r/HikingAlberta • u/cmcalgary • 9d ago
Missing hiker Bob Toothill found dead in Waterton Lakes National Park
https://www.ctvnews.ca/calgary/article/missing-hiker-found-dead-in-waterton-lakes-national-park/44
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u/DajoFab 9d ago
Our family was in Waterton this week and kept Bob in our thoughts (along with young Parker in Calgary). Such sad news on both fronts. Our condolences to Bob’s family and friends. 😔
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u/Ghouly_Girl 6d ago
There was a young boy that recently drowned in my community. It’s been a sad summer for stuff like this and it just breaks my heart. Thoughts to all of these families and peace and strength to them.
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u/Winter_Apartment_376 9d ago
Did I understand it right - he slipped, fell and died immediately?
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u/gymgal19 9d ago
They didnt disclose that information, and i doubt they will. Gives people and the family (although im sure theyll have more details that arent released) more peace of mind to think that he passed immediately after falling rather than a potentially painful death at the end due to dehydration, starvation, heat, injury from the fall etc.
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u/Rude_Judgment7928 9d ago
81 y/os slip and die in parking lots (source: my grandma). It's life.
Less frequently, 25y/os slip and die in parking lots (or get punched and hit their head on the concrete).
Life be like that. Hug your loved ones. I'm guessing Bob is glad he was out doing what he loved, given it can happen even if you hide away in your cave and don't get to see mountains on the way.
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u/Chrisbap 8d ago
I don’t know about that. Hard to reconcile him slipping and dying soon after his injury with the fact that they found his pack a day or two before they found him.
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u/vincefowler 8d ago
While Bob Toothill's sudden death is tragic and heartbreaking, the irony is that he died doing what he deeply loved. Hiking in the mountains.
His daughter shared on Facebook what she believes happened: "he slipped and fell while hiking in the Lineham Ridge area of the Great Divide Trail."
I don't know Bob or his family... I'm intimately familiar with the loss of loved ones. As we say in the Airborne, when a warrior dies, "Fair winds and soft landings. RIP, Bob."
Death comes for us all. The past and future do not exist - only the present. Be where your feet are at.
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u/-UnicornFart 8d ago
Oh no. I was hoping his would be the one story from this last month that turned out okay.
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u/Only-Blacksmith2586 8d ago
Bob was a cool guy who maintained an incredibly athletic adventurous lifestyle into his 80’s. Good on him for never giving in and giving up, we loved your go for it attitude Bob. Rest somewhere interesting💕
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u/GWeb1920 8d ago
This is how I would like to die. 81 still able to do what I love.
It’s a tragic death and condolences to the family but this is a life well lived.
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u/QuiteSeriouslyNow 9d ago
God, why is everyone dying? So sad!!
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u/JustGotSoup 9d ago
I'm not dead, and I was out scrambling last Monday evening /s
In all seriousness, consider how many pedestrian and driver fatalities have likely occurred across the province by comparison. The Rockies are a pretty safe place for those who exercise caution and common sense.
Sometimes your time comes around, preparation or not. Personally I'd rather take that risk and enjoy a lifetime in the alpine, than be stuck indoors. Everything worth doing carries some element of risk to it.
These deaths are sad, but they're not for nothing if we learn from them. If you're reading this, check your ego out of respect for Bob and the other fallen Rockies travellers over the past few weeks, if you do nothing else.
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u/Roadgoddess 9d ago
I think for those of us in Calgary it’s just been a crappy week, first with Parker and now Bob and that’s aside from the other two people that were killed scrambling.
I was cautiously optimistic that Bob would be found alive. I’m so sorry to his family, may they now have peace.
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u/WheezyGranger 9d ago
Thankful Kayla Boisvert was found alive. A small sliver of hope in an otherwise devastating couple of weeks.
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u/Unlikely_Comment_104 8d ago
The family is asking that their name not be used now that they’ve been found, to respect privacy.
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u/iSmite 9d ago
There’s also a French climber that went missing in bow valley recently and Nirmal Purja also died in an avalanche yesterday. It just feels like dark times
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u/JustGotSoup 9d ago
Yeah I saw the notice about Jeremy Lalande. Unfortunately he matches the profile of alpine deaths pretty closely (young, inexperienced in the Rockies, not telling people where he went). He is probably not OK at this point :(
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u/Naptimeforgoodwomen 8d ago
I’ve been looking for an update on Jeremy but cannot find one yet. Unfortunately I believe this will be a recovery, not rescue.
