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Death on the Mountaineer's Route
#49640 04/23/17 11:46 AM
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Sequoia and Kings Canyon N.P. news release:

Part of the news release (skipping the part regarding a drowning in the Kaweah River)
Quote:
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks News Release

For Immediate Release                         Reference Number: 8550-1717
Contact: Mike Theune
Acting Public Affairs Officer
Phone Number: 559-565-3703
E-mail: mike_theune@nps.gov

          Two Fatalities in Sequoia National Park

SEQUOIA AND KINGS CANYON NATIONAL PARKS, Calif. April 23, 2017 - Two fatalities occurred in Sequoia National Park this weekend, one on Mount Whitney and one in the Kaweah River.

On Friday afternoon, a group of climbers descending the eastern slope of Mount Whitney crossed paths with a solo climber who was heading up the Mountaineer’s Route. Like the commonly used trail to the 14,494-foot peak, this route starts at Whitney Portal, but it is far more challenging. Sometime later, the group observed a backpack fall and realized that the climber they passed may have fallen. As soon as they were able to obtain a cell signal, they called 911, reporting the incident to the Inyo County Sheriff’s Office (ICSO).

ICSO started an investigation but it was too dark to begin an aerial search. At first light on Saturday, they began a helicopter search and spotted the man’s body after about four hours. He had apparently been traversing the north face of Mount Whitney, an area with snow and ice, when he fell. Because this area is in Sequoia National Park, ICSO contacted the National Park Service, which is commencing operations to retrieve the victim on Sunday morning.


It sounds like the climber slipped on the Final 400 section of the climb, between the Notch and the summit plateau.

This release hasn't appeared on the SEKI News Releases website yet.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Steve C #49643 04/23/17 02:03 PM
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"Traversing the North Face". Hm.


Wherever you go, there you are.
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Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Steve C #49644 04/23/17 03:53 PM
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My buddy and I were two climbers who this guy passed on his way up the notch. He told us he had started from the portal at 8am and was going to summit and heading back down in a day. He caught up to us around 700 feet from the notch at around noon, maybe later. We got to the notch around 3pm and were looking up to the area between the notch and summit plateau, and saw him coming down from what I believe is the plateau area. About a minute later, we heard and felt a commotion north of us but out of sight. Snow and debris came falling on us, and I saw a hat fall down. The backpack fell and hit my friend on the head and came to a stop on a nearby ledge. My buddy called out to the guy for about 20 minutes, with no response. We were exhausted ourselves, and had decided to not continue toward the summit. We ran into some rock climbers about halfway-3/4 way down the notch and used their phone to call 911. This was a tragic day.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
zcustom1 #49647 04/23/17 05:24 PM
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Sad to be hearing of this

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
zcustom1 #49648 04/23/17 08:17 PM
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Yes, very sad to hear the news.

Last edited by MannyHerrerajr; 04/23/17 08:18 PM.
Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
MannyHerrerajr #49651 04/23/17 10:35 PM
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I went up on Saturday and there were some blood stains in the snow. A helicopter was circling around all morning asking about a backpack or somebody who lost a backpack (message was a little unclear from the chopper megaphone). There were a lot of people on the mountain on Saturday, but everyone I talked to didn't know what was going on.
When I was downclimbing the final 400, I talked with a guide belaying his two clients down, and he said that there was an accident on Friday - somebody had fallen down.
I found (what I think is) the guy's shirt frozen to a rock at the rock band near the bottom of the final 400.

Rest in peace.

Be careful out there, folks.

Looking up the final 400 from the notch



Looking west from the notch, across the north face



Looking down the final 400 from the topout


Last edited by goldscott; 04/23/17 10:37 PM.
Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
goldscott #49656 04/24/17 07:21 AM
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Regarding the climber that fell, did he by any chance have a dog with him? My husband was on that route at that time and I'm quite concerned

Last edited by ClimbersWife; 04/24/17 08:10 AM.
Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
ClimbersWife #49657 04/24/17 08:25 AM
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Lynnaroo
Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
ClimbersWife #49658 04/24/17 08:35 AM
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Originally Posted By: ClimbersWife
Regarding the climber that fell, did he by any chance have a dog with him? My husband was on that route at that time and I'm quite concerned


There was no mention or evidence of a dog. Sorry I don't have more information.

Also, I've never seen anybody with a dog on the route. Is that even allowed?

