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Thread: Zion Accident - Louis Johnson - Not Imlay Canyon

  1. #41
    Content Provider Emeritus ratagonia's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sombeech View Post
    On a side note, it looks like Louis was a member here on bogley. @Louis

    I see a lot of people that knew Louis, I'm sorry for your loss.

    I'm curious, has there been a funeral or viewing yet? Did anybody in this thread have a chance to go?
    Louis requested no service.

    Tom

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  3. #42
    Quote Originally Posted by hank moon View Post
    Obviously you haven't heard of pickleball calf burn syndrome-itis.
    Haha.... I didn't even know what pickleball was until two weeks ago. I noticed it was the most popular sport at the world senior games and wanted to find out what this action packed, high risk, low reward, sport that senior citizens flocked to was.

  4. #43
    Your instincts are right, Archie. Even if I plan to finish double-strand, I usually start with single strand. And if I can't see the rope at the bottom, then I almost always start single, then equalize the ropes later as needed, even if I "know" the rappel, through beta or experience, because I'm well acquainted with my personal fallibility. Having that extra rope available is a safety precaution. Being able to ascend more easily with my Tiblocs in case of problem is a fringe benefit.
    Can you see the bottom?

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  6. #44
    Quote Originally Posted by hank moon View Post
    Thinking about the minimum level of risk required to engage in a sport, i'd say canyoneering is moderately risky. High minimum risk could be skydiving. Extreme minimum risk? B.A.S.E. or exploratory cave diving. With canyoneering, you can always choose to do a less hazardous canyon, mitigate rappel risk with belays, and so on. So although the hazards of canyoneering may be inherently high, the risk can be greatly reduced by good risk management.

    Semantically yours,

    hank
    Well said. Which is why an Avalanche Course tought me (and others) to have a Plan B excursion in our back pocket, in case Plan A was suddenly evaluated aas being too risky (due to snowpack conditions)

  7. #45
    Content Provider Emeritus ratagonia's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by darhawk View Post
    While I agree with and very much appreciate the main thrust of the argument here, it surely goes too far in saying that beta should be put away once at the canyon, if understood to be a definitive rule. I have several times benefited from beta mid-canyon. I do tend to put it away, but then pull it out in especially puzzling spots, to be used in conjunction with the reality around me.

    Bluugnome in particular does such an excellent job with specifics and has helped save me lots of time and trouble in a couple of situations. I really love his beta. Still, I love the main point of the post: beware over-fascination with beta. I sometimes feel and try to resist that pull, while still taking advantage of the real help provided by clear and specific information. I feel quite comfortable tackling canyons with Bluugnome beta.
    I support your added nuance. There are usually one to three details of problems it is helpful to know, while in a canyon.

    However, I claim that your comfort in tackling canyons with voluminous beta is a FALSE comfort.

    You would be better served, I claim (pontificate, preach, entreat) to work on your craftsmanship (of descending canyons) by solving problems yourself, rather than using the cheat sheet. Afterwards, perhaps, compare to the solution that Luke came up with.

    Luke's Bluugnome beta is also written usually after doing the canyon once. I am surprised at how often he misses obvious points in his descriptions. His beta is also so detailed that it is essentially out of date as soon as it is published.

    Tom

  8. #46
    Quote Originally Posted by ratagonia View Post
    I support your added nuance. There are usually one to three details of problems it is helpful to know, while in a canyon.

    However, I claim that your comfort in tackling canyons with voluminous beta is a FALSE comfort.

    You would be better served, I claim (pontificate, preach, entreat) to work on your craftsmanship (of descending canyons) by solving problems yourself, rather than using the cheat sheet. Afterwards, perhaps, compare to the solution that Luke came up with.

    Luke's Bluugnome beta is also written usually after doing the canyon once. I am surprised at how often he misses obvious points in his descriptions. His beta is also so detailed that it is essentially out of date as soon as it is published.

    Tom
    I have to agree with all of your points here. When my partners and I first started this sport we were pulling out our beta sheet at seemingly every problem. Is this a downclimb, or a rappel? What does he mean by strong downclimbers can forego a rappel? Is this the keeper? It started driving me nuts how reliant we were on that stuff. Once we started using it to preplan the trip and to find the trailhead and then put it away, I noticed my skills and judgment started increasing at a much faster rate. The problem solving is now by far my favorite part about the sport.

    Also as much as I love all of the waypoints for the approach on bluugnome, the amount of detail given is way too much for me. Sometimes it reminds me of a treasure map, "walk 40 paces past skull rock, head East and walk 50 paces to the dead tree...."

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  10. #47
    Thanks for your patience while I recover from the loss of my husband and life partner of 21 years. The moments and particularly the sounds of Louis’ fall have been seared into my mind forever. I got no sleep for the first 48 hours as the accident played in my head on continuous loop followed by the endless thoughts of would’ve, could’ve, should’ve. I completely understand the insatiable desire for details and the need to learn from others mistakes when an accident occurs in a canyon. Unfortunately, there are no good answers for why we made the ultimately fatal choice but I can certainly tell you now a handful of things NOT to do.


