He fell 60 feet off of Mount Washington – and lived to tell the tale

Boston Globe

15-07-2025

It was only later, he said, that the traumatic nature of seeing the bloody, fallen climber really sunk in. 'It was relatively insane,' he said.
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The New Hampshire National Guard airlifted Lamb-Wotton in a helicopter to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center with injuries that officials at New Hampshire Fish and Game feared were life threatening.
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Lukas Lamb-Wotton fell about 60 feet off of Mount Washington while free climbing – without ropes or a harness for protection in a fall – on July 2, 2025.
'It was kind of iffy on whether he was going to survive,' Colonel Kevin Jordan, law enforcement chief at New Hampshire Fish and Game, told the Globe. 'He had all the signs and symptoms of severe head injury.'
Jordan said climbing without ropes, also known as free climbing, is 'lunacy,' and that Lamb-Wotton shouldn't have been doing it.
Lamb-Wotton, 31, survived the fall and has since undergone several surgeries, including to his wrist and one that required wiring his jaw shut. Still, we caught up with him over email about what led to the accident and how his recovery is going.
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This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
You grew up in Maine. How old were you when you started rock climbing and what drew you to the sport?
I did grow up in Maine and consider Gray my hometown. However, I did not get into climbing until after I moved to Miami for graduate school at Florida International University in 2017. I'd say I became a 'climber' in Aug. 2019.
From your
, it looks like you've done some free solo climbing before without ropes. What do you like about that style of climbing, and how do you think about the risks involved?
I primarily free climb with ropes or boulder, but I have enjoyed free soloing without ropes as it feels like a more 'pure' version of the sport, as you just walk up to something and start climbing. I just enjoy moving through complex mountain terrain and not having a rope, which allows a feeling of added freedom. Of course, it is inherently more risky for this reason. The key is to be alert and aware of those risks at all times and provide yourself a margin for error. If I feel myself getting too close to that margin, that is where I back down and re-evaluate.
Lukas Lamb-Wotton, 31, fell about 60 feet off of Mount Washington while free solo climbing there without ropes. The New Hampshire National Guard came to his rescue and flew him in a helicopter to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, where he has undergone several surgeries.
Lukas Lamb-Wotton
You mentioned you've done the route on Pinnacle Buttress twice before. How long had it been since you last attempted the route?
I have completed variations of Pinnacle Buttress twice, once in the summer of 2023 and once in 2024. All were without ropes.
I was not out on the face of Pinnacle. I was traversing the ridge where the climbing is segmented. You do some climbing moves followed by flat stances so I was not continuously climbing. I was very close to the top when I fell. Based on my experience in 2024, I fell on the last real climbing move.
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Were you climbing by yourself or with anyone else?
I was alone.
What do you remember about the fall itself?
I remember everything. I never lost consciousness while on the buttress. The key factor was the White Mountains had received rain the day prior to my climb and the section I fell on had some water coming out of a seam. In 2024 I used the seam to stand up and then moved left to some good holds and finished the climb. This is where my risk miscalculation happened.
I knew the holds to the left were good, so I thought I could avoid the wet seam by going straight to those good holds. But since I had not stood up enough in the seam, the hold out left wasn't as good as I remembered. I tried to compensate by grabbing it with both hands and standing but this contorted me in a way that caused my heels to lift and subsequently fall.
I screamed and fell about 20 to 30 feet in the air. I was wearing a backpack. Once I fell I spun around so my back was to the wall and landed on my right side. I believe I broke two ribs on the fall but that my backpack prevented me from breaking my back or neck. I then tumbled another 30 to 40 feet through a rocky gully full of vegetation.
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I think I sustained most of my injuries during the tumble, including an ankle avulsion, broken left wrist, broken/dislocated jaw, and several face fractures around my left orbital and small bones in my nose and ear. I also broke about four teeth and remember spitting a fifth out after the tumble. It all happened very quickly.
What happened once you were rescued?
I had a lot of adrenaline pumping so I don't remember significant pain, but I was very banged up. The helicopter ride was totally fine and can't thank the search and rescue team enough. I know a heli rescue off Pinnacle was no easy task. They had to make two passes before the SAR member could reach me due to winds. They did everything they could to assist me and make me feel comfortable and cared for. They have my enduring gratitude.
The same goes for the two climbers who sprang into action after hearing me fall. A group of hikers in Huntington Ravine saw me fall and heard me scream. They helped direct the climbers to my position. Climber Mike (Reid) then rappelled down to me and secured me. Then he and his partner got me to a stable position. Mike and I ascended the whole gully I had tumbled down. Once in a stable location they talked me through everything and were the ones to call search-and-rescue. My rescue would have been much more complicated and arduous without them. I feel forever indebted to them and can't thank them enough for what they did.
Lukas Lamb-Wotton, 31, fell about 60 feet off of Mount Washington while free solo climbing there without ropes. The New Hampshire National Guard came to his rescue and flew him in a helicopter to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, where he has undergone several surgeries.
Lukas Lamb-Wotton
What surgeries have you had so far? How long do you think it will take to make a full recovery?
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I had wrist surgery last week where a plate was used to stabilize my ulna. A pin was also placed in my hand to stabilize two dislocated metacarpals. I had a second surgery on Monday to repair my facial fractures and work on my jaw. I have a third surgery upcoming to finish fixing my jaw.
My jaw is partially wired shut now and will be fully wired after my last surgery. I will probably be at Dartmouth another week but I'm sure it will be two to three months before my bones fully heal. Then, I will need physical therapy and out-patient services.
I saw
was created for you! It lists your injuries as: 'multiple orbital and naso-cochlear fractures, a dislocated jaw, broken ribs, a number of missing teeth, along with numerous injuries to his wrists and ankles.' Is that correct?
Yes, generally.
Do you have any idea of how much your medical care has cost so far? Do you know if the search and rescue team is charging anything for your rescue or the use of the helicopter?
The cost of my medical bills is not clear but is sure to exceed $15,000. I have health insurance but it's not clear to me what will be covered. I will also need dental surgery to fix all my teeth once my jaw is healed and out-patient services during recovery. I have not talked to the search and rescue team yet but have friends in contact with them.
(
Colonel Kevin Jordan said he hasn't made a determination yet about whether to charge Lamb-Wotton for the helicopter rescue. Typically, Fish and Game only charges if they determine that someone was negligent or reckless, but Jordan said he takes pause in the case of injuries as serious as Lamb-Wotton's. He said it can cost up to $80,000 to use a helicopter with a medical evacuation crew, but typically, the National Guard writes these rescues off as a training expense, in which case the state doesn't have to foot the bill.)
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How, if at all, does this accident change your relationship to rock climbing? Do you think you'll do anything differently in the future?
I will definitely get back to climbing as soon as I recover but I don't believe I will be doing any more free solos. My gut and intuition told me to back down on the move but I pushed on with dire consequences. This experience has reinvigorated my mentality on risk assessment and management as split-second decisions are what matters in these situations – rock climbing and beyond.
Amanda Gokee can be reached at