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Melissa
Big Wall climber
oakland, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 21, 2004 - 02:44pm PT
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Here's the current pic from the El Cap Cam...You can see the helicopter. Thank goodness that it looks like the folks up there are getting good weather now to either finish their climbs or their rescues, and most sadly the recovery. :-(
[img]http://www.iamthewallress.com/turtleback1[2].jpeg[/img]
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can't say
Social climber
Pasadena CA
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Oct 21, 2004 - 05:15pm PT
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I think E would rather slit his wrists then get plucked again. The one with the Fish left an...errr..indelible memory.
El Cap rescue trivia question: (and if this seems too irrevrent I appologize up front)
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Melissa
Big Wall climber
oakland, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 21, 2004 - 06:53pm PT
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Unless some of those 30 load barers that Werner mentioned were horses and donkeys, there are probably a lot more folks than just SAR who are going above and beyond for this rescue.
As for how expected or unexpected the storm was...I can only speak for myself. When I left for the Valley on Friday, I thought that it might rain on Sunday, but maybe not till Sunday night and the rain would almost certainly be there by Monday. Earlier in the week the forcast was adjusted to not call for rain until Monday. I brought a rain suit in case it was raining on Sunday (to hike), but I also picked out climbs that might be good for sunday (condsidering iffy weather). I climbed in a tee-shirt till dark on Saturday. The storm came really fast on Saturday night. I had no idea how severe it would be, and neither did the several people that I know of who had to drive the very long way home due to the closing of 120.
It sounds like the Japanese team perished about 3 pitches from the summit, and I can't help but wonder if they thought that they'd be off on Saturday night, and with the nice weather during the day on Saturday, they went for it. That they would be so close and loose the fight is so incredibly sad to me. One of the other rescued climbers was also spitting distance from the summit, but he'd been climbing longer than any forcast would be useful and was very committed at that point.
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highminded
Mountain climber
Berkeley
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Oct 21, 2004 - 06:57pm PT
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I don't think the storm was a surprise, but I think it's severity was. Some folks on Whitney got 5-feet of snow dumped on them, trapping them in their tent (5-feet in mid-October is pretty unusual).
NPS doesn't charge for rescues if they determine that the people they rescued weren't negligent. I can't imagine that not being able to predict such a freakishly bad snow storm could be considered negligence. Hopefully, all will be absolved of their rescue costs. It only seems fair.
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Changuito
Trad climber
East BAy, CA
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Oct 21, 2004 - 07:30pm PT
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So...were the japanese climbers going for "one push" on the nose? Has anyone heard any more details of the incident? If they were so close to the summit, why could they not be rescued earlier? Fill me in please.
-Thanx
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Melissa
Big Wall climber
oakland, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 21, 2004 - 07:57pm PT
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This is from the SFGate...There are some errors further down, so there may be a few with "the facts" too. My heart is not only with the families of the folks who perished, but also with the rangers who had to do this grim rescue.
Since it does imply that climbers on other formations were also rescued, I guess it raises the question again...Is Lambone OK?
Rangers make dramatic rescue on El Capitan; two climbers killed
BEN MARGOT, Associated Press Writer
Thursday, October 21, 2004
(10-21) 16:19 PDT YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) --
Rangers rappelled down El Capitan Thursday and then carefully climbed back up the sheer 3,200-foot face of the mountain, rescuing two climbers and carrying the bodies of two others on their backs.
The dramatic rescue on Yosemite's most forbidding peak came as other teams of park rangers airlifted out nearly two dozen other hikers and climbers stranded by the early winter storm, which brought white-out conditions and 50 mph wind gusts as it dumped several feet of snow across the Sierra Nevada.
Two teams of rangers were dropped off by a helicopter and spent the night in deep snow on the top of El Capitan before beginning their rescue and recovery effort Thursday morning, after the weather finally cleared.
One group rappelled down to recover the bodies of a Japanese man and woman. They were already dead when a helicopter crew managed to fly close enough late Wednesday to spot their bodies, blue and dripping with icicles, as they dangled from their ropes about two-thirds of the way up the precipice.
The Japanese climbers had been ill-prepared for the weather, a ranger said.
Each body was strapped in a harness and carried hundreds of feet up on the back of a ranger.
