The Tale Of This Daring High Alpine Rescue In Wyoming Is One For The History Books

One of the most popular climbing destinations in the country was Grand Teton National Park. It offered dozens of technical routes, stunning scenery, and a welcoming community of alpine climbers.

This intimidating route was technical, dangerous, and on many climbers' bucket lists. It was first ascended in 1936, but it had eluded many climbers in the years following.

Just below the summit, large rocks broke loose and sent Campbell tumbling down the rocky face. He was injured badly.

She flashed "SOS" with her flashlight, but never saw any response. There was no way for her to make it down the face with Campbell on her own. Miraculously, two climbers heard cries for help from the North Face while they were climbing Mount Owen. They raced down to the Jenny Lake Ranger Station and reported to Ralph Tingey. They showed up at Tingey’s ranger cabin door to report that while on Mount Owen, they’d heard cries for help from the North Face.

Tingey saw Hough's flashlights and responded in kind, but she was never able to make out his response. As the pair spent their first night on the Grand, she was unaware that a team of talented mountaineers was making their plan. Tingey, along with other rangers Pete Sinclair and Rick Reese, park employees Ted Wilson and Mike Ermarth made up the rescue team. It just so happened that world-class mountaineers Leigh Ortenburg and Bob Irvine were on the summit of the Grand and quickly descended to help the efforts.

The only way to help Campbell was to lower him 2,000 feet to the Teton Glacier, where a helicopter could remove him. He was placed in a stretcher to stabilize his broken leg, and the rescue began. They radioed for the needed supplies, and had to spend a night on the mountain waiting for the helicopter to deliver the needed rope, cables, and morphine. The next day, they were able to carefully descend 1,100 feet.

The rescue team headed back down to the Jenny Lake cabin, where they found a case of beer waiting for them. After three exhausting and dangerous days on the North Face, they had achieved what many thought was impossible, and saved Gaylord Campbell's life. They never heard from Campbell after that - until he criticized their rescue in a documentary. Campbell claimed the climbers should have carried him out backpack-style, which would have been quicker, but would have put his life at risk due to a chance of severing arteries in his leg.

Learn more about the story of this death-defying rescue on the Grand Teton by watching the trailer for "The Grand Rescue"