Threads related to Colorado mountaineering accidents but please keep it civil and respectful. Friends and relatives of fallen climbers will be reading these posts.
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Please be respectful when posting - family and friends of fallen climbers might be reading this forum.
Boggy B wrote: ↑Thu Jun 29, 2023 5:10 pm
Too bad they didn't rule out that highly unlikely lead immediately.
Was he taking the SW slopes/W ridge? Sentinel showed mostly avoidable patches of snow on the 23rd.
In that case, and assuming he didn't try to traverse over to Lavender (also unlikely given the late summit), then Owens Basin and downstream seems like the place to search.
In addition to the broken terrain in the timber below the SW slopes, navigating back to Echo in the dark could be tricky since you have to cross the creek and climb back up to your starting point.
Which spur of 566 were they camped on? 566 A appears to connect via trail to the Owens Basin Trail (does it? is there a bridge? is the junction signed?), but we always camped on 566 G and took the defunct road (which only shows up completely on the FS 2013 map) around the north end of Jackson Ridge.
That trail dies and you have to bushwhack down to and across the creek(dicey in spring) to link up with the Owens trail. In the dark/without GPS it would be tough to navigate on return and impossible without a light.
Sounds like you should have been consulted on this search.
Unfortunate outcome but glad friends and family have closure.
Traveling light is the only way to fly.
IG: @colorado_invasive
Strava: Brent Herring
My understanding is that someone involved in the search predicted this outcome, and that they did search the (South Fork) creek from its head in Owens all the way down to the confluence. I'm not even clear on which tributary it was or if he was found below the confluence, since there are a number of creeks feeding the W Mancos in the vicinity of the Echo Basin trailheads.