Colorado mountaineer found dead after fall into glacier crevasse in Denali National Park
Author: Tess Williams
A 28-year-old ski mountaineer from Colorado died Monday when he fell into a glacier crevasse in Denali National Park and Preserve, officials said.
Mountaineering rangers received a communication from an InReach device around 3:30 p.m. that a skier, later identified as Mason Stansfield of Ouray, had fallen into a crevasse on a spur of Eldridge Glacier, according to a statement from the National Park Service.
Stansfield and another skier were flown to the Eldridge Glacier on Saturday and intended to spend 10 days camping, ski touring and exploring spurs off the main glacier, said Maureen Gualtieri, a park spokeswoman. Stansfield was an experienced mountaineer who worked as a professional guide, Gualtieri said.
On Monday afternoon, the two were skinning up the glacier, Gualtieri said. They were not roped together.
“It was my understanding that the winter snow cover had hidden that (crevasse). There was another one in the vicinity that was more obvious that they were skirting ... when this occurred,” she said.
The woman skiing with Stansfield could not see or communicate with him after he fell into the crevasse, the statement said.
A high-altitude helicopter carrying two mountaineering rangers left the Talkeetna airport within 30 minutes of the call for help, the park service said. The fall occurred about 20 miles east of the Denali summit at about 8,000 feet altitude, the statement said.
One of the rangers was lowered into the crevasse by a rope and found Stansfield dead about 100 feet down, Gualtieri said.
Stansfield’s partner was uninjured and brought back to Talkeetna, the statement said. Rangers recovered Stansfield’s body Monday evening, the statement said.
Stansfield worked as a professional guide for about the last six years, said Nate Disser, owner of San Juan Mountain Guides in Colorado. Disser said Stansfield joined his guiding company after he graduated college.
“He’d become really reliable, well rounded, well respected, a very good tour guide,” Disser said. “As he got a little bit older, he just became a bit more experienced — he was kind of coming into his own. He’d really developed his skill set in a well-rounded and future-oriented way.”
Stansfield was an avid outdoorsman and craved adventure, Disser said. When he wasn’t guiding, Stansfield enjoyed motorcycling, sailing with his father, snowmachining, climbing, skiing and “all of the things that also are what made him a great mountain guide,” Disser said.
Stansfield had been excited for the trip in Denali National Park, Disser said. He had recently worked with another guiding company, Mountain Trip, and was taking this personal trip before starting a season of guiding in the park. Stansfield had guided for at least three seasons in Denali National Park, according to Gualtieri.
Disser said Tuesday that Stansfield’s death came as a shock to the tight-knit guide community in Ouray, Colorado. Stansfield was young, talented and friends with everyone, Disser said.
“He was 28 years old. It’s just hard to grasp the shortness of his life,” Disser said.
There have been 127 deaths in Denali National Park since 1932, 11 of which have been caused by crevasse falls, according to data from the park. The last death in the park from a crevasse fall was in 1992.4
from the Facebook Page of Mountain Trip
Mountain Trip
The Mountain Trip family is reeling after another devastating loss of one of our guides and friends, Mason Stansfield.
Mason was one of the most genuine guys we’ve had the pleasure of spending time with, both in the San Juans and Alaska. We’re heartbroken, to say the least.
Mason was doing what he loved most on a personal ski mountaineering trip when he had an unfortunate and irretrievable fall into a hidden, deep crevasse. But “doing what he loved” ultimately provides only some solace or consolation. He is gone far too soon.
At just 28 he had gathered valuable experience beyond his years. Mason was slated to lead Denali expeditions for us this season, and had just finished up guiding a successful ski mountaineering trip on the Pika Glacier with @ericlarson_mountainguide and @steepskiing.
These are by far our least favorite posts to write. We do so to try to find a little solace and to honor those we have lost. Over the years, that list of friends has become too long, and each time is no less painful. Frequently convening with the wild raw beauty of the mountains also means often taking on their hazards and disasters—some so seemingly random and unfair.
Mason: Thanks for the good times and for being part of the family. Have Sean show you the good pow stashes up there—we’re sure he’s already found them. Rest In Peace, friend. Climb on and keep smiling that mischievous smile we’ll all miss so much.
Sending our deepest, most heartfelt condolences to Mason’s family and friends, and his @sanjuanmtnguides crew on the other side of the hills.4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Goddard.4