Our team of reporters and editors are out and about every day. On the third Sunday of the month, we’re using our Aspen Miscellaneous feature to showcase some of the moments they capture when they are working and playing in our community.
Mountain Rescue Aspen, National Guard get climber off ledge after 25-foot fall
Staff reports
An injured Denver woman was hoisted Tuesday from a ledge below the summit of Pyramid Peak and flown to safety by helicopter, according to a news release.
The 35-year-old woman fell about 25 feet near Pyramid Peak’s summit, suffered “multiple injuries” but was “conscious and breathing” when Pitkin County dispatchers received notice of the accident at 8:19 a.m., the release from the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office states.
“The climber was said to be lying on a ledge not far below Pyramid’s summit, immobile,” according to the release.
Lost in a sea of Rudolph-red noses, an authoritative voice caught my attention. It was an early, brisk Saturday morning and I had yet to drink my coffee. I slowly turned my focus to a group of men in red vests with official-looking walkie talkies strapped to their chests. They rallied the group in attempts to make an announcement. We stood outside at the main entrance of T-Lazy-7 Ranch where we eagerly anticipated further instruction.
After a brief introduction, we were each assigned to our designated snowmobiles and I promptly worried about what I had just signed up for. Having never done this before, I didn’t know quite what to expect. My friend who was riding tandem on my sled asked me to drive first, and I willingly agreed. She looked at me nervously and asked, “You know what you’re doing?” I secured my helmet, took a breath, looked her square in the eye and said, “No. But let’s do this!”