Ice climber falls to his death in Montana national forest

An avid ice climber has died after a fall in Montana’s Hyalite Canyon.

Kyle Allen Rott, 36, a Montana resident known for his climbing adventures across the country, was identified by the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office as the man who died on Saturday.

At around 3.19pm, Gallatin County police received coordinates from a GPS device monitoring service near Grotto Falls in Hyalite Canyon in the Gallatin National Forest. Mr Rott’s SPOT beacon had been activated by a hiker who found him after the fall.

The hiker also called 911 to report that Rott was severely injured.

The sheriff’s office search and rescue volunteer team, Two Bear Air Rescue and Billings Clinic Med Flight helicopters were dispatched to Grotto Falls to find the injured climber.

Rott was given initial medical treatment at the scene before being transported by helicopter to Bozeman Health Deaconess Regional Medical Center, where he later died from his injuries.

A coroner determined he died from blunt force trauma to the head in the fall.

“Sheriff Dan Springer would like to express his condolences to Mr. Kyle Rott’s family in South Dakota and his friends. Sheriff Springer also thanks all the dedicated search and rescue members who responded so quickly.”

In an obituary by KBZK, Rott had “a deep love for mountains, climbing, and exploration” and embarked on many expeditions such as in Black Hills of South Dakota, Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, Yosemite Valley in California, and Hyalite Canyon in Montana.

Amongst many environmental conservationist jobs, he was also a climbing guide at Yosemite National Park.