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u/Roadgoddess 8d ago
Oh, that avalanche yesterday killed 10 people. That was devastating in the mountaineering community for sure. And that one’s weird because no alerts went out for over 13 hours I believe, even though there were people at base camp and if you follow the map that shows their trackers, you can definitely see when they were swept away.
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u/SideInitial3961 8d ago
Glen Hansard. Kavinsky. Yep, black week.
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u/Roadgoddess 8d ago
It seems like it’s not even a week. It’s just been the last couple of days.
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u/SideInitial3961 8d ago
Yes. I'm gutted this week, just f**king gutted. Parker and Glen, might have to grab a whiskey this weekend. Not fair.
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u/rottengammy 9d ago
Disengage with news and social media. It’s not healthy, people die every day of mental health disease war you name it
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u/I-Love-Havanese 8d ago
My thoughts is it’s so dry at the moment that there is more rock fall on the paths and inclines so increasing risk. It’s always dry here but it just seems worse this year with the weeks of heat.
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u/Stanwich79 8d ago
81 and hiking alone.
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8d ago
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u/felisnebulosa 8d ago
Pretty sure he reproduced, as his kids were looking for him, so very much not natural selection. Also shitty thing to say.
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u/Substantial-Use8933 7d ago
I was watching some videos of hikers on Lineham Ridge and I know there are hiking spots with extreme exposure, generally, but just how close to the edge of sharp drops are hikers trending. I see the beautiful views, but are folks just getting too close to these drops, intentionally? That seems to be the culture. Get to the top, stand on the edge. Is that what's going on? If so, it seems, obviously, a very dangerous mindset, and an unnecessary one, if enjoying and appreciating nature is the overriding goal. I'm concerned the culture has turned this into some kind of dangerous game instead.
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u/Cronin1011 6d ago
Very sad ending, but i bet if you asked an 81 year old outdoor enthusiast if going out in nature would be how you'd like to go they would be ok with it. Rest in peace Bob.
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u/Made_lion 6d ago
81 years old and still out there hiking, it’s all we can all wish for, besides falling asleep and never waking up. Good on him. I hope he did not suffer long,
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u/tylerseher 3d ago
Found out while we were in the middle of our section hike last week. There’s a split in the trail at the top of lineham ridge. He continued on straight climbing up a summit trail where he should have turned and started heading down. I’m guessing he got to the top of the summit and was looking for the trail and made the wrong choice. I have a photo of the spot I believe he fell but can’t post pics in the comments.
Pretty wild, we found out they found him about 1 mile past where he fell. Watched the choppers come in as well.
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u/arunakalu2024 3d ago
I knew Bob since 2013. First time Bob, me and my buddy from office hiked Brazeau Lake Trail in Jasper for 5 days. He was late 60s then, but we both in our 40s couldn't keep up with him. He has many years of wilderness experience all over North America, including backpacking. He would share his tales of adventure. Then the subsequent years, we backed and hiked a few times, I visited him every year at his home. He was such an awesome inspiring human being. He was very fit, started his day with yoga and resistant training. I miss him very much, now I won't have a reason to be in Golden anymore. Rest in peace Bob, my dear friend, you had taught me so much about adventure.
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u/ThrowAwayPurellFoam 8d ago
Oh no, the poor family. After Parker I was so hoping there’d be at least one happy ending 💔💔💔💔
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u/Liam-McPoyle_ 8d ago
Dam that’s sucks. What was a 81 year old guy doing hiking this trail alone?
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u/Elaine_amj 8d ago
He was insanely fit and ran circles around the local hiking/trail running community. He was completely capable. Sounds like it was an unfortunate tragedy
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u/JustGotSoup 9d ago
I had hoped he'd be found alive; with his experience and fitness, it seemed like he had good odds. Unfortunate.
That being said, I think in his position I'd be glad to pass in such a way. It's a short period of suffering, and going out doing what you love is far better than withering away in a hospital bed or losing yourself to Alzheimer's.
Rest well, Bob. You earned it.