Re: Climber rescued from Half Dome Avalache

Apparently a 40 year old South Korean climber. This article makes it sound as if the avalanche occurred while his group was on the top. He apparently holed up in a sleeping bag until a CHP helicopter could pull him out of there.

http://www.fresnobee.com/updates/story/1219584.html



And what is this about people not hiking in the snow in winter. I saw a lot of that going on the Upper Yosemite Fall Trail.

some people simply don't respect Mother Nature as much as they should. they let their personal desires cloud their better judgement.

Forrestranger: These people came all the way from North Korea -- they get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to climb in Yosemite. Maybe it was a bad decision to go, but I can understand their desire to push ahead.

Now... Does anyone know the real location of the avalanche? I can't imagine seven climbers on the "north face" of Half Dome, as the news reports say.

There seems to be a question as to whether they were technical climbers or just backcountry hikers. I'm thinking the latter. Nobody in their right mind would big wall climb in these conditions. Even hiking up to Half Dome in the snow seems rather risky.

Final analysis is that four of the seven were actually on the NW sheer face, and three were on the sloped portion just under the sheer face. They were in fact big wall climbing rather than hiking.

Here's an article from the Modesto Bee. It's really the same as the Fresno Bee, but with one more photo of the wall. I had a hard time figuring what was going on, but it looks like there are two SAR crew standing up on a small ledge.

http://www.modbee.com/breakingnews/story/610038.html

Korean Climber Caught in Avalanche on Half Dome in Yosemite National Park
Date: February 24, 2009

A Korean climber was reported to have been swept in an avalanche Monday afternoon while climbing on Half Dome. The climber, an experienced mountaineer, was climbing with a party of six others when the avalanche occurred at approximately 4:20 pm on Monday, February 23. Language barriers and unsettled weather and terrain have added to the complexity of the situation. Rescuers made contact with the victim yesterday, but continued avalanche activity in the area made it unsafe for rescuers to enter. Efforts will continue today using ground crews, technical climbing crews, avalanche experts, and the California Highway Patrol helicopter.

Recent snow and ice have resulted in active avalanche conditions throughout the Sierra range. Winter mountaineering is physically demanding and can present extreme conditions. Advance planning, awareness of the risks, and ability to change tactics should it become necessary are crucial for travel in these conditions.

Korean Climber Rescued from Half Dome in Yosemite National Park
Date: February 24, 2009

A Korean mountaineer was rescued from Half Dome today at approximately 8:30 am after being swept downhill in an avalanche yesterday afternoon. A CHP helicopter successfully lowered park medics to the 38 year old patient who was then raised to the helicopter and transported to a waiting ambulance. His condition was assessed by medical personnel in Yosemite Valley and he has been transferred by helicopter to a Central Valley hospital for treatment.

Apparently they did this trip to practice techniques for a proposed climb of K2. Or so says a Fresno Bee reporter (I only saw the thing about K2 in the Merced local paper).

As mentioned on another thread: there was much avalanche activity this last weekend; I heard it all thru the night while camping at Upper Pines.

B

Saturday night I would say for every rockfall/avalanche on the Glacier Point side there was one on the Half Dome/Diving Board side.

Sounds like realistic practice for K2 but kripes! I can not relate to shear wall rock climbing in winter.

Jim

The LA Times displayed a slightly more easier to view picture of the wall which appears to show 4-5 souls on the ledge:

I am trying to post the picture. If not visible, use the url:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-3a4c87c7cb1548f5b478699737c8a949-2,1,7893749.photo

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

Frank Furter wrote:

> I am trying to post the picture.

Use a slash, not a backslash to close the img tag.

eeek wrote:

> Frank Furter wrote:
>
> > I am trying to post the picture.
>
> You a slash, not a backslash to close the img tag.
>

(sigh) Yes (sigh). I finally re-read my own posts on this forum many weeks ago to figure out the problem! Thanks for making the correction.

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan

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The cure for a fallacious argument is a better argument, not the suppression of ideas.
-- Carl Sagan