Balin Miller, a 23-year-old climber with a bright future, is dead after he rappelled off the end of his rope at El Cap. Photos: Instagram
Balin Miller, a climber touted as “the new king of the Alaska Range,” has died after a fall from El Capitan.
“It is with a heavy heart I have to tell you my incredible son, Balin Miller, died during a climbing accident today,” wrote his mother, Jeanine Girard-Moorman. “My heart is shattered in a million pieces.”
Miller, who was from Alaska, made a name for himself in the climbing community over the last few years as one of the most promising climbers in the world. He became known this past season in Yosemite as the “Orange Tent Guy” because of his recognizable campsite near the base of El Cap. He also frequently livestreamed his climbs for a captive audience. According to some reports, he was livestreaming to TikTok at the time of his death.
“He made it to the summit but he had to retrieve his bags as they got stuck on a rock as he was hoisting them up,” Michelle Derrick posted on Facebook. “As he was trying to retrieve the bags he fell to his death, all caught on the livestream.”
He climbed some of the toughest peaks in the world, including Cerro Torre in Patagonia, the West Buttress of Denali, and Mount Hunter in Alaska. In the spring of 2024, he spent a staggering 53 days in the Alaska Range, climbing Mount Hunter’s French Connection and then making history as the first person to solo Denali’s Slovak Direct route. That was done in 56 hours, a feat which Climbing magazine called one of the “most impressive ascents in decades.”
According to reports, the fall that killed him was caused by a simple mistake that happens far too often. As the 23-year-old was descending his rope to retrieve a stuck haul bag, he didn’t realize that his rappelling line was too short. He rappelled off the end of his line and fell to his death. In 2023, according to The American Alpine Club, there were eight similar fatalities.
“The trend shows no sign of abating,” the Club wrote. “In the upcoming 2025 ANAC, our data tables record a total of 15 reported rappel incidents that involved 23 climbers and ended with five fatalities.”
ANAC is an acronym for Accidents in North American Climbing, and is an annual compendium of climbing accident reports in the United States and Canada.
Miller began his climbing career early, when he started with his father on the faces along the Seward Highway near Anchorage. By the age of 12, he was heavily involved in ice climbing, which led to him branching out into ranges all over Alaska, Canada, and Patagonia.
Although the federal government shutdown began on the day of Miller’s death, National Park Service rangers responded to the accident swiftly. As of this writing, however, they have not issued a formal report.
His death has been met with an outpouring of grief from friends and fans. Miller’s star shone brightly, but it didn’t shine for long enough. He saw climbing as a way of keeping oneself grounded to what’s important in life. “Everyone should experience real fear and danger at some point, which is easily done in the mountains,” he once wrote. “I think it would help people become less stressed over more frivolous problems.”
