Mountain in the American state of Wyoming
Mount Helen (13,620 feet (4,150 m)) is located in the
Wind River Range in the U.S. state of
Wyoming .
[3] The peak is the fourth highest peak in the range
[4] and the fifth tallest in Wyoming.
[5] The summit is located in the
Bridger Wilderness of
Bridger-Teton National Forest , immediately west of the
Continental Divide . The eastern flanks of the mountain are covered in snowfields and
glaciers , including
Helen and
Sacagawea Glaciers , all of which are in the
Fitzpatrick Wilderness of
Shoshone National Forest .
Notable Ascents
1974 Northwest Ridge of the First Tower , NCCS III F8 A1, 11 pitches. FA by Dean Hannibal, Dennis Turville and Lynn Wheeler.
[6]
Hazards
Encountering
bears is a concern in the Wind River Range.
[7] There are other concerns as well, including
bugs ,
wildfires ,
adverse snow conditions and
nighttime cold temperatures .
[8]
Importantly, there have been notable incidents, including
accidental deaths , due to
falls from steep cliffs (a
misstep could be fatal in this
class 4/5 terrain ) and due to
falling rocks , over the years, including 1993,
[9] 2007 (involving an experienced
NOLS leader ),
[10] 2015
[11] and 2018.
[12] Other incidents include a seriously injured backpacker being airlifted near
SquareTop Mountain
[13] in 2005,
[14] and a fatal hiker incident (from an apparent
accidental fall ) in 2006 that involved state
search and rescue .
[15] The
U.S. Forest Service does not offer updated aggregated records on the official number of fatalities in the Wind River Range.
References
^
a
b
"Mount Helen, Wyoming" . Peakbagger.com . Retrieved March 7, 2023 .
^
"Mount Helen" .
Geographic Names Information System .
United States Geological Survey ,
United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved May 23, 2013 .
^
Gannett Peak, WY (Map). TopoQwest (United States Geological Survey Maps). Retrieved May 23, 2013 .
^
"Wind River Range" . Peakbagger.com . Retrieved May 23, 2013 .
^
"Wyoming 13,000-foot Peaks" . Peakbagger.com . Retrieved May 23, 2013 .
^ Hannibal, Dean (1975). "Mount Helen, Northwest Ridge of the First Tower". American Alpine Journal . 20 (49). New York: American Alpine Club: 138.
ISBN
0-930410-72-6 .
^ Staff (April 24, 2017).
"Bear Safety in Wyoming's Wind River Country" .
WindRiver.org .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Ballou, Dawn (July 27, 2005).
"Wind River Range condition update - Fires, trails, bears, Continental Divide" . PineDaleOnline News .
Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Staff (1993).
"Falling Rock, Loose Rock, Failure to Test Holds, Wyoming, Wind River Range, Seneca Lake" .
American Alpine Club .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ MacDonald, Dougald (August 14, 2007).
"Trundled Rock Kills NOLS Leader" .
Climbing .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Staff (December 9, 2015).
"Officials rule Wind River Range climbing deaths accidental" .
Casper Star-Tribune . Archived from
the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Dayton, Kelsey (August 24, 2018).
"Deadly underestimation" . WyoFile News .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Funk, Jason (2009).
"Squaretop Mountain Rock Climbing" .
Mountain Project .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Staff (July 22, 2005).
"Injured man rescued from Square Top Mtn - Tip-Top Search & Rescue helps 2 injured on the mountain" . PineDaleOnline News .
Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
^ Staff (September 1, 2006).
"Incident Reports - September, 2006 - Wind River Search" . WildernessDoc.com . Archived from
the original on January 27, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2022 .
External links