Climber Dangling 100 Feet From Rope Survives 18 Hours on Mount Whitney

Two climbers attempting a challenging ascent of Mount Whitney’s East Buttress on September 21 were rescued after becoming stranded overnight due to unexpected snow and ice. The rescue mission, led by Inyo County Search & Rescue, unfolded after the climbers realized they were unprepared to continue their route. They were unable to retreat safely, leading to an 18-hour ordeal on the highest peak in the continental US.

The pair, who began their climb from Whitney Portal at 1:30 a.m. on September 21, reached the base of the prominent 1,000-foot East Buttress around mid-morning, ready to tackle one of the mountain’s iconic climbing routes. After five hours, they had only made it to the top of the third pitch — out of 11 total. As the day wore on, worsening conditions and dwindling autumn daylight forced them to abandon their climb. 

“Alpine rock climbing is a serious endeavor that requires many different skills to do safely,” Inyo County Search and Rescue said on Facebook. “Those skills include the abilities to conduct accurate self-assessment of your skill versus your objective, to understand weather conditions and their effect on route conditions, and to perform self-rescue techniques in stressful situations.”

Caught off guard by snow and ice, the climbers attempted to divert to the nearby Mountaineer’s Route, another technical path to Mount Whitney’s summit. However, they quickly became disoriented in off-route terrain and found themselves stuck, prompting them to call emergency services for assistance. 

A dizzying look at the terrain search and rescue volunteers rescued the climbers from. Photo courtesy of Inyo County Search and Rescue Facebook.

Inyo County Search and Rescue communicated with the climbers via phone for over an hour, attempting to guide them through a self-rescue. The climbers were not comfortable executing any of the options suggested. 

One of the climbers tried to rappel (lower themselves down the mountain on a rope) but could not climb back up. Stuck, they spent the night dangling from the rope 100 feet below their partner. 

Unable to be reached via helicopter due to waning daylight, the climbers waited overnight in frigid conditions until a SAR team could be dispatched. On the morning of September 22, a helicopter transported a rescue team to the site, where they climbed up the icy, snow-covered route to reach the climbers. The pair weathered 18 hours before they could be rescued. 

Once the team successfully secured the climbers, they descended safely together, eventually hiking back to Whitney Portal. 

This incident highlights the risks posed by early autumn snow and ice in the Sierra. Inyo County SAR reports that there’s been a recent uptick in search and rescue missions on Mount Whitney, as climbers and hikers encounter rapidly changing weather conditions into late fall. 

“This mission was the result of a series of bad decisions (until the good decision to call for help) that were entirely avoidable if proper preparation had been done,” Inyo SAR stated in their incident report. “We want everyone to enjoy the Sierra, but everyone has a different path to doing so.”

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