Knotted Rope Death

[Iceaxe]

I just heard of a death in Knotted Rope. Not yet sure of the details...

[Iceaxe]

Looks like Summit has posted a few details in the hiking section.

http://uutah.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7829

This sucks.... because you just know its probably going to be someone from the Utah canyoneering community.

.

[asdf]

oh man this is horrible. .... Any idea what specific canyon it is?
http://www.kutv.com/video/?id=27338@kutv.dayport.com

[Iceaxe]

I'm 95% sure its Knotted Rope.

Knotted Rope
http://climb-utah.com/SRS/knotted.htm

The shot from the helicopter looked like this pothole. And this would be an easy place to get into trouble, its probably the hardest part of the canyon, particularly in low water. Report is the woman fell and broke her arm and could not get out of the pothole. The news says she probably died of hypothermia.

[rockgremlin]

oh man that sucks! knotted rope -- I never would've suspected that one to be a killer. UGH...this is not a good year for canyoneers.

[Iceaxe]

The names are released,,,,

Hiker Dies in Southern Utah
July 16th, 2007 @ 10:00pm
Sam Penrod Reporting

A Juab County woman has died after falling in Southern Utah. Marie Coray and her husband, Kimo, were hiking in the San Rafael Swell.

The Corays are experienced hikers. But Marie fell in the rugged country and broke her arm. Kimo worked more than four hours to free his wife. But she died, perhaps from other injuries or exposure. Kimo was flown to a hospital.

The couple was reported overdue from a camping trip on Sunday. The search focused on a remote area, and ended around noon Monday when the couple was found.

Kimo is in the LDS Bishopric in the Mona 3rd Ward. The bishop, Craig Weight, has high praise for Marie.

"I think everybody that knew her loved her," he said. "I don't think she was the kind of person that would ever say anything bad about anybody."

Neighbors say Kimo and Marie were always together.

Krista Steiner described them as a "very, very happy couple, [with the] kind of marriage that we've all kind of envied and want to achieve ourselves."

Kimo operates a photography business. The couple have six children.

[Iceaxe]

Hiker Dies In Rugged Central Utah Canyon
(KUTV) SALT LAKE CITY A woman died in a tragic climbing accident in Emery County, but it wasn’t the fall that caused her death.

Search and Rescue was called out to the Knotted Rope Canyon area of the San Rafael Swell around 3 a.m. Monday after a couple in their 50s never returned from a hike.

Authorities say Monday morning Search and Rescue found the man in the canyon; his wife’s body in a deep pool.

The woman was repelling down a canyon above the pool when something went wrong. She hit the side of the canyon wall and broke her arm.

She was unable to pull herself out of the frigid waters and her husband was unable to lift her.

The man believes his wife died due to hypothermia and exposure.

The canyon is extremely rugged and requires technical repelling skills to traverse. The couple was well prepared for the trek say authorities.

The woman’s identity has not been released.

[stefan]

sad.

[Iceaxe]

Canyon fall kills climber
Husband watches helplessly as she tumbles into a 'pothole'
By Erin Alberty
The Salt Lake Tribune

An experienced rock climber died over the weekend when she fell into a pool of water in a remote San Rafael Swell canyon and, because of injuries suffered in the fall, could not pull herself out. Her husband and climbing companion was unable to rescue her.

Marie Coray, 58, was rappelling Saturday over a "pothole" - a pool of water at the bottom of a deep crevice - when she slammed into the canyon wall and broke her arm, apparently in an attempt to swing to a trail on the other side of the pool, said Emery County Sheriff Lamar Guymon.

Because her arm was broken, she could not pull herself out, Guymon said. Her husband, Kimo, couldn't pull her out either.

"He was there with her until she expired," Guymon said.

The accident occurred in a section of the San Rafael Swell that is crisscrossed with deep narrow canyons cut into rock walls. The Corays were exploring Knotted Rope Canyon, a side channel to Cistern Canyon, Guymon said.

The couple were to return to their home in Mona on Saturday. A rescue team began searching about 3 a.m. Monday after the Corays' family reported them missing. Their son, Jimmy Coray, said members of their church became concerned when the couple did not show up for services Sunday morning.

Searchers found Kimo Coray, 58, Monday about 9:30 a.m. after he had walked 20 miles in the wrong direction, Guymon said. Apparently Coray had become disoriented and began hiking out on the wrong trail.

Rescuers rappelled into the pothole to retrieve Marie Coray's body later Monday. Authorities aren't sure whether she drowned or died of hypothermia. An autopsy is likely Tuesday, Guymon said.

Kimo Coray, a professional photographer, suffered cuts and bruises and was dehydrated, Guymon said.

He has returned to his home in Mona; his family said he is not speaking publicly about the accident. The Corays have six adult children.

While it was the couple's first trip to Knotted Rope Canyon, Jimmy Coray said, they went in with 15 years of successful climbs behind them.

