The ridge from Blanca to Little Bear is reputed the most difficult of the classic traverses. I remember that terrible story...the newlywed couple in which the woman was killed by lightning right beside her new husband.
Or maybe the San Juans are not as fierce or chossy as their reputation makes out. The first glaring stat is that more than half of the deaths in the past 7 years have been on only six mountains (Longs Peak, the Maroon Bells, Capitol Peak, and the Crestones), not really a surprise as those peaks are some of the most technical, steep, and difficult to route find. By sheer coincidence, the Initiative had planned to release a video about the Elk Mountains two days later, on July 12. About Us, The video scheduled for release later today will focus on Capitol Peak. Updated 0017 GMT (0817 HKT) April 25, 2019. Dave tops out on Little Bear's summit. Careers, Deaths by Cause: fall (28), falling rocks (5), avalanche (3), heart attack (2), lightning (1), unclear (7) Deaths by Year: 2010 (10), 2011 (10), 2012 (6), 2013 (5), 2014 (6), 2015 (4), 2016 (5) (Note: I have combined the Maroon Bells in the above list due to the number of accidents that occurred on the traverse between them making it hard to attribute these deaths to one or the other of these peaks) The cause of these falls, however, is vitally important and sometimes difficult to say. Powered by, Statistical Analysis of Deaths on Colorado 14ers this Decade (2010-2016). May this be because of their lack of social popularity or maybe they are not as tough as they seem? The suggestion that climbers with limited expertise hire a guide before attempting to scale Class 3 or Class 4 peaks, as explored in a video released on July 15, has generated some negative feedback, Athearn notes: "Some people are like, 'I don't have $500 or $700 to pay out for a guide service.' But numerically, it's had more fatalities than any other fourteener since 2000.".
", In Europe, hiring a mountain guide is commonplace, but not so in the U.S. — and he's not sure why.
The author of the post noted that this is not an “official” data set because it was collected through the incomplete internet sources where there are conflicting views that are hard to sift through and not all accidents get reported. This article is an attempt to analyze the statistics from these terrible incidents and (hopefully) discover some useful conclusions to prevent such tragedies from occurring again in the future. On the left is Ellingwood Pt. But as Athearn sees it, considerable expertise is required to safely tackle even the Class 3 peaks. Class 3 peaks require "scrambling or un-roped climbing. "Before I spent a decade at the Colorado 14ers Initiative, I spent a decade as the deputy director of the American Alpine Club, where I got to understand a lot about climbing psychology."
The peaks in the video are all ranked as Class 4; none of the Colorado fourteeners are considered in the Class 5 category.
My hunch is a much higher proportion of women hike 14ers than set out to finish them.
", (Other Elk fourteeners: Castle Peak, Conundrum Peak and Pyramid Peak. Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our terms of use, our cookies policy, and our privacy policy. Many people avoid the rockfall dangers on the standard route by climbing it … Also, there was only one death on Little Bear, another peak that is often regarded as the most dangerous of all the 14ers. You are right. It should be as clear as creek water. They won't think twice about hopping on a plane to fly out here to rent a hotel room and then climb a peak, but they don't want to spend a few hundred dollars to make sure they're safe.
Interesting article. This may be caused by a combination of steepness and extreme terrain (large rocks or steep snow)." Your email address will not be published. Mountain Madness: The Road to Little Bear Peak - … That works out to about 312 deaths a year, or a little less than one death per million visitors.
Capitol Peak is clo0se to a more populated area than Little Bear, El Diente, Wilson etc. Jury is still out…. Every year there are accidents that go unreported and sifting through the barrage of information on the internet is not easy, especially regarding events that may have occurred several years ago. The peaks in the San Juans, peaks that appear impossible to climb as they look buttressed by massive jagged cliffs did not have any deaths on them as well.
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Maintain three points of contact on the difficult sections of steep mountains at all times, carefully test hold before weighting them, and rope up if it is safe and practical (which, unfortunately, is often not possible on the loose rock of some of Colorado's most dangerous mountains).
The peaks in the San Juans, peaks that appear impossible to climb as they look buttressed by massive jagged cliffs did not have any deaths on them as well. Lygon Stevens was called home after she and her brother Nick were caught in an avalanche on 14,037-foot Little Bear Peak in southern Colorado’s Sangre de Cristo (“Blood of Christ”) Range on Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. Three of these five victims died as a result of selecting the incorrect descent route. This again, could partially be a product of their distance from the populous cities of the Front Range, and therefore enjoy a proportionally smaller number of attempts.
Crestone Needle and Little Bear Peak, also named in the video, are both in the Sangre de Cristo range where Kit Carson Peak and Challenger Point are located. Enter your email or sign up with a social account to get started, The independent voice of Denver since 1977. Five of the seven deaths on Capitol Peak happened in 2017 where mountaineers failed to return on the standard route and descended a cliffed out gully. Join the Westword community and help support independent local journalism in Denver.
