Body found on Mount Rainier likely missing 80-year-old solo climber

SEATTLE — A man matching the description of an 80-year-old solo climber who disappeared a week ago was recovered on Mount Rainier on Tuesday, according to the national park.

Dawes Eddy, an experienced climber from Spokane, was last seen at 8:30 p.m. on May 30 as he was heading uphill at Cathedral Gap. The body was discovered at an elevation of 11,500 feet on the Ingraham Direct climbing route, according to a news release.

The Pierce County Medical Examiner will identify the climber.

Mount Rainier park rangers were notified of the overdue climber on June 1 and searched Eddy’s probable route, on the ground and by air.

Around 9 p.m. on Monday, two team members doing route work for a mountain guide company spotted an unresponsive climber in a crevasse and notified rangers.

Four climbing rangers and one guide ascended on foot to the scene and retrieved the deceased climber.

In 2009, at age 66, Eddy became the oldest American to reach the top of Mount Everest.

Solo climb permits are approved or declined based on a combination of factors, including the applicant’s experience, skill, plan, forecasted weather, the proposed route and dates, and their equipment list, the news release said.