Climber falls while trying to reach peak of 12,000-foot Idaho mountain, rescuers say

Helena Wegner, Idaho Statesman

(Idaho Statesman) — A climber was near the top of a 12,000-foot mountain in Idaho when he fell and needed help, rescuers said.

Rescuers responded to a call at about 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, at Hyndman Peak, northeast of Ketchum, Teton County, Wyoming, Search and Rescue said in an Aug. 26 Facebook post.

The man had been trying to climb the peak in the Pioneer Mountain Range, rescuers said.

He then fell into “extremely rugged terrain,” injured his leg and couldn’t get off the mountain on his own, rescuers said.

The Wyoming rescue team was called in to help after local rescue teams couldn’t reach the injured climber.

A helicopter was used to short-haul him off the mountain to an ambulance waiting at a trailhead, rescuers said.

Short-hauling is a rescue technique used to move a person with rope attached to a helicopter.

Rescuers said Hyndman Peak is 12,012 feet. It’s the ninth tallest mountain in Idaho, according to SummitPost.

Ketchum is about a 150-mile drive east from Boise.