"They're very experienced," he said. "It's quite a shock."

Guymon agreed. "This is not a case of someone not knowing what they're doing."

http://www.sltrib.com/ci_6393423

[Iceaxe]

From the helicopter shots I saw on KUTV news it was this pothle. The pothole is easy to identify from the air because the canyon makes a very sharp 90 degree turn about 20 feet upstream.

I believe there are lessons to be learned from examing these accidents.

I know a lot of folks are asking why the man couldn't get his wife out, but I bet when more facts start coming out there will be a strong reason. Maybe she was hurt worse then a simple broken arm? maybe she took a bunch of the gear with her to the bottom of the pothole?

[rockgremlin]

I also questioned why her husband wasn't able to help her out. But I'm guessing she pulled the rope into the pothole with her. Otherwise, the husband would've been able to descend a fixed line to assist in her retrieval.

Either that, or he did have a fixed line in place, but was unable to pull his wife out of the pothole after repeated attempts. Ever try and pull someone straight up out of water at the end of a rope? Extremely difficult. He might have exhausted himself trying.

How awful --- to listen to your wife perish right in front of you, knowing there's nothing you can do to save her.

[rockgremlin]

This is one of the reasons why I prefer to canyoneer in groups larger than 3. In the sport of canyoneering, teamwork is a HUGE asset.

[Scott Card]

This is a real sad deal. I hope the details will come out on this soon. I would like to hear of the training, experience, and equipment these two had. Also, I would like to hear what efforts/techniques were made to get her out. I don't want to know this information to criticize but rather to add to my knowledge of things to take into a canyon or skills that need to be brushed up on or learned.

[hesse15]

I do not think that somebody that lost his dear wife in such a terrible way will be willing to "analyze" "disclose" and be thought any thing.
If that happened to me the last thing i will do is getting out details .

i think is a very sad occurrence and the lesson i am learning that i need to get more training in rescuing whatever canyon i do.

if my dear one get hurt am I able to lift him out and save him from drowining?
am I able to finish or reverse the canyon by myself whithout getting lost?
am I capable of doing first aid help to him?

most of these answer are NO
and that is what i am going to work on, because if something like that happen to me, my life will be affected forever.

that is also why i want my dear partners play 100% safe and ultraconservative when they are with me.

and usually i will not shut up until i get that ,no matter how skilled and strong are my dearest


i admit testosterone demostration only in one kind of situation and that is kind of private.....

This is a real sad deal. I hope the details will come out on this soon. I would like to hear of the training, experience, and equipment these two had. Also, I would like to hear what efforts/techniques were made to get her out. I don't want to know this information to criticize but rather to add to my knowledge of things to take into a canyon or skills that need to be brushed up on or learned.

[Iceaxe]

I've been giving this some though and I'm not sure how you would lift a person out of this pothole by yourself? There is no anchor easily accessible that I can remember that would not cause a major amount of friction in the ropes.

I'd be curious to hear some ideas, Lets assume a person who is of little or no help physically and equal to your own weight. There is a small arch down canyon about 20' that you can sling and use as an anchor. But the small arch is very low in the canyon wall. I can't remember exactly what's immediately up canyon.

This is the pothole that used to have the pole vault pipe in it. Maybe hauling anther pipe down from above would have provided some assistance?

.

[James_B_Wads2000]

I do not think that somebody that lost his dear wife in such a terrible way will be willing to "analyze" "disclose" and be thought any thing.
If that happened to me the last thing i will do is getting out details .

Is this what you really think? I thought for sure you would be saying got what they deserved. I mean that’s what you said about that guy in Heaps, Aaron Ralston, Grizzly Man, ect, ect. I guess we will have to wait until more details are released to hear your Monday-Morning Quarterback Report.

that is also why i want my dear partners play 100% safe and ultraconservative when they are with me.

And that’s why you’ll never get hurt or struck by lightning.



James

[rockgremlin]

Who cleaned up the pipes? maybe she'd still be alive today if the pipes were still there.

[CarpeyBiggs]

Is this what you really think? I thought for sure you would be saying got what they deserved. I mean that’s what you said about that guy in Heaps, Aaron Ralston, Grizzly Man, ect, ect. I guess we will have to wait until more details are released to hear your Monday-Morning Quarterback Report.

This oughta be interesting....

[Jaxx]

Is this what you really think? I thought for sure you would be saying got what they deserved. I mean that’s what you said about that guy in Heaps, Aaron Ralston, Grizzly Man, ect, ect. I guess we will have to wait until more details are released to hear your Monday-Morning Quarterback Report.

James

Geez, that came out of left field.

I just looked through the Heaps thread and couldn't find where hesse said anything like that. Could you back up your allegations?

[asdf]

Who cleaned up the pipes? maybe she'd still be alive today if the pipes were still there.

The pipes were removed from the canyon? Why?