Gaylord ice climber’s body recovered at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
GAYLORD — Authorities at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore announced on Monday that the body of James Bake, an ice climber from Gaylord, has been recovered.
“Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore would like to recognize the incredible work from our local emergency response partners to include the Alger County Sheriff, U.S. Coast Guard Station Marquette, Michigan State Police, and the Superior High Angle Rescue Professionals (SHARP) rope rescue team assisting with the search and recovery of James Bake during the week of Feb. 7-12, 2023,” the park service posted on Facebook. “This was a complex operation executed in very challenging conditions, and many of our partners are volunteers. Thank you all for your dedication to our community.”
More:Coast Guard suspends search for missing ice climber at Pictured Rocks
Bake was climbing in the Miners Castle area with a friend when he fell on Feb. 7. The initial search for him was suspended on Feb. 8, and recovery efforts continued later in the week once weather conditions had improved.
In a Facebook post on Monday, Bake’s wife Lauren said she received a call on Sunday saying search teams had been able to successfully locate and recover Bake a short distance from where the accident happened.
“Thank you so much for all the prayers regarding this specific thing. James is coming home!” Lauren wrote. “With that being said, the additional search will not be needed. For anyone who was able to donate towards this, we will be canceling the GoFundMe today, so that everyone will be refunded. Anyone who would still like to donate to Bruce's Legacy in honor of James, can give directly to them. I cannot express how overwhelmed I am by all everyone’s generosity.
“Also, THANK YOU to the rangers of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (and so many more I don’t know) who spent every day out looking for James. I am forever grateful.”
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More:Fundraiser launched to help recover missing Gaylord ice climber
The family had launched a GoFundMe to help cover the expenses of a search and recovery operation headed by Bruce’s Legacy, a nonprofit volunteer organization that provides emergency assistance, education, public safety awareness, and search and recovery operations for drowned victims to provide resolution for families.
It had raised over $6,000 before ending.
North Life Church in Gaylord is hosting a celebration of life for Bake at 6 p.m. on Feb. 17. They will serve his favorite foods, pizza and ice cream, and share memories.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
— Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Gaylord ice climber’s body recovered at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