The other team rescued a pair of climbers who had been told to stay put overnight on a portable ledge secured high above the valley floor. "They're cold and they're tired but they're in fine condition," said Jen Nersesian, a park spokeswoman.
A helicopter crew was preparing to airlift them all down to the valley floor late Thursday afternoon.
Another climber had been rescued off the mountain on Wednesday, and two more men who initially said they could finish their climb themselves may have had a change of heart Thursday afternoon. "They may spend the night on the wall. If they want a rescue we'll do everything we can do to get them down," Nersesian said.
A half-mile high and a mile wide, El Cap casts an imposing shadow over the glacier-sculpted Yosemite Valley. The first successful ascent took 45 days. Today, most climbers need three or four days to make it to the top, clinging to barely visible outcroppings and prying their way up cracks invisible from the valley floor.
Springtime, when the days are long and the weather is often perfect for weeks at a time, is the best time to attempt an ascent. By June, the wall can be an inferno due to high temperatures. By September, the days are too short and the nights can be chilly. By October, there's always the risk of early snowfalls.
This time, a blizzard struck, with so much wind and snow that even helicopters couldn't approach the mountain until the weather began to break.
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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Oct 21, 2004 - 08:09pm PT
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Fast-moving weather can be very hard to handle. It probably has happened to all of us in our mountaineering careers. Nonetheless, at this time of year, esp with a storm on the way, I would think that a fully-charged cell phone that works in the Valley would be a prime candidate for your survival kit. On my last wall, I checked in each night with my wife, who could tell us what the latest weather forecast was.
John Dill's article is a must-read for any wall climber. http://www.bluebison.net/yosar/alive.htm
Once the ropes freeze, you cannot move up or down, and if you are wet, you are dead. We don't have to personally make all the mistakes: virtually all of them have already been made before.
"Mother Nature can be an awful teacher: she often starts with the exam."
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Changuito
Trad climber
East BAy, CA
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Oct 21, 2004 - 08:12pm PT
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Thanks for the info Melissa.
It is sad and tragic news.
:(
I wonder if an emergency blanket, or 2, would have made a difference? or a pocket rocket?
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Brutus of Wyde
climber
Old Climbers' Home, Oakland CA
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Oct 21, 2004 - 08:15pm PT
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"I've heard the block is one of the worst places on El Cap to be in the rain."
1982 Eric Pearlman and I got hit by a late September rainstorm starting the evening we arived at the Block. (It was still storming after we walked down from the top.) Every 5 minutes or so, the wind would bring the waterfall across the ledge for a minute or two. I remember spending most of that night standing in the haul bag back near the wall on the Block.
One of the longest nights I ever spent in the mountains.
Sad news about the Japanese climbers.
Brutus
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Melissa
Big Wall climber
oakland, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 21, 2004 - 08:16pm PT
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An emergency blanket isn't much help in a waterfall. Sadly, a bivy sack might not have been enough on Camp 6.
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WBraun
climber
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Oct 21, 2004 - 08:40pm PT
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We got Ericson and partner from Octopussy today along with japanese on the nose. Tommorow we go again and get 2 guys on the Salathe Wall. Big media frenzy in El Cap meddow. CNN flew by in 551 while we were retreving todays parties. Must be all over the news network by now.
Werner
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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Oct 21, 2004 - 09:12pm PT
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It looks as if Mother Nature is painting the Captain with blood:
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Grant Horner
Trad climber
Castaic, CA
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Oct 21, 2004 - 09:25pm PT
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Good to hear Eric's OK! That guy's a beast, but I was worried. That storm absolutely *dumped* on LA -- 5 inches of rain in my yard in far Northern end of the county -- I can't imagine what it was like in the Sierra.
Sad to hear about the Japanese climbers...
gh
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funkness
climber
So,Ca.
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Oct 21, 2004 - 09:26pm PT
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Thanks for the update Werner. Glad to hear Erik and Tommy are down safe. Just saw Lober on the TV, yeah the networks are milking this story.
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funkness
climber
So,Ca.
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Oct 21, 2004 - 09:30pm PT
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hey Brick..hit delete and re-post, somekinda glitch going on here.