A 360 0 panoramic photo from the summit of Little Bear Peak - click on photo for full resolution version. So for those people who say, 'I really want to climb all the fourteeners' to check off their bucket list, we want to encourage them to think about taking a mountaineering course or hiring someone to guide them up the more difficult peaks.
For one, more than half of these deaths (33) occurred on only six mountains (Longs Peak, the Maroon Bells, Capitol Peak, and the Crestones). To put that in perspective: in 2018, Grand Canyon National Park, Third death at Grand Canyon in eight days. Powered by, Statistical Analysis of Deaths on Colorado 14ers this Decade (2010-2016). "We get it -- national parks have some pretty photogenic scenery," the guide reads. Analyzing the cause of death was somewhat challenging. Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
This article was originally published 1/3/17 but has been updated to include data from the tragic 2017 season. Kevin Hayne, 18, Killed Hiking Little Bear Peak tak landrock KRDO Colorado Springs A helicopter rescue crew from Buckley AFB is fine after making a “hard landing” near Alamosa, about 183 miles southwest of Colorado Springs.
), The Initiative's growing number of videos— there are now more than sixty — represent an evolution of its mission. "You have forty or so fourteeners that have well-developed trails and they're moderate peaks. Class 2 peaks sport "more difficult hiking that may be off-trail. You can find yourself on a downward slope with all sorts of loose rock that one mountain rescue expert described as like being in a room of poker chips, where everything is sliding around under your feet. The stats also revealed some interesting surprises that might fly in the face of the status quo’s take on the peaks. For the Nov 3 election: States are making it easier for citizens to vote absentee by mail this year due to the coronavirus.
"If you fall, you're likely to fall a few hundred feet. Eolus and El Diente Peak, as well as Longs Peak's Keyhole Route, where Jens "Jay" Yambert died last year — sad proof that mountains with lower-difficulty ratings can still prove treacherous. Little Peak Peak in Winter Peak: Little Bear Peak - 14,037’, South Little Bear Peak – 14,020’ TH/Route: SW Ridge from Tobin Creek Distance: 8mi Elev Gain: 5800' Time: 13:30 (4:45am - 6:15pm) Technical Gear: Microspikes Travelers: Jed, Matt Lemke, Josh, Sarah So this was it! 2) Be a woman. Statistically speaking, there are a couple of easy things you can do to virtually eliminate your odds of ending up on a list like this in the future: 1) If your main goal in Colorado mountaineering is simply not to die, then do NOT climb the Maroon Bells, Capitol Peak, Longs Peak, or the Crestones. In all these instances, however, these low numbers could be the product of much fewer numbers of attempts. We use cookies to collect and analyze information on site performance and usage, and to enhance and customize content and advertisements. The National Park System comprises 419 areas, 61 of which are designated national parks. Sometimes circumstances make it hard or impossible for you to vote on Election Day. The so-dubbed "Death Gully" has lured people in the past due to its innocuous appearance from above and people's fear of crossing the Knife Edge on the return journey. In winter, the SW ridge is a great option as it keeps you out of any avalanche terrain.
"The views are truly magnificent.
Part of HuffPost News. But Initiative executive director Lloyd Athearn acknowledges that the roundup isn't the final word on the subject, in part because of a tragedy that took place after the video was completed. Some of the information listed multiple causes, i.e.
Sunlight Peak, Wilson Peak, nor Pyramid Peak made the list and are no joke to climb and require the same degree of difficulty in climbing as some of the others with higher fatality rates. ", Athearn offers the following example (one that resonates given a recent fatality in Boulder County): "People need to know before they start climbing that there are going to be thunderstorms almost every afternoon. Thirdly, the fatality number on Longs Peak might be a bit of an outlier as Longs is in the Front Range and is heavily trafficked by the metropolitan Denver area.
In 2017 Capitol Peak gained notoriety when five people died on its slopes. Causes of death vary from drownings and falls to …
Thanks for reading and the comment! Support Us You might have a little off-trail scrambling," he concedes.
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The crew from the National Guard was helping rescue a … a falling rock strikes a climber causing them to lose their grip and fall.
In our video about the Elks, we have some experienced locals who have been or currently are guides say, 'Look, I've climbed this mountain numerous times and I've never done exactly the same route.' Ellingwood Point (just right of center in the photo) to the left of Blanca. And that's not going to go well.". Summit Little Bear Peak, 14,037’ at 9:27am, 7 hours, 4200’ and 4.25 miles from campsite. "But rescue groups will tell you that if there's an injured person and they're going out to save them, they might be sending thirty to fifty people — and if they're looking for someone who's lost, they're going to be trampling in the alpine on these fragile plants.
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