Climbers survive night on park peak
Three Kalispell men survived Sunday night on the slopes of Glacier National Park’s Mount Brown, with the eventual help of a search team.
Dan House, 18, James McCarthy, 18, and Justin Newton, 20, were in “excellent condition” when they got off the mountain Monday morning, according to a park press release.
The three had set out on snowshoes at about 11 a.m. with plans to reach the fire lookout on Mount Brown east of the head of Lake McDonald. The lookout can be reached by a five-mile-long trail that climbs 4,278 feet.
They planned to ski off the mountain before dusk, but ran out of light before they could begin their descent. Around 6:30 p.m., one of the men was able to make contact via a cell phone to notify a family member they were stranded.
The family member notified Flathead County’s dispatch center and a search was launched, but searchers did not have an exact location for the three men.
Searcher focused on high-probability areas, scanned for signs of fire and used whistles to try to locate the group. Rangers and county search-and-rescue volunteers spent the entire night unsuccessfully looking for the group.
Early Monday, a ranger sent a text message to one of the men’s cell phones, requesting them to call 911, which they did at around 8 a.m.
From that call, Flathead County dispatchers were able to get a latitude and longitude pinpointing their location. The young men also reported that they had been able to make a fire and build a shelter and that all three were doing well.
With an exact location, the Flathead Nordic Ski Patrol and park personnel set out and located the group at about 10:30 a.m.
Led by patrollers, the group skied off the mountain, making a full descent in just half an hour.
Park Ranger Gary Moses, the incident commander, said he and other park officials appreciate the mutual aid provided by Flathead County Search and Rescue and the Flathead Nordic Ski Patrol.
Moses reminds winter visitors that mountain weather conditions can change quickly, and he recommends they be prepared for all conditions as well as avalanche hazards.