Lambone Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 this whole week I have been thinking that his only chance was if his partners returned to his cave after leaving him. RIP I hope that the mountain was his church, and he went in peace.
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Actually, James was somewhat incoherent/disoriented during his last call. The part about "get[ing] help" was how the person taking the call interpreted and reported what James said. James's specific statement was something along the lines of one his buddies having "gone into town" and the other being on a plane home. So James wasn't communicating too clearly before his call was cut off; it appears he may have been suffering from hypothermia as early as last Sunday, when he made his last call. I'm not an expert at all, but if James had hypothermia, wouldn't it be best for all three climbers to stay together and pool their body heat, fuel, warm clothing, etc.?
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 this whole week I have been thinking that his only chance was if his partners returned to his cave after leaving him. Do you think it's possible they did return?
tami Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 thank you for that address geeyore that was wonderful but sad too
Lambone Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 yes, something must have happened up there that we don't know, because it doesn't add up. cnn reports, "Searchers also discovered a fading trail of footprints and they remained optimistic, even as daylight faded. "It tells me that they [the missing climbers] hunkered down in the snow and survived for a while," said Tiffany." perhaps he did not die alone.
climberwanttobe Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 I have a deep sadness. I know the James family and have been praying and hoping. Live coverage at 5:00 PT. http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/VideoPlayer/videoPlayer.php?vidId=57406&live=yes
mt_hood_history Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 I'm so sorry. I've been following this constantly, as I live full time on "The Mountain", and have been holding on to hope. I still posses hope for the other two. Although I am praying for the safety of the other climbers, my prayers are focused on the family, as God has the climbers in His hands. May He comfort them all. Mt. Hood can be a temperamental mistress. So sad.
gslater Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 yes, something must have happened up there that we don't know, because it doesn't add up. As a climber, I find it very frustrating that we'll never find out precisely what happened to the deceased climber. We/I crave the information, and I am always eager to learn all that I can from the experiences of others. But I'll much rather suffer that frustration than have to suffer the sense of loss that his family must be feeling.
Zeta Male Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Actually, James was somewhat incoherent/disoriented during his last call. The part about "get[ing] help" was how the person taking the call interpreted and reported what James said. James's specific statement was something along the lines of one his buddies having "gone into town" and the other being on a plane home. So James wasn't communicating too clearly before his call was cut off; it appears he may have been suffering from hypothermia as early as last Sunday, when he made his last call. I'm not an expert at all, but if James had hypothermia, wouldn't it be best for all three climbers to stay together and pool their body heat, fuel, warm clothing, etc.? From what I've been reminded of while reading these posts, yup. But I suspect that James's buddies must've decided at some point that he was so bad off that his only chance to survive would be if they descended for help.
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 The only scenario that makes sense to me is perhaps a debilitating injury to James and the other two knowing that he required IMMEDIATE medical attention to survive. In their haste to get help, they may have gotten trapped. They may have sacrificed themselves for him.
Ice-Ninja Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 It sounds like a concussion. of course I am speculating. But combining body heat would be the thing todo for the immediate emergency so he wouldn't be making a call by himself. Bonking is possible but doesn't explain the delerium. Maybe a possibilty is that he got a concussion they tried to get help. I am writing this more for myself. It is really bad news.
Mada Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Let's keep up the prayers and hope for the two others.
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 It sounds like a concussion. of course I am speculating. Shock and trauma from any sort of severe injury, not only concussion, can result in delirium.
Ice-Ninja Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 they just said that there are tracks leading out of that cave. That is good news!
CrazyFlattlander Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 That would make sense, but if Kelly was unable to move because of suffering from exhaustion, I could see the other two going for help. Their escape route was the Cooper Spur and they could have belayed each other. Perhaps they were moving fast and made a mistake and fell/slid down the mountain. Perhaps they got lower and got lost and could not find their car or shelter. No one has said whether the other two were carrying cell phones as well, but it would be a good chance that they wouldn't work down lower on the mountain. However, the footprints indicate that they went up and tried a descent of the southside. My experience has been that there is no problem with cell phone coverage on the southside. Really hard to believe that the other guys did not make contact with anyone. Once you get below Crater Rock, you can glissade all the way to the lodge. I think they should check around the fumaroles on the southside and down low or around any crevasses on the north/northeast side.
tami Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 the man whop pasted away may have tryed to come out of the cave then went back in.we don't know how long he pasted away
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Kelly told his son that he was suffering from exhaustion, in a phone call in which little else he said made any sense. I just can't imagine his two partners leaving him if he was just exhausted. Thinking it was more than that.
no-pomomma Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Cell phones... I have not heard anything about the other two climbers carrying cell phones. Does anyone know if they were carrying phones?
tami Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 the man who pasted away may have tryed to come out of the cave then went back in.we don't know how long he pasted away
tami Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 the man who pasted away may have tryed to come out of the cave then went back in.we don't know how long he pasted away
Texan Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 Hi, I'm from Dallas. A group of us have been glued to all available news sources. First, thank you for what you seasoned climbers have offered in the way of information and HOPE for our fellow Texan climbers. I haven't seen it said here, but we have another theory and I hope no one minds if I put it into words here. James was babbling about where his other two climbing partners were. We don't think this is because he was too sick to be coherent, we think he was in shock because they died first and he survived alone, grieviously injured. He was able to tell his family what he had with him in the way of provisions.. I don't think he wanted to tell his family that he was alone on Mt. Hood, hurt, with his partners dead. JMHO, and please know that we are praying and hoping for the best, but keep coming back to this very heartbreaking theory. Kenny ~~~~God bless their families, and God bless each of you. Stay safe, play hard!!!~~~~~~~~~
timmiegee Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 I have been following the story all week. I am so sorry for the families. I was praying for a better outcome. Unfortunately, the news folks are specualting (CNN) what is happening on the mountain.
randita Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 All I heard was that family members of all the climbers said they always carried their cell phones with them.
mt_hood_history Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 It's possible that the other two could have gone over the top to the south side and veered to the west toward Zigzag Canyon, which is a very common mistake in descending the south side in zero visibility.
randyfranklin Posted December 18, 2006 Posted December 18, 2006 (edited) KATU.com is reporting that a Chinook helicopter has lifted the body from the cave and taken him to Hood River. No article yet, just considered breaking news. ------ They have since removed that news banner...not sure if the climber is being left in the cave tonight or not. Edited December 18, 2006 by randyfranklin
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