Last edited by goldscott; 04/24/17 08:36 AM.
Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Steve C #49659 04/24/17 08:45 AM
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Inyo County Sheriff's Office has reported on Facebook (link):

Quote:
At approximately 4:00pm Friday April 21st, Inyo County Sheriff’s Dispatch received notification of a potential fatality on the Mt. Whitney Mountaineer’s Route. According to the reporting party, who was a member of a hiking group that was descending the trail, a male solo hiker passed the group ascending in the last chute near the summit (~13,800 elevation). Sometime after the hiking group was continuing their descent a backpack tumbled down near them that the hikers recognized as the backpack belonging to the solo hiker. The members of the group called out repeatedly, but there was no response. In order to get enough reception to call into the Sheriff’s Office they hiked down to Iceberg Lake (~12,600 elevation) to dial 911. Inyo Sheriff started an investigation but it was too dark to begin an aerial search.

CHP H-80 out of Apple Valley responded the morning of Saturday April 22, and located the body around 1:00pm. The body was inside the boundary of Sequoia-Kings National Park, and therefore the recovery was coordinated through Sequoia-Kings.

At approximately 12:30 Saturday April 22nd, Inyo County Sheriff’s Dispatch received notification of an avalanche, with one reported injury, on the lower end of the Mountaineer’s Route (~9,500 elevation). The reporting party did not witness the avalanche, but as he was hiking he noticed the runout zone of the avalanche, and below that there was one injured male hiker believed to be suffering from a broken leg. Although CHP H-80 was already near Mt. Whitney doing aerial reconnaissance for the fatality, they were unable to assist because they are not hoist certified. Additional aerial support was requested through Inyo County Search and Rescue, and CHP H-70 out of Paso Robles was able to respond.

The avalanche victim, identified as Sung Kim, 64 year old male from Fullerton, CA, was successfully airlifted out and transported to Southern Inyo Hospital for treatment.

Due to historic snowfall in the Sierra we want to remind outdoor enthusiasts that the risk of avalanches is greater than in past years. Additionally, the high snowpack requires experience and technical skills.

Agencies assisting this weekend include: CHP H-80, CHP H-70, Sequoia-Kings, Inyo SAR, Inyo Sheriff.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
goldscott #49660 04/24/17 08:45 AM
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No, I don't think dogs are allowed up that high, but my husband was one of the two hikers that was pulled off that mountain via helicopter in the November 2013 storm, so I am hyper aware of these types of situations.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
ClimbersWife #49661 04/24/17 08:52 AM
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ClimbersWife, is your husband missing now?
Or did he see someone with a dog on the route this past weekend?

Dogs are allowed in the National Forest, up to the National Park boundary, which is at the summit crest.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
ClimbersWife #49664 04/24/17 01:27 PM
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A man and his dog were above us on the main trail, approaching trail crest on Saturday afternoon.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
zcustom1 #49665 04/24/17 02:18 PM
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A friend of mine was out there last week and has been missing. No names have been released yet, but any chance that this was the guy that you saw?



[img]http://tinypic.com/r/wkifky/9[/img]

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
zcustom1 #49667 04/24/17 07:33 PM
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Just to clarify: up the Final 400 from the Notch would be to the South of you, not north.


Wherever you go, there you are.
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Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Gilliganman5 #49670 04/24/17 11:29 PM
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Gilligan, really sorry to say that it was Ramiro..I'm sure going to miss that sonofagun, he was a damn good egg and one of my favorite people to climb with. I let Yishai know and hopefully he doesn't mind sending out an email when details of his service are set, otherwise drop me a pm with your # and I'll let you know when it's finalized. Didn't think my friends were supposed to pass at this age...SLO-Op won't ever be quite the same and Taco de Mex won't be half as much fun anymore.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Sub4Medic #49671 04/24/17 11:46 PM
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Rest in Peace, Ramiro.

So sorry to all you who knew him. Sending sincerest condolences to his family.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
amb #49674 04/25/17 06:42 AM
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Yes, thank you, he was actually on a different route (apparently). I'm so sorry to hear about the fallen climber.

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Steve C #49677 04/25/17 11:27 AM
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My thoughts go out to his family and friends, So sorry for your loss, Hike Safely and with a partner if you can

Re: Death on the Mountaineer's Route
Gilliganman5 #49685 04/25/17 07:30 PM
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Yes, that was him. My buddy and I were the climbers on Friday whom he passed going up to the notch. And I saw him very briefly as he was making his way down from the plateau. We were just starting to climb past the notch when the commotion of debris and things falling down on us happened. His backpack fell and hit my friend on the head. frown

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