    The way I see it, there were two glaringly obvious mistakes:

    1.)Why was a 100’ rope set on a 280’ rappel?

    2.)After realizing mistake number one, how did Louis react and why?


    We are experienced. Since becoming hopelessly addicted to canyoneering after descending the Subway in 2010, we have descended more than 120 different canyons in five different states for a total of about 200 trips. We took a multi-day beginning Canyoneering class from Rick Green in 2011 and his advanced class in 2012. We’ve benefitted from the instruction and example of many seasoned canyoneers.


    I think there is a general eagerness to get into a canyon. This may have contributed to a rushed decision. It is pertinent also to mention that along with all of Louis’ stellar qualities, he did have a streak of impulsiveness. Throughout our life together there have been many examples of this but I’ll just mention one here. We both LOVE to downclimb drops. There have been many occasions where I had to restrain Louis from plunging into a downclimb. Was he being impulsive on that rap? I don’t know.


    I need to state right off that Louis and I alone are responsible for what occurred that day. We used BluuGnome beta for the trip. I remember asking Louis if we should use Tom’s beta. He said the canyon wasn’t listed on Tom's site. I’ve since learned it IS there, Louis must’ve missed it. We had done the canyon once before – a rope retrieval “service project”. This was written up in one of Tom’s Raves. It made me sick to see those photos after the fact. Unfortunately, Louis and I are not among those who can remember every canyon trip they’ve done.


    Jeremy and Shannon described the approach – I’ll get right to the fatal first rappel. As we made the final walk down the beautiful slickrock ramp, the “new anchor” stood out like a beacon. We had used it last year. Before setting the rope, I pointed out the location of the “old anchor”. There was no webbing/anchor on the tree. This is when lightning bolts of caution should’ve hit us. They did not. At this point, Louis and I had no memory of doing the first and second raps as one single combined rappel. (Lack of preparation? We could've looked at our own photos of our first Not Imlay trip) This is where our inexcusable, baffling, horrible lapse in judgement occurred. I can honestly say we both thought Louis was going down 100’ to a ledge. Louis dumped the 200’ rope out of its rope bag, found the ends and began to thread the rope, doubled, through the rap ring. I immediately asked him why he was doubling it. I expressed my concern about getting the doubled rope through my new rappel device, the Sqwurel. More serious concerns escaped my attention. Louis said something to the effect that “we’ve done it before, it’ll work”. I quickly acquiesced. (now I wonder – what, a 100’ rope on a 100’ rappel? No room for error) (the rope was in a bag, why not just send it down, listen for it to land per usual?) (why not set a block with a contingency? This is what Rick Green taught us and we had gotten away from). There are situations where doubling the rope is prudent: shorter raps where you can always see the bottom, raps with problematic pulls where a block might get stuck, when you have a large group and speed would be helpful. Certainly if it was raining and you needed to exit a canyon quickly, etc. In the case of the first rap in Not Imlay, a doubled rope is a poor choice indeed.


    Louis said he’d set up the next rappel and took the only other rope with him. (should we have had another rope? Probably) (Did he need to take the second rope? No, there was no need for our group of four to be in a hurry) (Did the added weight contribute to his fall? Possibly)The rap has a long sloping beginning. Louis went over and far too long after we heard him shout up (due to the elapsed time he must’ve been close to the end of the rope). We had trouble hearing him. The Virgin is visible and audible from there. There was also an updraft that may have made communication more difficult. I conferred with Jeremy and Shannon and we agreed Louis had said that the rope was too short. I believe he repeated it and added that the end of the rope was eight feet short. This was almost certainly inaccurate. I was shown Tom’s Rave photos five days after the accident (taken from the bottom looking up). I was horrified. Louis said, “I need you to send down the other rope". Up top, we all realized immediately that we didn't have one. Louis realized this as well as I remember panicked silence after that. I went down and left to the “old anchor” site, a tree at the edge. I could now see the top third or so of the line and could now hear Louis clearly. I could not see him or what exactly he was facing. Both our minds were racing. I shouted down an idea, Louis quickly rejected it. I started to say something else and Louis said "Everett, shut up" in a panicked voice. Very little was said, there wasn't time. Based on the sounds I heard next, I can only use conjecture as to what happened. Louis either slipped off the end of the rope or intentionally let go, thinking he could make a landing. I believe it was the latter, perhaps that's what I need to believe. Louis said "Oh, Shit". I think back to our trip to Waterslides Canyon in AZ. Sitting at the top of the first slide, just as I let go to take that first plunge, I said "Oh Shit". It was an anticipatory exclamation, like "I know have to this so here goes" kind of thing. That's the immediate impression I had of Louis' Oh Shit. He did not scream or yell at that point. Then a series of the worst kind of sounds you hope you'll never hear: He landed quickly but didn't stop. Shannon first described what she heard next as "a commotion". To me it sounded like a rolling or tumbling. Then a terrible short scream, a sickening short pause, and a final awful crash.


