So again, there is another unfortunate incident of a climber falling to their death, again on Helvellyn. Why is this?
I have been up there once, 7-8 years ago, it was a clear day and I did the popular route overs striding edge, down Swirral.
As I can recall, going down Swirral is tricky, Striding itself was not too bad as it can be tackled from walking on the top or if that is too screamish along the side.
Can it be the walkers are inexperienced as they go to the lakes once every few years, or unavoidable due to triping over small stone at the wrong point...
Either way, its is unfortunate and quite an occurrence it seems.
@itchybeard
Re "...quite an occurrence."
Yes people do slip and get hurt/die off of Swirral/Striding Edges but in relation to the traffic both routes take the incidents per trip would be a very low statistic. Unlike the equally/similarly heavily trafficked peaks such as Scafell Pike/Skiddaw/all the popular horse-shoes etc these two approach/descent routes can really punish a slight stumble. Nature of the beast I'm afraid.
In reality these are easy routes for the experienced that are properly equipped for the conditions on the day. There is nothing particularly sinister about the mountain.
As already discussed the unfortunate guy had a heart attack - as in all sports/pastimes involving strenuous exercise this will happen. So not sure what relevance your post is to the incident.
My climbing/hiking buddy & I were out on Helvellyn yesterday and used Swirral as a descent route - having trekked out to The Dodds from Glenridding we decided as we were feeling lively to head back to Helvellyn and down by one of our favourite routes.
Everyone we saw seemed well equipped and no one was in a tizz - this is not always the case however. We frequent this mountain around half a dozen times a year and do indeed see people who are under (& over) equipped and who are often completely out of their depth - we have helped a few out over the years too. There's not really a lot you can do about this - the appropriate authorities and climbing/hiking fraternity give out heaps of information re safety in the hills. But how can we legislate for people that ignore it?
Re clothing. I see thats stirred up a bit of a debate although not really relevant to the poor guys demise. Clothing is a deeply personal. Experienced mountain users will have honed their clothing choices and what gear they take over the years through trial, error and the occasional mistake. It does amuse me when I hear people who do not, or rarely, use the mountains casting judgement on those that do. Gear choice will be based on a variety of factors - expected weather conditions, potential fall back options, speed that a person can move across widely differing ground conditions and individual physiology etc. IME some of the most dangerously clad hill go-ers are those that are over-dressed and sweating buckets whilst struggling with an all too heavy rucksack. Quite often these are inexperienced people who have casually read-up on the subject, or taken poor advice, and subsequently fuelled the sales of Goretex Wonderland of Ambleside/Keswick etc by purchasing kit they don't need or that is over-specified for the route in hand.
At the end of the day it is sad that a fellow hill go-er has died. Without demeaning his death in any way there is a certain romanticism in 'going' whilst doing something that you enjoy. Maybe his family will find some small comfort in that in the years ahead.
