On Saturday, August 16th, a mountain climber on the Clear Creek Trail of Mount Shasta, called 911 to report his 50 year-old climbing partner missing. The duo were returning to their base camp after a successful summit bid earlier that morning, and at approximately 11,000 ft elevation, they became disoriented when they could not locate the campsite. The reporting party ultimately located the camp, but after waiting over an hour for his friend to return, grew concerned, and reported his friend missing to authorities.
The Siskiyou County Sheriff Search and Rescue along with the Mount Shasta Avalanche Center & Home of the Climbing Rangers were mobilized to begin a ground search of the missing climber, but due to inclimate weather, air operations were unable to assist. Temperatures dropped significantly that night, with snow and rain reducing visibility, but by morning conditions had improved enough to allow a helicopter from CHP – Northern Division Air Operations to search the mountain for signs of the missing man.
By 12:30pm on Sunday, August 17th, the CHP pilots located a man at the base of a cliff, wedged between the scree slope and an ice sheet. When the Climbing Rangers arrived to render medical aid, they were able to confirm that they had found the missing climber, and that he had sustained significant injuries, likely from a substantial fall the previous day. A medical helicopter was able to reach the man at approximately 3:00 pm, and he was flown to a hospital in Redding to receive life saving care.
This climbing accident is the sixth call for service the Sheriff’s Office has received on the Clear Creek route in the past two weeks, underscoring that even one of the “safest” routes up Mount Shasta needs to be approached with significant preparation and caution. Multiple hazards including falling rock, exposed cliff edges, difficult-to-navigate terrain, and the ever-present risk of rapidly changing weather can make this non-technical climb a perilous endeavor for any climber despite their skill and experience level. Thus, we encourage everyone attempting to summit the mountain to have a personal SOS beacon, a gps device to stay on-route, and ideally one or more climbing partners.
In closing, we would like to thank the Mount Shasta Avalanche Center & Home of the Climbing Rangers, CHP – Northern Division Air Operations, CAL FIRE Siskiyou Unit, Williams Fire Department and our SAR volunteers for their invaluable work on this mission.
