ACADIA NATIONAL PARK, Maine — A Montana woman who works at the Jordan Pond House restaurant suffered several injuries Sunday evening when she fell while free-climbing along Ocean Drive, according to a park ranger.
The 23-year-old woman, who is from Missoula, Mont., was climbing without the use of ropes around 5:15 p.m. Sunday when she fell about 30 feet, Ranger Ed Pontbriand said Tuesday. She was climbing on rocks along the shore on Monument Cove, which is between Thunder Hole and Otter Cliffs, he said.
The woman, whom Pontbriand did not identify, fell onto cobblestones. She appeared to break her ankle but suffered other injuries that Pontbriand described as “multi-system trauma.” Park personnel, members of Mount Desert Island Search and Rescue, and Acadia Climbing Guides responded to evacuate the woman from the bottom of the cliff, the ranger said.
The woman was immobilized in a full-body vacuum splint and hoisted in a litter to the top. From there, she was carried to a nearby LifeFlight helicopter that had found a stable rocky outcropping to land on, and then flown to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.
Pontbriand said Sunday’s incident was the second in the past two weeks in which someone has fallen while free-climbing in Monument Cove.
The prior incident, on May 31, involved a 19-year-old Bar Harbor woman who fell a shorter distance and hurt her ankle. The Bar Harbor woman was using a “crash pad,” which free climbers often place on the ground beneath them to cushion their landing if they do fall; she missed it slightly when she landed, he said. Normally, free climbing is done when the distance to the ground is not more than a few feet, he said.
Pontbriand said he is not sure whether the Montana climber was using a crash pad when she fell. He said climbing is a very technical skill, and that it can be “a little risky” for those who do not have a lot of experience.
“It’s a growing fad,” Pontbriand said of free-climbing. “A lot of people are starting to do it.”
Follow BDN reporter Bill Trotter on Twitter at @billtrotter.
Hope she is up and around soon! On another note – what is up with all the accidents at Acadia this season already? I think this is the most I have ever heard reported on so soon…
The mild winter and early spring puts us about into late July timing-wise if it was a “normal” year… so probably just as many accidents during the number of calendar days… no research on that, just a hunch.
How do they determine which hospital to take injured people to?
I think (please, someone correct me if I’m wrong), LifeFlight takes them to Eastern Maine because that would be the closest hospital that has the proper measures to deal with trauma patients. If it the patient needed advance care that Bangor could not properly handle, I then believe they LifeFlight them to Boston if it is serious enough, but I have heard of them being transported by Ambulance as well to Boston.
You are correct. EMMC has the most advanced trauma center in Eastern Maine.
Im glad it wasnt our famous plastic lobstah selling lady……
I was worried for a minute.
Since free climbing requires flexibility on the line of ascent I think it would be difficult to position a ‘crash-pad’ effectively. Maybe better to climb with an old mattress slung to your back? Also shouldn’t take the stability of rocky outcroppings for granite.
There are multiple activities being confused in this article. What this individual was doing is free soloing, climbing to a significant height without the use of a rope or protection. The individual that fell in the previously mentioned incident was bouldering. While bouldering takes place without a rope, it takes place fairly low to the ground and a crash pad is generally considered to be a safe form of protection by climbers. Lastly, free climbing is climbing with a rope, but without the use of gear to aid the climber up the wall. The rope and gear are solely for protection in the event of a fall.
Hopefully these articles will give climbers looking to solo some incentive to reevaluate their readiness.
… or their choice of hobby.
Climbing is an awesome hobby. It’s taken me all over the world, put me places people don’t normally see, and introduced me to the most genuine sort of people. Even if you account for scale of participation, playing baseball is more dangerous than climbing.
Hey, I’m not saying it ought to be banned or anything. I’m not that sort. Just that it’s a daft thing to do. :)
Well, there certainly a disproportionate number of ‘touched’ folks in the climbing community!
I think you’ll find that in any thrill seeking sport, Most skydivers I’ve met are a little out there. but still great folks.
Fad’s like free climbing certainly must cost a lot to insurance companies or other paying entity. Who foots the bill for this unfortunate accident?
I don’t know that I’d call it a fad, There has been free-climbing in Acadia for decades, I used to do it myself in my younger days (however NEVER without a partner)
Just a correction – the guides who assisted in this rescue were all from Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School not Acadia Climbing Guides. The info posted by bgshacklett is correct on climbing styles.