Number 10 Alex Underhill
On June the 20th of 2017, Alex Underhill, from Hampshire, England,
died on a mountain in the United Arab Emirates. 25-year-old Underhill was hiking down Jebel Jais,
accompanied by his best friend, George Crewe. They’d reached a certain height but decided to
go back because they didn’t have much water left to deal with the intense heat. Temperatures on the
day reportedly peaked at 113 degrees Fahrenheit. Both men were feeling faint and exhausted. Crewe
was walking ahead of Underhill, searching for shaded spots where they could rest and cool down.
Crewe then realized that some time had passed since he hadn’t heard from his companion and,
as he turned around, he couldn’t see him. He started searching for Underhill and found
him lying unconscious. The man had slipped, or possibly fainted from the heat, and hit his head
on a rock. Crewe didn’t have a signal on his cellphone but he rushed to get help
and eventually managed to call a helicopter. He led responders back to Underhill but,
by the time they got to him, he’d already succumbed to his severe head injuries.
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and send it in to us on Instagram today! Number 9 Greg Boswell
In 2015, one of Scotland’s most promising mountain climbers was brutally attacked by a grizzly bear,
in Canada. 24-year-old Greg Boswell and his climbing partner, Nick Bullock, were making their
way through a dense forest on Mount Wilson, in the Canadian Rockies. Bullock heard Boswell scream
“bear” before turning around and seeing him chased through the snow by a massive grizzly. It pounced
on Boswell and easily bit through his hiking boot. It then sunk its teeth into the mountaineer’s
shin, while placing its paw on his other leg. The bear lifted him off the ground. In a panic,
Boswell started prying the grizzly’s mouth open with his bare hands. Bullock rushed to his aid and
together they were able to drive the bear away. Afterwards, they started running until they got
lost in the forest. The men wandered through it, in the dark, trying to find their equipment and
navigate down the mountain. Boswell kept bleeding from five deep puncture wounds on his leg.
The men feared that the blood would attract wolves or that the grizzly would return. Fortunately,
after trekking through freezing temperatures for several hours, they made it back down and Bulllock
drove his friend to a hospital at the Banff ski resort. Boswell had surgery to mend the bite marks
on his leg but was set to make a full recovery. Number 8 Chelsea Rebecca Alvarez
On New Year’s Day 2017, a young woman suffered a fatal fall while hiking in South Tyrol,
near the Italian-Austrian border. 24-year-old Chelsea Rebecca Alvarez, originally from Canada,
had recently moved to Italy with her fiancé, Colin Behenna. A former team captain for the
OHL Barrio Colts, Behenna was starting a career in the European hockey league, with the Sterzing
Broncos. Alvarez was following a mountain pass at an estimated altitude of 7,200 feet. According to
local reports, she lost her balance and plummeted nearly 500 feet to the valley below. To put her
drop into perspective, it’s almost like falling from the top of the Washington Monument. The
woman landed on some rocks and the impact killed her instantly. Many in the hockey community, that
Alvarez and Behenna belonged to, expressed their condolences and regrets regarding her passing.
Number 7 Benjamin Kessel
In September of 2020, a rock climber died at Franconia Notch State Park, in New Hampshire,
after his rope was severed by a falling boulder. Massachusetts man Benjamin Kessel
was part of a group of climbers taking on Cannon Cliff. The 34-year-old was anchored in when a
rock, reportedly the size of a refrigerator, became dislodged above his route. It tumbled down
and cut his rope, knocking Kessel about 150 feet down the cliff. The injuries that he sustained in
the fall proved fatal. His climbing partner, who wasn’t hurt, called 911. Roughly 90 minutes after
the fall, other climbers located Kessel’s body by rappelling down the cliff. Dropping temperatures
and waning daylight forced rescuers to postpone the retrieval effort until the following day.
According to the authorities, a total of 30 people took part in the rescue and recovery mission.
