Guide Dies on Grand Teton

jhnewsandguide.com/news/env…

RIP

Very sad news... Sending healing prayers to his family and friends.

Rest in peace.

RIP Gary Falk... you're missed brother. So glad I got to share the rope and the Grand with you... Kaw!

Terrible...

Gary was an awesome guy, it was great to meet him in Ouray last winter. So sorry to hear about this today.

Prayers for comfort and strength for family and friends!

Does anyone have insight into what happened? It sounds like the clients survived since the news article didn't mention them.

It's not often that an IFMGA guide dies while with clients.

No public info currently besides what the JH news posted...coming down the Grand is not trivial though and the main rap ledge today had some ice and water on it.

NickViator wrote:Does anyone have insight into what happened? It sounds like the clients survived since the news article didn't mention them. It's not often that an IFMGA guide dies while with clients.

Basic mistake - unclipped at the 120' rap to Upper Saddle to retrieve a "stuck" belay device being sent back up after a client rappelled:

jhnewsandguide.com/news/cop…

One must ask why didn't each client have their own rappel device?

Allen Sanderson wrote: One must ask why didn't each client have their own rappel device?

Speculation (isn't that what we're supposed to do?). Client could have lost/dropped their belay device. Anyway, very unfortunate.

really bummed to hear this. i have ran into him at a bunch of random places over the years, and he was always a really nice guy.

Gary climbed with me through San Juan Mountain Guides this past winter... he was an incredible climber and really excellent teacher. Seriously sad, and best wishes to his friends and family.

I've had a family member and two acquaintances die in the Tetons. Every incident was exactly like this one--moving unroped in high consequence terrain well below the ability of the climber. Please be safe out there, everybody.

So sad to hear this, Gary was a great guy and was so much fun to climb with. One of my favorite pics of him and krag Unsoeld (who we met at the climbers ranch)....

Gary

Something appears amiss in the report of "a belay device being sent back up." Why? Under the circumstances, rappelling using a Munter hitch or a carabiner brake rappel would be the normal thing to do, especially for an experienced climber.

Sincere condolences to the friends and family of Gary.

rob.calm

As is standard (and obviously intelligent) guiding practice for rappels with safe landings, the clients were being belayed from above while rappelling, so the belay rope had to be continually pulled back up for the next client. The choice to use but one rap device for four clients, given that the rope is going to be pulled up anyway, isn't all that puzzling. The rappel itself is mostly overhanging, so snagging would not have seemed to be a likely issue, and probably wouldn't be most of the time.

RIP Gary.

Sometimes the most unexpected things happen. I am sure we all have dodged a bullet and then thought how just very lucky we are to be contemplating our mortality. He was a great guy who lived a great life.

Roy Suggett wrote:I am sure we all have dogged a bullet and then thought how just very lucky we are to be contemplating our mortality.

In this regard, supertopo.com/climbing/thre… may be relevant...

rgold wrote: In this regard, supertopo.com/climbing/thre… may be relevant...

Nice bit of writing, over there, rgold. Thanks!

To the family and friends, condolences, but also thanks for this person who undoubtedly brought joy, confidence, and, a pretty sure bet, even hope into other people's lives. I'm sure his ripples will reach a great many people, in and out of the "family" we form when we climb with, and care about, each other.

Best, Helen

Sorry to hear about this and condolences to those who knew him. I've been on this route and the exposure is staggering, even though the terrain is easy. I'm sorry, but luck only came into play when a decision was made to move about in this terrain unanchored and the consequence of a mistake went way up, as high as it can get. I'm hoping we can get something out of this, so figure out a way to stay anchored if shenanigans like stuck descenders etc. present themselves to you. Ask yourself if you can die, if the answer is yes, then find a mitigation - no matter how expensive or inconvenient.