    I have brave friends who did Not Imlay about a week later. Based on information from one of them, Louis was likely 20' from a landing, But it slopes downward and there are two ledges after that, neither of which could've stopped him. So the tumbling I thought I heard was likely a fall from ledge to ledge. What could've happened before that "oh shit" moment? Louis should've have looked for the bottom of the rope sooner, he should've tied off immediately, we should've established clear communication sooner, he could've hung on that rappel for 20 minutes, 2 hours, what ever it took. We could've figured something out if given the time to calm down and think carefully. I'm not going to list possible solutions because I frankly don't know if my ideas would've worked. Louis didn't have ascenders (the rest of us did!). We had always assumed we could share one pair. We have had to ascend due to stuck ropes four times (everyone needs to practice this skill more). I carried the ascenders, I was the climber. If given time we could've found a way to get ascenders to Louis. It's important that everyone understand that he was on the rope for just a few minutes before he dropped or fell.


    I do not follow the canyoneering blogs. Louis did that for us. I now know enough to get this posted and I did read some of the thread when looking for what Jeremy and Shannon posted. I may not have the time or emotional fortitude to answer any queries posted. I hope anyone reading this will gain some insight and better prepare for their own adventures.


    On the beautiful, terrible day this happened, as I was rushing back out the long approach, I kept looking at the vista. At the bus stop waiting for a ranger to take Shannon and I to the park offices, I kept looking up through the cottonwoods at the bright and imposing cliff face. After getting the awful, final confirmation that Louis was gone ("foxtrot" they said in code over the park radio), I was taken from the park and kept looking up at the towering formations. I was in an altered state and everything looked mockingly glorious but I was gaining solace from the powers of Mukuntuweap. I've not been back to Zion yet. At first I wasn't sure if I'd ever cannoneer again. Now I'm certain I will. As anyone can surmise from our photos and posts, Zion and Wilderness in general serves as our refuge and our life force battery charger. I intend to be back out there with a cautious vengeance, adventuring for the both of us.



  11. #48
    Thank you very much for taking the time to share your thoughts and story Everett. I'm confident as you recover and move forward in pursuit of your canyoneering passions, your wonderful memories of Louis will be with you each and every step of the way!
    Christopher

  12. #49
    Everett, thanks for sharing such a difficult experience. I wish you well.

  13. #50
    Bogley BigShot
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    Deepest sympathy on the loss of your husband dear.

  14. #51
    Thank you for posting, Everett

    Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk

  15. #52
    Moderator jman's Avatar
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    Thank you Everett for sharing your story.

    And thank you to others on Bogley and CC for being supportive and not critical.

    If we can ever do anything for you Everett (and Shannon and Jeremy) please let us know!


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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  17. #53
    Everett, thankyou so much for posting the first-hand account. Its a must-read for all of us.

  18. #54
    Quote Originally Posted by Iceaxe View Post
    It regards to this accident, rappelling single or double strand is a non-issue in my book as a competent canyoneer should know how to a ascend both types of situations. And if you only know how to ascend single strand I hate to break the bad news to you but you're not a competent canyoneer.
    Was wondering if there's a different way other than prusik for double strand, while on the rope. I don't consider carrying 4 tiblocs as a viable option (normally I'd expect folks to carry two ascenders at the most).

  19. #55
    Content Provider Emeritus ratagonia's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by nkanarik View Post
    Was wondering if there's a different way other than prusik for double strand, while on the rope. I don't consider carrying 4 tiblocs as a viable option (normally I'd expect folks to carry two ascenders at the most).
    Stone knot the strands before you go down.

    Bachman knot seems to work best, of the sling knots.Works well with 11/16" slings.

    Notice that if you use a Bachman knot for your top ascender, then you can use your two tiblocs as the bottom ascender.

    You can also change it into a single-rope climb, kinda sorta. Tie off one end to your harness, climb the other strand (require the rope to pully through the top effectively, which is rarely the case.


  20. #56
    One thing I've noticed about myself and doing canyons I've done before, unless I read the beta again closely, I always find myself in a bit of a difficult spot because of this detail or that detail that I forgot. It's SO easy to assume you know the details that you need to know, because you've done the canyon before. I know for myself, it's SO important to re-read beta.

  21. #57
    Quote Originally Posted by ratagonia View Post
    Stone knot the strands before you go down.

    Bachman knot seems to work best, of the sling knots.Works well with 11/16" slings.

    Notice that if you use a Bachman knot for your top ascender, then you can use your two tiblocs as the bottom ascender.

    You can also change it into a single-rope climb, kinda sorta. Tie off one end to your harness, climb the other strand (require the rope to pully through the top effectively, which is rarely the case.

    Thanks Tom. When I said Prusik, I should have said Bachman...just used to the generic term of Prusik as a friction hitch. Liked your Hybrid solution...will try it one day. Don't know if I'll go for the single rope conversion though :)

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