A man found dead at the base of a climbing route in Wyoming’s Teton mountains has been identified as a Japanese national who was working in San Jose.
The body of Hitoshi Onoe, 42, was discovered by another climber Saturday on Teewinot Mountain, said a report from Grand Teton National Park. Rangers were notified and recovered the remains using a helicopter.
A cause of death has not been released; a park spokesman told the Jackson Hole Daily that Onoe probably died on Friday.
Onoe was reportedly an information technology engineer in San Jose. His family in Japan has been notified, the park said.
The man was traveling alone and had been staying in an Airbnb in Jackson, Teton County Coroner Brent Blue told the Daily.
Based on a marked map found with him, rangers believe he was attempting to climb 12,326-foot Teewinot by the East Face route.
The East Face is rated a Class 4 climb, a category that indicates an exposed scramble that may be possible without a rope. Local guides, however, say East Face is at the difficult end of the Class 4 range. Part of the difficulty is route-finding; it’s easy to stray off the Class 4 line.
The route where Onoe’s body was found, Black Chimney, is a Class 5 climb — specifically, 5.6 — indicating a climber needs a rope and other technical gear. It is known for crumbling rock and black ice.
In August 2015, two Jackson women were killed by a 200-foot fall when they went off route attempting to climb Teewinot’s East Face.