Outdoors

A record-holding climber was rescued from Yosemite; proves El Capitan is no joke

By Joshua Tehee

Hans Florine once climbed the Nose route of El Capitan (a nearly vertical climb of 2,900 feet) in just over two hours.

It was record-setting at the time.

The guy has climbed the mountain a hundred times and wrote a book about his obsession with what he called "Yosemite's most iconic climb."

So, Florine's Instagam post from atop the mountain Thursday was odd.

"Well, there is a rescue going on, on El Capitan. And it's me," Florine wrote in the caption of a photo of his smiling face, a forest of trees below. "I think I broke my leg."

Florine was helicoptered off the mountain Friday morning, according to the National Park Service.

While rescuers were able to locate Florine and get him to the summit for medical aid, the group had to camp on the mountain overnight, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Florine injured both legs in the fall, according to fellow climber Alex Honnold, who posted about the rescue on Instragam.

"A sobering reminder to be careful out there, even on routes that we’ve climbed hundreds of times," Honnold wrote.

"As Hans always says, 'Safety first, fun second, speed third.' "

Two helicopters in El Cap Meadow waiting to assist in the rescue of @hansflorine off of the Nose yesterday. He unfortunately injured both legs in a fall and ultimately got hauled to the top of the wall by Yosemite Search and Rescue. A sobering reminder to be careful out there, even on routes that we’ve climbed hundreds of times. Injuries happen in climbing, and Hans has been in good spirits throughout and will surely recover ok, but for whatever reason I’ve been very moved by the whole thing. Hans taught me much of what I know about the Nose, and about speed climbing in general, and the idea of him being in so much pain on his most beloved route really saddens me. As Hans always says, “Safety first, fun second, speed third.” Stay safe out there, and send @hansflorine some love. He’s done a lot for the sport of climbing.

A post shared by Alex Honnold (@alexhonnold) on

El Capitan, which sits near the western end of Yosemite Valley, is popular with rock climbers, despite the obvious dangers. A climber last year fell 100 feet, injured her back and had to be rescued. Several others were injured (and one man died) in a series of rockfalls on the mountain.

Joshua Tehee: 559-441-6479, @joshuatehee

This story was originally published May 4, 2018 at 3:26 PM with the headline "A record-holding climber was rescued from Yosemite; proves El Capitan is no joke."

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