The search effort for Dr. Gerald Myers was scaled back Tuesday afternoon. Search managers have determined that further air operations are unlikely to locate the Denali climber, missing since last Tuesday.
There has been no sighting of the climber or his gear during six days of aerial and ground searching. The ranger staff at the Talkeetna Ranger station has thousands of high-resolution images taken during aerial flights in search of clues.
Myers left his climbing partners at the camp at 14,200 feet the morning of May 19th to try and summit. He was sighted at various elevations along the West Buttress route that day. He did not return to camp that evening. He was observed carrying only a small daypack with minimal survival gear and skis. In light of his limited supplies and subzero temperatures, search managers consider that survival is outside the window of possibility.
Myers was a chiropractor from Colorado. Friends say he had extensive Colorado climbing experience, but had never climbed in Alaska.
