2 climbers found dead on Mt. Whitney
A pair of mountaineers reported missing after climbing Mount Whitney this week were found dead by searchers and recovered from the peak on Wednesday, according to the Inyo County Sheriff ’s Office.
The two climbers ascended and summited the peak on Tuesday morning via the mountaineer’s route, according to a Facebook post from a third climbing partner. But the three climbers became separated on the descent down a perilously steep section near the mountaintop known as the Final 400.
The climbers were both in their late 20s, according to the third climber, and “experienced in the backcountry and had adequate gear for the climb.” They had planned to ski and camp at Upper Boy Scout Lake.
The third climber waited for them for hours — first at the bottom of a chute high on the mountain, then farther down at their camp — before contacting emergency searchers on Tuesday evening, he wrote in his post.
After a foot search on Wednesday, the bodies of the two missing climbers were found high on the mountain by the Inyo County Search and Rescue Team. The exact location and the cause of death wasn’t immediately clear; the bodies were recovered and transported to the Tulare County Coroner’s Office.
Mount Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48 states and is a popular, technical mountaineering objective this time of year. A public information officer with the Inyo County Sheriff’s Department said the mountain is still plastered with snow and ice in places, “so there are still significant risks for this time of year.”