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  • The Map beneath Three Rocks: How Fenwick Broke a Team and Saved One

    The Map beneath Three Rocks: How Fenwick Broke a Team and Saved One
    2026/07/26
    The Map beneath Three Rocks: How Fenwick Broke a Team and Saved One

    Danger and precision collide on a frozen ridge: a retired postal worker finds a hand-drawn topographic map tucked beneath three rocks at 7:18 AM on December 14, 2019 - a map drawn by a climber who could no longer close his fists. How did a single folded paper, found four minutes after a 911 call, become the hinge between life and death on Fenwick Peak?

    In this episode, we follow the climb and its aftermath, tracing the lives, choices, and timing that shaped the rescue and the loss. What did the map preserve, who made it, and why did a thirty-three-minute delay on summit day become the difference between coming down and not?

    Person: Raymond Erickson
    Person: Curtis Dahl
    Person: Faye Novak
    Date: December 10-14, 2019
    Location: Fenwick Peak, Fenwick Peak, western Montana

    - Map found by Melissa Bauer at 7:18 AM on December 14, 2019, pinned under three rocks at the mouth of Cutter Creek.
    - Melissa Bauer called 9-1-1 at 7:22 AM, four minutes after finding the map.
    - Raymond Erickson was 23 years old and had been climbing consistently since age 15.
    - The team reached the col at 12:47 PM on December 10, 2019 - 33 minutes later than the advised noon turnaround.
    - Gregory Russo had summited Fenwick Peak 17 times and advised the southwest ridge with a noon col turnaround rule written in Raymond’s notebook.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    15 分
  • Crampon in the Parking Lot: Four Dead, One Returns Alive

    Crampon in the Parking Lot: Four Dead, One Returns Alive
    2026/07/25
    Crampon in the Parking Lot: Four Dead, One Returns Alive

    A steel twelve-point crampon stamped "19200" was found leaning against a mud-caked Subaru in a trailhead parking lot at 4:53 a.m. on November 19, 2011 - four miles and roughly 200 feet down from where it last belonged on Kael's Tooth. How did one piece of equipment travel through ice, stone and gravity to land in a car cupholder while four climbers lay dead above?

    In this episode, we tell the sequence of events on Kael's Tooth between November 12 and November 19, 2011, following a five-person summit team, the fixed-line system on the Northeast Col traverse, and the one decision that set the course for the descent. What moment on the rope line - recorded in radios and a field notebook - turned a high-altitude summit into a tragedy?

    Date: November 17-19, 2011
    Location: Kael's Tooth, Caldwell Range
    Elevation: approximately 19,400 feet
    Person: Heather Padgett (age 38)
    Event: Summit and fatal descent of five-person team

    - A fourteen-year-old, Tracy O'Connor, found the crampon at 4:53 a.m. on November 19, 2011, and waited about forty minutes before flagging down a deputy.
    - The crampon was a twelve-point steel mountaineering device stamped "19200" in silver paint.
    - The summit team reached Kael's Tooth summit at 2:46 p.m, on November 17, 2011, already past their turnaround window.
    - Pete Hadley noted "spongy" midpoint anchor pickets in his orange notebook on November 12 and reported it by radio to guide John Hansen; the pickets were not reset before the summit push.
    - Heather Padgett, age 38, ran four miles every morning and was considered the strongest technical climber on the team.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 分
  • He Sat Facing Away: Why a Mountaineer Died Looking the Wrong Way

    He Sat Facing Away: Why a Mountaineer Died Looking the Wrong Way
    2026/07/24
    He Sat Facing Away: Why a Mountaineer Died Looking the Wrong Way

    A man in a red mountaineering suit was found seated and upright on a snowfield, facing southwest toward a valley fifteen miles away-yet he had just completed one of the most technically demanding routes few had finished. Why would a sixty-two-year-old wilderness cook leave high camp alone at night, summit a route recorded only three times before, and then sit down facing the wrong direction with a compass in his left hand?

    In this episode, we lay out the sequence of events from the Talvern Trailhead call to the discovery on Forest Service Road 14 and follow the small, concrete decisions that shaped the outcome. How did Thomas O'Brien’s background, the late-night solo ascent, and a single unexpected object in his hand converge to produce a death that resisted easy explanations?