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nature
climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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Oct 21, 2004 - 11:03pm PT
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Ok, so I tried for just a little bit of humor in an otherwise rather depressing post. I tried to keep it generic. I know they won't be charged for rescue. About a dozen years ago my first wall partner was rescued from Zod - his partner took a 100 footer onto his backup knot while jugging - he was silly enough to grab the rope during the ride - 3rd degree on the fingers =ouch. Later that summer same partner along climbing with Plunket were on Zenith. On pitch 10 a circle head blew and said partner dislocated his shoulder (was holding on to the piece right below the circle head) =ouch again. They somehow managed to rap the entire route (overhanging the whole way). Finally at the base SAR came in with a single skid landing and plucket Fred. They joked on the ride out that this was his second rescue (of the summer!) and that he'd be charged. He wasn't. There - the history of my missed humor.
All that said, I can only imagine what SAR is dealing with right now (snow, bodies, cold, work, no sleep).
Proud.
Thank You.
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Holdplease2
Trad climber
All over
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Oct 21, 2004 - 11:32pm PT
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Thank you, SAR folks and load-carriers. I hope that your work is twice as rewarding as it is grueling and that all of you stay safe.
Condolences to the friends and family of the team on the nose.
-Kate.
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turbo
Trad climber
santa cruz
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Oct 21, 2004 - 11:43pm PT
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Glad to hear dave and others are safe. condolences to the families and friends of the climbers who perished. Thanks to SAR and others for all the hard work. Looks like winter hit sooner than expected.
miss all you guys in the valley.
susie says hi...she's almost in mexico!
Awesome job on zodiac...the restoration is appreciated. Thanks for the pizza Bryan. Ankle's healing up finally.
~Amee
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Levy
Big Wall climber
So Calif
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Oct 22, 2004 - 12:30am PT
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I'm sure the storm must've been pretty severe for Erik & Tommy to consent for a rescue. I know E learned from previous experience to bring good storm gear & warm clothes but the general low angle nature of Octopussy must have lent a waterfall-like nature to the route. Good to hear that the lads made it down OK.
Mucho props to YOSAR & the Heli crews for their tremendous efforts.
Condolences goes out to the families & friends of the two deceased climbers from the Nose.
Peace Out
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Oakville, Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Oct 22, 2004 - 01:35am PT
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Good news over on the right side of the Captain. Leo Houlding and Ivo Ninov managed to get all their gear down from their attempted free line in the Eagle's Way area at the same time as I was pulling all my stuff down. We saw the sun, and went for it!
It was a bit freaky when I jugged to my anchors in the middle of a sustained aid pitch - two of the pins I had used in my anchor had pulled, presumably from the action of the water on them! However I had built in plenty of redundancy, at the expense of a bunch of crabs, slings and pins. So there's a bit of booty on B.U.B.S. for the next party...
Fortunately there wasn't too much water falling on either of our routes -- I managed to keep dry enough in my goretex jacket and rain pants. The warm sunshine certainly helped matters.
Huge thanks to Yorkshiremen Dunc' and Dave who helped me schlep down my rack and more-than-a-little heavy ropes, and also to Brazil Nick who assisted Ivo and Leo. Jason managed to beg off for the day - the crafty bugger - allegedly to entertain his girlfriend. Also thanks to the other chap who helped us out and whose name I didn't catch.
Concur re. Melissa above - Ivo told me on Saturday that a bit of rain might come on Monday, but then we got clobbered unexpectedly that night, and much worse than forecast.
I didn't see anyone on Mescalito.
The heli jocks told me the dudes on Salathe called for a rescue too late today, and that they would go fetch them tomorrow. I was not aware the Octopussy crew got rescued.
Dean Potter and Heinz Zack et al went up to Freerider today to take some pix. And there was at least one party low on The Nose. I also saw someone climbing today, it appeared, between Camp 4 and Camp 5 of The Nose. I don't think it had anything to do with the rescue, though.
Looks like one more day of decent weather, then more crrrrrrrap. Me? I'm goin' fishin' back in "Can-ee-dar," as they call it in Yorkshire.
Yesterday was one of the most beautiful days I have ever enjoyed in The Valley - sunshine breaking through the clouds, snow carpeting the summits and dripping through the coloured leaves - superb.
Au revoir until next spring.....
Pete [aka Frankenankle]
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