Mountain Guide Dies After Fall From Grand Teton

Mountain guide Gary Falk died falling 800 metres after successfully guiding four clients to the top of Grand Teton. He reportedly fell from the Owen/Spalding rappel into the Valhalla Canyon. His body was recovered with a long line after being discovered by two rangers in a Grand Teton National Park helicopter.

Falk, 42, from Ouray, had worked for Exum Guides for 12 years. “The Teton guiding community is devastated with this loss,” said Exum President and co-owner Nat Patridge in the release. “Gary was a diligent guide, always the consummate professional. Exum is grieving from this news and struggling to comprehend the situation. All Exum operations will be closed Sunday, out of honor and respect for Gary. Our love goes out to Kate and their sons.” Falk’s clients said one climber rappelled down without incident, but at some point something jammed. Falk unclipped to fix the situation when he fell. Park Rangers are continuing their investigation and a full report is expected within a month.