On February 21, Callaway Lewis (female, age 8), her older brother, and her father, Anthony, were climbing around the Cactus Chimney Boulders, one of several small bouldering areas just east of the city limits, when the rock Callaway was climbing s...
Around noon on March 9, the AMC Hermit Lake caretaker reported seeing a person “tomahawking”—i.e., falling end over end—the length of the gully called Chute in Tuckerman Ravine. The caretaker and a snow ranger responded and were pleased to find th...
On September 25, at about 4 p.m., a climber (age 68) was attempting to climb Dead Sea Equestrian (5.7 sport) at the Parking Lot Wall of Rumney. Near the top, approximately 50 feet above the base, he called for his belayer to “take” his weight onto...
On September 20, Ben Kessel (34) and Emma Leigh Donahue (30s) were climbing Moby Grape (8 pitches, 5.8 PG-13) on Cannon Cliff. Both were active within the MIT Outing Club and experienced rock climbers. Conditions were windy but pleasant, and there...
On October 31 at approximately 7 a.m., my climbing partner and I set out to climb Solar Slab in Oak Creek Canyon. At about 8:30 a.m. we arrived at the base of a large gully in the Lower Solar Slab area. [Editor’s Note: Solar Slab, a classic multi-...
On March 20, a pair of climbers (Climber 1, male, 28, and Climber 2, female, 27, both intermediate-level climbers) headed to the Main Crag at Allenspur and packed their “all around” 50-meter rope, since that length is adequate for most (but not al...
On August 23, Eric (64) and his climbing partner Ed (57) were planning to link the standard route up the Watchtower (5.8) with Silver Foxes (5.8) on the Watchtower’s upper tier, and then finish on Spare Rib (5.8), all traditional lines on the east...
Photo by François Lebeau Lead climbing is a two-person sport. Arguably, the climber has the easy job—they climb and try not to let go. The belayer has the hard job of managing the rope and continuously planning for a fall. They are constantly...
Around noon on October 3, a climber took a lead fall near the top of Trundling Kentucky (5.7 sport) at the Bruise Brothers Wall. The belayer failed to arrest the leader’s fall, resulting in a 35- to 40-foot ground fall onto rocky terrain at the ba...
On October 13, a climber swung into the wall after taking a lead fall on Air-Ride Equipped (5.11a sport) at Solarium in Muir Valley, resulting in a broken and dislocated ankle. On October 16, an experienced female climber fell off Push Present (5...
In the midafternoon of May 31, rangers at the City of Rocks National Reserve received word that a 67-year-old female climber had fallen while rappelling from Jackson’s Thumb and had reportedly broken her ankles. She and her partner had ascended Th...
On August 10, I got off work at 5 p.m. and my partner and I set out to Little Eiger, a crag we had never visited. I knew from reading some route descriptions that we would need a 70-meter rope and at least 16 draws. We first climbed Busch Gardens ...
On September 27, a climber fell to the ground while leading Funeral March (5.9+), a wide crack climb. Funeral March is protected by very large cams, and the climber bumped one of these up the crack for about 10 feet. He had placed another cam but ...
On March 22, two climbers called for assistance after dark when they were unable to find the descent route upon completing Anthill Direct (5 pitches, 5.9-). After searching for the correct way down in the dark without headlamps, and eventually get...
I have been frequenting the Flatirons for climbing since moving to Boulder five years ago. In the fall of 2020, I started projecting Primate, a 5.13b route at Seal Rock with a mix of bolt and traditional protection. I visited the route four times ...
On October 30, 49-year-old Andrew Caplan fell from the north side of the Second Flatiron near the top of a climb. Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks rangers arrived on scene just after 9:20 a.m. and began resuscitation efforts, but the patient ...
The 10-pitch, 1,000-foot east face of the First Flatiron, rated 5.6 R, was my goal for August 10. I had not put boot to rock in over six months, owing in part to inactivity compelled by the COVID-19 pandemic. My partner, age 56, and I (69) both be...
On August 13, after climbing a few routes at Bell Buttress, I decided to give a redpoint attempt at Arms Bazaar (5.12a trad). I had spent two previous sessions on the route: one in August 2019 and one the previous week. I had the route fairly dial...
Molly Mitchell attempting Crank It with traditional protection. The four pieces that pulled out in her fall are marked. Photo by Tory Powers In the evening of October 1, professional climber Molly Mitchell (27) attempted a tradition...
At 5:30 a.m. on June 11, a 22-year-old male left the Fourth of July trailhead to attempt the Juliet Couloir, a short, moderate snow route on Mt. Neva (12,814 feet). As he was nearing the cornice at the top, he fell. He had an ice axe but failed to...