18 a female ice climber (49) fell while rappelling during a guided ice climb with her husband and daughter. She was approximately 20 to 30 feet above the ground when she slipped and swung sideways into a protruding ice formation. S...
On April 20 a party of three Japanese climbers set up a rappel on the route Shaken Not Stirred on the Mooses Tooth. The rappel anchor was a sling around a horn of rock. This anchor failed, resulting in one member of the team, Yudai Sato (24), ...
On April 21 a man (22) attempted to glissade down Avalanche Gulch below Redbanks. As the snow was too firm, he lost control and slid for 1,500 feet. He suffered abrasions and cuts. Rangers spoke to the man over the phone and met with him on...
Midday on January 15, Jack Roberts (58), a renowned ice climber and alpinist, died on the 400-foot Bridal Veil Falls (WI5). Jack was leading the second pitch, a long, steep pillar on the right side of the falls, when he fell 60 feet, breaking h...
On February 4, while ascending the South Side Route, Andy Kim (age unknown) stopped at the 9,500-foot elevation to put on his crampons. As he was leveling a platform for the transition, he slipped and slid about 500 feet. He lost his ice axe wh...