NW Climber Dies Near Granite Falls

[jvesquire]

This was just posted in the Seattle Times, updated from an earlier article where he wasn't identified.

 

Man who fell to his death identified as experienced climber

 

By The Associated Press

GRANITE FALLS – A man who fell to his death east of Granite Falls on Mount Dickerman has been identified as an experienced climber. Dale Godsey, 48, of Lake Stevens, died of hypothermia and injuries to his head and body, investigators in the Snohomish County medical examiner's office said Monday. His body was found early Saturday and recovered by helicopter after the barking of his dog, a black and white corgi named Zippy, alerted another climber, sheriff's Sgt. Daniel Wikstrom said. The other climber heard Godsey's voice and tried to reach him for a couple of hours without success, then hiked several miles back to his car and drove to Silverton, 20 miles east of Granite Falls, and called for help on an emergency telephone. Godsey apparently fell about 500 feet down a steep, snowy slope from a trail leading to the 5,723-foot summit, which affords a striking panorama of the high peaks of the Cascade Range, Wikstrom said. Others also have died in the area, including two teenagers from Everett during a school outing in 1991, he said. "The trail can be treacherous," he said. The dog was taken to the Everett Animal Shelter and returned to Godsey's family on Sunday, Wikstrom said. "She was his hiking partner," Wikstrom said. "She is a beautiful dog and was just beside herself."