Photo: Boulder County Sheriff’s Office
A 27-year-old snowboarder was seriously injured after falling 100 feet down Colorado’s Skyscraper Glacier. According to a report from the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, the man tumbled down the snowfield and came to rest in a bergschrund, a deep crevasse at the head of a mountain glacier, where the moving ice separates from the stationary ice or rock above it. That positioning in the snowfield complicated the ensuing search and rescue, which began at approximately 2:30 p.m. Monday, September 8, and concluded at 1:00 a.m., September 9, requiring multiple agencies, a helicopter hoist, and several ATVs.
According to the report, search and rescue responders reached the snowboarder at 5:45 p.m. — more than three hours after his fall — by traversing a 300-foot path.
“Simultaneously, other rescuers scouted the terrain and identified a path to uphaul the patient, which was less hazardous than nearby terrain,” said the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office. “RMRG and Grand County Search & Rescue built an uphaul system which raised the patient to the top of the glacier while receiving ongoing medical care. At the top of the snowfield, the patient was raised an additional 50’ over an eroding ridge, then transported by MedEvac to a local hospital for further treatment at approximately 8:10 p.m.”
At that point, while the snowboarder had been rescued and was on his way to the hospital, rescue workers were still faced with the task of hiking out of the snowfield (in the dark). That wasn’t complete until 1:00 a.m. Tuesday.
In total, seven agencies were involved in the rescue effort: Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Colorado Search and Rescue Association, Grand County Search and Rescue, Grand County Sheriff’s Office, Grand County EMS, Northern Colorado MedEvac, and Rocky Mountain Rescue Group.
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