Trapped – The Aron Ralston Story. Part 1.
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Day 1 – Trapped
He was now close to the bottom, just 150 metres from the end of the final climb. If all went well, he would soon reach the bottom, hike out to his truck 1.5 kilometres away, and drive back for the bike he had left behind at the top.
The space between the canyon walls measured no more than a metre across. He worked his way slowly down the canyon, pushing himself carefully between the narrow walls in search of handholds and supports. An experienced climber, 27-year-old Aron had already successfully climbed many of Colorado’s highest peaks. In comparison, this climb was child’s play. Aron hadn’t even bothered to let anyone know where he was going, and had brought the minimum of necessary gear.
Concentrating on the task at hand he moved slowly but confidently down the canyon, only to find a large boulder blocking his path. To continue, he would have to climb up and over it. Cautiously, he climbed up onto the boulder, testing his weight. The boulder held firm. Aron moved carefully over the rock. Suddenly, just as he was moving past the other side, the rock came loose and fell towards him. Aron threw his arms out to protect his head as the rock came down. With a scream of pain, he felt the enormous boulder crash down on his right hand. Shaking from the pain and the shock, Aron slowly opened his eyes. What he saw filled him with horror. His right arm had been crushed under the enormous, 360-kilogram boulder. He tried desperately to pull it out, but there was no way the rock was going to move. Aron was trapped.
CHAPTER 2
Aron’s Background
When Aron Ralston was 11, his family moved to Colorado. There, Aron fell in love with the Rocky Mountains, hiking and camping, and quickly learning to ski. When he was just 18, Aron and his best friend, Jon, climbed their first “fourteener,” or 14,000-foot (about 4,200-metre) mountain.
During college, Aron worked as an outdoor guide. After graduating as an engineer, he climbed as much as possible. He would take risks and get into trouble, often when alone and in extreme weather conditions. When his job took him to New Mexico, he joined the local mountain rescue team, gaining valuable training from more experienced mountaineers.
In 2002, Aron quit his job as an engineer and moved back to Colorado – to Aspen, in the heart of the Rocky Mountains.
He got a job in a mountaineering store, and he continued to ski and climb, conquering over 30 of Colorado’s 54 “fourteeners” alone and in winter.
Then, in February 2003, Aron and two friends were hit by an avalanche while on a cross-country skiing trip. They were almost killed. Aron had persuaded his friends to ski a very risky route down the mountain. Incredibly, none of them suffered serious injuries, but Aron’s friends refused to speak to him again.
By now Aron had been involved in many accidents. Although he was experienced, his thirst for excitement constantly put him at risk, and he realised he needed to be more careful. Despite this, when Aron decided to drive almost 500 kilometres to Wayne County, Utah, for a simple climb down Blue John Canyon, he didn’t mention his plans to anyone. Nobody knew where he was or what he was doing. On April 26, 2003, after spending the night in his truck, he cycled south to the canyon entrance. There, locking his bike to a tree, Aron set out on the hardest six days of his life.