Rescuers in Alaska resume search for missing top B.C. climber, companion

JUNEAU, Alaska — Rescuers in southwestern Alaska resumed their search of a mountain peak Tuesday for a missing B.C. man and his climbing companion.

Megan Peters with the Alaska State Troopers said crews took advantage of favourable weather conditions and got back into the air to search for 24-year-old Marc-André Leclerc and 34-year-old Ryan Johnson.

The pair were scaling the Mendenhall Towers north of Juneau last week but have not been heard from since they reached the summit of the 2,100-metre main tower. The search began when they didn’t return by Wednesday, the day a snowstorm hit the area.

Leclerc, who is from Squamish, is considered a gifted climber. Outside magazine has called Leclerc “one of the best young alpinists in the world,” and his biography on sponsor Arc’Teryx’s website says he completed several ascents in Canada and Patagonia.

Treya Klassen, a close friend of Leclerc’s father, said on the weekend the young man has had his eye on climbing Mendenhall Towers for years.