The past experience of this novice climber did not prepare her for this peak. The contour to the west is less steep on the east side, the Thayer Glacier headwall forms 40 to 45 degree loose rock or snow chutes down which Testa slid out of control. She was wearing dark clothing and came to rest in shadows, so she was not foundĬrampons, an ice axe and a helmet failed to save this climber.Īpproaching the summit on the South East Ridge one must contour around a large gendarme called the Camel’s Hump. She died the next day attempting the summit, of major injuries after sliding and tumbling on surface softened hard steep snow, then sliding again on moderate snow to the Thayer Glacier at about 8,700 feet, 1,100 feet below the summit ridge. “She appeared well equipped and confident when we passed on the trail the day before her climb”. “We stopped to talk because she was beaming so much,” said Jon Specher, an experienced climber from Bend. She had been weathered off North Sister a month before with a friend and decided to try for the summit again, solo. She had had some snow climbing instruction from a guide service. Martina Testa was a German national living in the United States, who had been climbing in Oregon for less than one year. Mountaineering tragedies is to aid in the prevention of accidents. Read more: North Sister tragedy shows dangers of alpine mountaineering Home | Information | Photos | Calendar | News | Seminars | Experiences | Questions | Updates | Books | Conditions | Links | Search Tragic death on North Sister - slip on soft snow
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