About

Over four years ago, I read “Touching the Void” and I was always intrigued by situation hikers find themselves in and the incredible things they do to stay alive.

This blog is about learning from other people’s mistakes, so you don’t make the same ones.

“Better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the grey twilight that knows not victory nor defeat”

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Snowboarder Dies in Utah Avalanche

Who: 42-year-old Todd Bell
Where: Hell’s Canyon, Snowbasin, Utah
His mistake: He got separated from his partner
What happened: A man and a friend planned to snowboard in No Name Canyon, an inbounds area of Snowbasin. During the run, his friend dropped in, but one of the snowboarders ended up dropping into Hell’s Canyon nearby, an out of [...]

Snowboarder Drowns in Colorado Stream

Who: 50-year-old MaryScott King of Huntington Beach
Where: Mineral Creek Basin, Telluride, Colorado
Her mistake: Just a bad freak accident
What happened: A woman went heli-skiing with Carlo Nafarrete, her soon-to-be fiancé. Nafarrete planned to pop the question in the coming days. Unfortunately, during the trip, the woman was skiing in a remote area of Mineral Creek basin [...]

Missing Snowboarder Found In A Bar!

Who: A 20-year-old Austrian snowboarder
Where: Obertauern, Austria
His mistake: Being stupid
What happened: While snowboarding with some friends who were heading down the mountain, the young snowboarder lost his snowboard and climbed down alone to retrieve it.

When he never showed up an hour later his friends called the police. A group of 12 volunteers from the [...]

Boy Injured by Icicle

Who: A teenage boy
Where: Center Hill Lake, Austin Bottom, Tennessee
His mistake: Bad luck
What happened: A boy was hiking with companions when a large icicle dislodged above him and struck him in the leg. The boy was unable to continue on the hike. Friends alerted authorities. It took three hours for crews to package the boy [...]

Lost Backpackers Found on AT

Who: A 17-year-old female and 20-year-old male
Where: Appalachian Trail the towns of Beekman and Pawling, CT
Their mistake: They got lost in the dark
What happened: Two young hikers were on the Appalachian Trail and took the wrong trail at dusk. When they realized they were on the wrong trail, they used a cell phone to call [...]

Rock Climber Injured on Dorset Sea Cliff

Who: A climber in his 60s
Where: Anvil Point, Dorset sea cliffs, UK
His mistake: It’s unknown
What happened: A man was rock climbing on Anvil Point with three other friends when he somehow fell. It is not clear if the accident was human, mechanical or if recent snowy and wet conditions contributed to the incident.

A bystander who [...]

Rock Climber Injured on Camelback Mountain

Who: A 26-year-old man
Where: Camelback Mountain, Phoenix, Arizona
His mistake: None here. Just bit off something bigger than he can chew
What happened: A man was free climbing a section of the mountain. He was not using ropes, but it is unclear if he was wearing a helmet. During his ascent, the man lost his grip and [...]

Solo Hiker Requires Rescue on Mt. Mansfield

Who: 26-year-old Joshua Carter
Where: Mt. Mansfield, Underhill State Park, Vermont
His mistake: He went alone in bad weather, but he did a lot of things right
What happened: A man set out for the summit of Mt. Mansfield on his own. Although the weather was good when he left, bad weather quickly came in before he reached [...]

Hiker Survives 600-Foot Slide in Avalanche

Who: A man and two friends
Where: Glamarama, Borrowdale, Cumbria, Lake District, UK
Their mistake: Looks like they were traveling in avy territory
What happened: A man and two friends were hiking up a snow gully on Glaramara. During their ascent, the men disturbed the snow and set off an avalanche. Two of the men were able to [...]

Hiker Survives 30-Foot Fall

Who: A 60-year-old male
Where: Donut Falls, Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah
His mistake: Just a simple slip
What happened: A man was hiking with his family to Donut Falls when he slipped on a rock and fell into freezing water. His family immediately called for help, but it took rescuers roughly 45 minutes to get to the scene.

The [...]

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