TETON VILLAGE, Wyo. — Teton County Search and Rescue (TCSAR) performed a helicopter rescue in the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) backcountry on Cody peak Saturday afternoon.
Just after 1:30 p.m., a witness called 911 after watching a skier fall 700 feet down Central Coulior on Cody Peak. Central is an extremely steep, technical and highly visible ski line in the backcountry south of JHMR. To access it, one must exit the resort gates and climb the ridge of Cody Peak before dropping into the couloir from the summit.
The skier, a woman from Salt Lake City, lost her balance about halfway down the couloir. She tumbled down the couloir and over a cliff band at the bottom and sustained multiple injuries. Her partner, a man from Victor, Idaho, was still up in the couloir.
JHMR Ski Patrol was first on the scene while TCSAR mobilized a response with a team in the helicopter. The helicopter was able to land in Cody Bowl, where ski patrollers and Search and Rescue members helped carry her to the ship. She was then flown to the landing zone and a waiting ambulance at the base of Teton Village.
The woman’s partner was able to collect her skis still in the couloir. He threw them down the cliff at the bottom before he jumped the mandatory exit cliffs to the field of snow below. He was able to ski out of the backcountry on his own power.
