At 1:30 p.m. today, August 8, 2009, the Grand County Sheriff’s office received a 911 call and passed the information on to Rocky Mountain National Park dispatch.  A 32 year old male, hometown unknown, had a 20 foot tumbling, sliding fall near the summit of Mount Ida.  He suffered a broken leg and cuts and bruises.  Two rangers reached the patient at 5:25 p.m.  He is located a few hundred feet below the ridgeline of Mount Ida in loose rock and scree.  A litter team of 7 park rangers headed to the area but were turned back because of nightfall.  Two rangers will stay with the injured man overnight.  Rangers will assess the situation at first light tomorrow morning and determine whether the man will be carried by a litter to the summit and flown out or carried by a litter to the trailhead.  Both scenarios will require a technical litter carry-out for part of the rescue.

Mount Ida (12,880 ft.) is located 4.5 miles from the Milner Pass Trailhead off of Trail Ridge Road.  The elevation gain from the trailhead is 2,130 feet.

Update: Aug 7 2009 11pm MDT - Five rangers and a hiker friend of injured man will be staying overnight near summit of Mt. Ida

Update: Aug 8 2009 12:41pm MDT:

This morning, Sunday, August 9, a seven member litter team, consisting of park staff assisted by Rocky Mountain Rescue, and two park medics,  began hiking toward the group who had spent last night below the summit of Mount Ida.  The litter team reached the injured man at 9:20 a.m.  The group is setting up a low angle technical rescue to bring the patient 200 feet up toward the summit of Mount Ida to a possible helicopter landing zone.  A medical helicopter from St. Anthony’s Hospital is on standby.   If it is unsafe to land a helicopter due to location and/or weather conditions, then
the patient will be carried out on the litter to the trailhead.

The 32 year old injured man was with a hiking group of eleven people based out of Denver.  Their intent was not to summit Mount Ida, but to descend in to the Gorge Lakes area, which is a steep descent.  The accident occurred during the descent.  The man is an Indian National living in Lakewood.  His name will be released after family members are reached.

At 1:30 p.m. yesterday, August 8, 2009, the Grand County Sheriff’s office received a 911 call and passed the information on to Rocky Mountain
National Park dispatch.  A 32 year old male had a 20 foot tumbling, sliding fall near the summit of Mount Ida.  He suffered a broken leg and cuts and
bruises.  Two rangers reached the patient at 5:25 p.m.  He was located a few hundred feet below the ridgeline of Mount Ida in loose rock and scree.
A litter team of 7 park rangers headed to the area but were turned back because of nightfall.  Five rangers stayed with the injured man overnight
in addition to a member of the hiking group the injured man was with. Mount Ida (12,880 ft.) is located 4.5 miles from the Milner Pass Trailhead
off of Trail Ridge Road.  The elevation gain from the trailhead is 2,130 feet.

Update: Aug 8 2009 3:03pm MDT:

At 1:40 p.m. on Sunday, August 9, the injured hiker was in stable condition and was flown from near the summit of Mount Ida by St. Anthony's Lifeguard One to St. Anthony Central.

The litter team is hiking back to the trailhead at Milner Pass and should be out of the backcountry around 4:00 p.m.

Correction: December 11, 2009:

It has been brought to our attention that Larimer County Search and Rescue was involved in this rescue as well yet was not credited. We would like to that LCSAR for all their work. Many times LCSAR does not get credit for their part in Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue incidents.

(Photo of Mt. Ida by John Swadley/copyright John Swadley - all others courtesy of RMNP)