    Person: Thomas O'Brien
    Date: October 9, 2017
    Location: Snowfield beside Forest Service Road 14, facing Elsten Valley
    Event: Solo summit ascent from Notch Shelf at ~12,400 ft
    Occupation: Seasonal wilderness guide cook

    - At 4:30 a.m. on October 9, 2017, Alan Porter found O'Brien sitting cross-legged, spine straight, holding a compass in his left hand.
    - O'Brien was sixty-two years old and had worked as a seasonal wilderness guide cook for nearly four decades.
    - The Notch Shelf high camp was established at roughly 12,400 feet on October 6, 2017.
    - At 11:51 p.m. on October 7, 2017, O'Brien radioed base saying, "We're going up," though no other team members left camp.
    - The northeast buttress route O'Brien climbed had only three prior recorded completions.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    15 分
  • Left Boot on a Transformer: How a Perfect Climb Nearly Became Murder

    Left Boot on a Transformer: How a Perfect Climb Nearly Became Murder
    2026/07/23
    Left Boot on a Transformer: How a Perfect Climb Nearly Became Murder

    A single left mountaineering boot, crampon locked and a silver "R.F." on the heel, was found upright on a transformer housing at 11,200 feet - four thousand vertical feet and a mile lateral from the nearest route. Forty percent of a fixed rope's internal load-bearing strands were later found severed after a glancing crampon strike; who noticed the damage only after nine passages, and why was no one looking when everything still "looked like a rope"?

    In this episode, we follow the Dunmore Massif expedition and the reconstruction that followed the boot discovery. You will hear how team roles, a seemingly minor scuff, and a single descent moment combined into a meticulously documented near-disaster that forced investigators to ask: how do you fix what you never saw was broken?

    Person: Ruth Ford
    Person: Jeffrey Jones
    Location: Dunmore Massif
    Date: September 14-21
    Event: Fixed rope damage and reconstruction

    - On September 21, utility worker Melvin Riley found a left mountaineering boot at 11,200 feet on the Kessler Pass relay station transformer.
    - The boot had a gaiter buckled, crampon locked to the sole, and "R.F." written on the heel with a silver paint pen.
    - The nearest established climbing route ended 4,000 feet higher and one lateral mile away from where the boot was found.
    - On September 14, Paul Strick's left crampon made a glancing strike against an orange 11-mm static fixed rope, producing a pale scuff on the sheath.
    - That glancing contact severed 40% of the rope's internal load-bearing strands, even though the sheath remained intact and the rope continued to hold through nine subsequent passages.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    16 分
  • The Boot on Cutter Creek: How Marilyn Walked Away from 13,400ft

    The Boot on Cutter Creek: How Marilyn Walked Away from 13,400ft
    2026/07/22
    The Boot on Cutter Creek: How Marilyn Walked Away from 13,400ft

    Cold wind, a single burnt-orange women's boot at 4,900 ft, and no sign of a body - a meticulous climber filed her itinerary and left a penciled note at 2:15 AM before a storm that arrived 36 hours early changed everything; how did Marilyn survive a decision on a ledge at 13,400 ft while her team staggered below?

    In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the campsite at 12,800 ft through the summit at 1:58 PM to the desperate descent onto the Morrow Shelf, reconstructing weather logs, radio timestamps, and the small details that shaped survival on the mountain - could one methodical choice in the dark be the difference between life and death?

    Person: Marilyn Perry
    Date: August 12, 2011
    Location: Morrow Spire / Morrow Shelf / Cutter Creek drainage
    Person: Charles Hall
    Status: Boot found at 4,900 ft by Sherry Norris on August 14, 2011

    - The summit was reached at approximately 1:58 PM on August 12, 2011.
    - Charles Hall wrote “dropped 0.18 overnight - monitor” at 2:15 AM and still started the summit push at 2:45 AM.
    - Wind speeds increased to 50 miles per hour within two hours after the summit.
    - Frank Oster fell at approximately 4:00 PM, breaking two ribs but arresting his fall.
    - The lone burnt-orange size 8 women’s mountaineering boot was found upright with frozen mud on the sole at 6:00 AM on August 14, 2011.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    14 分
  • A Tent Arrives Alone: The Verada Peak Disaster

    A Tent Arrives Alone: The Verada Peak Disaster
    2026/07/21
    A Tent Arrives Alone: The Verada Peak Disaster

    A fully erected orange expedition tent was found at 8,400 ft with its door zipped, two sleeping bags, a stove, and a pot of partially hydrated beef stew frozen solid - and there were no footprints, tire tracks, or people nearby. How did a tent traced back to a 12,600 ft high camp arrive intact at a lower drainage with a meal left mid-preparation, and where were its owners?

    In this episode, we narrate the sequence of events from the tent discovery through the prior four days on Verada Peak, following the crew, their gear movements, and decisions that created the central mystery: why a sealed, organized tent and unfinished meal would be found alone at 8,400 ft?