Number 6 7 Climbers Die in Himalayan Avalanche In May of 2019, British mountaineer Martin Moran
was guiding an expedition to the summit of Nanda Devi East, in the Himalayas. The team’s objective
stood at 25,200 feet. They made base camp on May the 18th and, three days later, established
a higher camp. Moran’s party of twelve then split into two groups. One group would continue
to anchor ropes on the route to Nanda Devi East while Moran and seven others would attempt a first
ascent of an unnamed peak, which stood at 21,250 feet. According to the subsequent communication
with Moran’s group, they’d established camp and they were going to push for the summit
the following morning. No further contact with the group had been made since May the 25th,
a day before heavy snow fell in the region. The remaining party of four failed to find the others,
but noted evidence of a large avalanche on their route. On May the 31st, the alarm was raised and
search efforts were mounted. In early June, a military helicopter spotted equipment
and several of the bodies buried in the snow, at about 20,000 feet. Strong winds prevented attempts
to airlift the bodies and expert climbers were sent to retrieve them on foot. The remains of 7
members were recovered but Moran was still missing and the search for him had to be called off
due to monsoon conditions. Footage from a GoPro camera, found near one of the bodies,
showed what’s believed to have been the group’s final moments. They were all roped together as
they crossed a delicate snow ridge. The unstable snow is believed to have collapsed beneath them,
triggering an avalanche that claimed their lives. Number 5 Patrick Boothroyd
In 2018, a young mountaineer died while climbing Ben Nevis,
the UK’s tallest mountain. 21-year-old Patrick Boothroyd and his climbing partner,
who was also in his 20s, were coming to the end of an ice-climbing route, near the summit.
They then reached a snow ledge which collapsed under their weight. The snow didn’t bury the
climbers but instead swept them more than 1,600 feet down the mountain. Boothroyd sustained
severe head trauma while his companion suffered a few cracked ribs, injuries that weren’t deemed
life-threatening. Boothroyd’s climbing partner managed to contact rescuers via cellphone.
Boothroyd was still conscious when he was airlifted from the mountain. He passed away
in the helicopter, from cardiac arrest, in spite of attempts made by rescuers to revive him.
Number 4 Annabelle Nielsen
In 2020, Utah woman Annabelle Nielsen died during a hike in Switzerland, where she was
working as a missionary. 20-year-old Nielsen had arrived in the country, in the summer of 2019,
to serve at the Alpine German-Speaking Mission affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints. According to a statement released by the church,
Nielsen was hiking with five other missionaries when she slipped and fell down a steep incline.
No further details were released regarding the location or circumstances regarding Nielsen’s
fall but the injuries she sustained were fatal. To honor Nielsen’s “example of kindness and service”
a GoFundMe campaign was initiated with the goal of using the money to help those in need.
Number 3 Richard Tiplady
On March the 5th of 2020, the life of a Scottish mountaineer, who was climbing a peak in the
English Lake District, was saved by an avalanche. 53-year-old Richard Tiplady was reassessing his
route to the summit of the 2,900-foot Pillar. Tiplady started to slip and tried to prevent a
fall by plunging his axe in the ice. He lost his grip on the tool and dropped nearly 600 feet.
Snow from an earlier avalanche not only cushioned his fall but also stopped Tiplady
about 20 feet from going off the edge of another precipice, which would’ve likely killed him. The
mountaineer had sustained devastating injuries in the fall. Fortunately, he managed to call for
help on his cellphone and a rescue helicopter reached his location within the hour. Tiplady
had fractured his neck, elbow and his ankle. He was left with facial lacerations so brutal
that his rescuers claimed he looked like he’d been savaged by a mountain lion.
Tiplady was taken to Royal Victoria Infirmary, in Newcastle, where he underwent a 2-hour surgery.
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Number 2 Simone La Terra
In the spring of 2017, Italian mountaineer Simone La Terra was attempting to climb Nepal’s Mount
Dhaulagiri which, at 26,795 feet, is the world’s seventh highest mountain. 37-year-old La Terra
had made camp on the rugged massif, at around 22,600 feet. To put that into perspective, the
spot where the mountaineer had installed his tent was higher up than the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro.
It’s believed that La Terra was inside the tent when it was swept down the mountain by a powerful
gust of wind. In the aftermath, members of his team tried to find him on foot while a helicopter
struggled against the windy conditions to expand the search. La Terra’s body was found about 2,600
feet below where he’d been camped. His remains were retrieved and transported to Kathmandu.
Number 1 Robert Boardman On October the 17th of 2010, Robert Boardman
was at Olympic National Park, in Washington. The 63-year-old was hiking alongside his wife and
friends. They’d reached the top of Klahhane Ridge when they encountered an aggressive mountain goat.
The non-native animal, which stands about 3 feet and can weigh up to 300 pounds, was introduced
to the Olympic Mountains in the 1920s. Boardman told the others to go down the trail as he
tried to shoo away the goat. A few moments later, his companions heard a loud scream.
When they returned to investigate, they found that Boardman had been gored in the thigh
by the mountain goat. He was airlifted to the Olympic Medical Center, by a coast guard
helicopter, and was later pronounced dead. The mountain goat was subsequently shot dead by park
employees. According to a park spokesperson, it was known to be aggressive but none of the
previously-reported incidents had constituted a solid reason for the goat to be killed.
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