A novice climber was rescued after surviving a 1,500ft fall down California’s Mount Shasta on Sunday, officials said.
The woman, 31, was attempting to ascend the mountain along the Left of Heart variation of the popular Avalanche Gulch route alongside two other novice climbers at an elevation of about 13,000ft when she fell.
She suffered a suspected ankle fracture and “additional injuries consistent with the significant fall,” but she was found alert and in good spirits, the US Forest Service rangers said. Officials have not identified the climber.
Efforts to locate and rescue her were under way around noon on Sunday when rangers got a call about the fall. Cloud cover on the mountain prevented a helicopter from reaching her directly so three rangers had to ascend to her on foot, the Forest Service said.
They were assisted by one member of the climbing party who had descended to help carry rescue equipment, while another “Good Samaritan climber” stopped to assist and remained with the group throughout the rescue, it said.
The woman was secured in a rescue litter and lowered to Lake Helen, and was eventually taken by a California highway patrol helicopter to Mercy medical center Mount Shasta for medical care at about 5.30pm, according to the Forest Service.
“This incident serves as an important reminder that Mount Shasta is a high-altitude mountaineering environment, not a hike. Even experienced climbers can encounter rapidly changing weather, steep snow and ice, rockfall, and hazardous fall conditions,” the Forest Service said in a statement.
It also encouraged climbers to “be honest about your experience and physical conditioning” before attempting to summit the mountain.
Avalanche Gulch “is steep and rigorous requiring crampons, a mountain axe, helmet, and basic snow travel skills”, according to the Mount Shasta Avalanche Center. It takes climbers up a 7,000ft vertical ascent that features “steep snow and ice, rock fall, and weather extremes”, the center said.