    Person: Grant Collins
    Person: Wendy Walker
    Person: Vernon Ramsey
    Date: July 14
    Location: 8,400 ft in the lower Sutter Creek drainage

    - At 08:30 on July 14, Grant Collins found an orange expedition tent with guy lines taut and the door zipper pulled shut from the outside at 8,400 ft.
    - Inside the tent were two neatly rolled sleeping bags, a camp stove, a fuel canister, two folded trekking poles, and an aluminum pot with partially hydrated freeze-dried beef stew frozen solid.
    - The nearest trailhead for Verada Peak was twelve miles up the drainage from where the tent was found.
    - A high camp at 12,600 ft on the southwest face of Verada Peak held a storage tent left two weeks earlier by Stan Morrow that contained extra supplies and a pot of stew he began hydrating before being called away.
    - Guide Vernon Ramsey set a 09:00 turnaround for summit day, transferred the satellite communicator and emergency rations from the damaged storage tent into the main tent, but did not transfer an interior provisions bag containing additional rations.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    15 分
  • Regulator at Zero: How Four Climbers Vanished on Morrow's Throne

    Regulator at Zero: How Four Climbers Vanished on Morrow's Throne
    2026/07/21
    Regulator at Zero: How Four Climbers Vanished on Morrow's Throne

    Fear that something small can erase you - an oxygen regulator was found in a ditch eleven miles from the nearest trailhead, its gauge frozen at zero, and no missing-person report matched it. What happened on the southwest face of Morrow's Throne that left a full cylinder gone and three climbers stranded at 13,400 feet?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from the June 2019 discovery back to the climb itself, laying out the gear, the decisions, and the single mistake that sent a cylinder over a ledge; can the pieces of a ruined summit day explain how one regulator ended up behind a church?

    Date: June 2019
    Location: Morrow's Throne, Sutter Range, Montana
    Person: Wade Stein; Melvin Clark; Sharon Eck; Tom Burris
    Elevation: 13,400 feet summit; push camp at 12,200 feet
    Event: Oxygen regulator found in drainage ditch with gauge at zero

    - A truck driver found the regulator on the third Tuesday of June 2019 in a drainage ditch behind Harmon Falls Evangelical Church, eleven miles from the nearest trailhead.
    - Morrow's Throne summit elevation is 13,400 feet and its southwest face is sustained mixed ice-and-rock climbing with no direct descent line.
    - The team hauled two oxygen cylinders to a push camp at 12,200 feet on June 7; a photo on June 8 showed the left cylinder at 2,000 PSI and the right between 800-1,200 PSI.
    - Three climbers left the push camp at 4:40 a.m. on June 9 and reached the base of the summit wall around 11:00 a.m.; one climber (Tom Burris) stayed at camp due to illness.
    - Melvin’s oxygen system bag dropped about 60 feet after a carabiner gate’s locking collar struck stone and opened, producing a single flat knock as it fell off the southwest face.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    16 分
  • The Upright Boot: How Small Errors Turned Varden's Needle Dangerous

    The Upright Boot: How Small Errors Turned Varden's Needle Dangerous
    2026/07/21
    The Upright Boot: How Small Errors Turned Varden's Needle Dangerous

    A single climbing boot, upright in three inches of snowmelt with a twelve-point crampon buckled and no blood, no tracks, no foot - and a label with a name, employer and phone number. The calmness of the scene at 6,200 feet on May 19, 2017 contradicts the messy sequence of small miscalculations that preceded it; what tiny choices added up to something deadly?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from Connie Weber’s meticulous routine and planting schedule to the May 15 summit push on Varden’s Needle, tracing the decisions, delayed minutes, and conditions that turned a local peak into a hazard. How did thirty-eight minutes on the summit, loose straps, and an eleven-minute slow pace combine to create the unexplained presence of that boot?

    Person: Connie Weber
    Date: May 19, 2017
    Location: Marie Bell trail drainage channel at 6,200 feet
    Event: Summit push began at 4:47 AM on May 15, 2017
    Guide: Ross Phillips, 49, owner of Ridgeline North

    - The boot was upright in three inches of snowmelt with a twelve-point crampon buckled to the sole.
    - Petra Gaines found the boot while walking a dog named Clover on the morning of May 19, 2017.
    - Connie Weber kept a paper logbook, no social media or GPS-tracked routes, and worked twice weekly at a community garden.
    - The summit team reached Ledge camp at 8,700 feet the evening of May 14 and began the summit push at 4:47 AM on May 15.
    - The summit stop lasted thirty-eight minutes versus the planned fifteen, with Aaron Finch eleven minutes slower on the upper ridge and a seven-minute stop to resecure Craig Welty’s crampon strap.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    15 分