{"id":14767,"date":"2026-06-10T21:01:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T21:01:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=14767"},"modified":"2026-06-10T21:01:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T21:01:28","slug":"inside-audrie-pelosis-fatal-rock-climbing-fall-in-wisconsin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/?p=14767","title":{"rendered":"Inside Audrie Pelosi\u2019s Fatal Rock Climbing Fall in Wisconsin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"justify-start\">\n<nav class=\"align-left col-span-full mb-base\" data-pom-e2e-test-id=\"breadcrumbs\"\/>\n<p>The midwest climbing community is mourning the tragic loss of Audrie Pelosi, who died while guiding at Devil\u2019s Lake State Park in Wisconsin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/p>\n<p class=\"fp-leadCaption py-tight text-left font-utility text-utility3-size leading-utility3-line-height text-secondary\">Climbing tethers and anchors are taking center stage after a tragic fall in Wisconsin<!-- --> (Photo: \tHelen H. Richardson \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-body\">\n<p>Published June 10, 2026 02:37PM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Midwest climbing community is mourning a rock climbing guide who tragically died while tying an anchor at the top of a popular crag.<\/p>\n<p>Audrie Pelosi, 30, suffered a fatal fall on the morning of May 30 while climbing at Devil\u2019s Lake State Park, a popular climbing area north of Madison, Wisconsin. According to a public statement that her employer, the guiding agency <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/apexadventurealliance.com\/\">Apex Adventure Alliance<\/a>, shared with <em>Outside<\/em>, Pelosi was standing near the top of a cliff face and building top rope anchors for a day of guided climbing, when she fell.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2744459\" class=\"pom-image-wrap photo-alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1316\" height=\"740\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2744459\" style=\"color:transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Pelosi2.jpg?width=1920&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 1x, https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Pelosi2.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover 2x\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Pelosi2.jpg?width=3840&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=75&amp;fit=cover\"\/><figcaption class=\"pom-caption\"><span class=\"article__caption\">Pelosi (right) died in a tragic climbing accident after suffering a fall <\/span> (Photo: GoFundMe\/)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cShe was an exceptional climbing guide and human being,\u201d Apex Adventure Alliance wrote in a statement. \u201cShe was a force in our community and at our guide service. We all will miss her dearly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The statement notes that it is company policy for guides \u201cto tether into an anchor point when working in a zone with exposed terrain with potential for a high consequence fall.\u201d According to Apex Adventure Alliance, Pelosi was not tethered to an anchor point when she fell.<\/p>\n<p>She was with other guides at the time of her death, the statement said, but the clients she was scheduled to guide that day were not yet present.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a guide, she was extraordinarily competent and safe,\u201d Apex Adventures Alliance continued. \u201cShe was a member of the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) and had gone through years of rigorous safety training with Apex.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe events of May 30 are, unfortunately, a tragic accident,\u201d the company added.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve been climbing for 18 years and have analyzed climbing accidents for magazines such as <em>Rock and Ice<\/em> and <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_self\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.climbing.com\/byline\/owen-clarke\/\"><em>Climbing<\/em><\/a> for nearly a decade. Attaching oneself to a personal anchor\u2014a short length of rope or webbing\u2014is a best practice when working near the top of a climb. Still, it\u2019s common for climbers to choose not to do this, either to save time or to avoid limiting their movement. This is particularly true when on relatively flat, stable, or otherwise familiar terrain.<\/p>\n<p>In the comments below the <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DZXTKuxEbaG\/?img_index=1\">Instagram post<\/a> where Apex shared their statement, numerous other climbers discussed how common it is to forego a tether.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA group of us were at the Lake that day and saw the SAR helicopter,\u201d wrote one individual. \u201cI was setting anchors and not tethered in. Her death is a stark reminder that this could have been any one of us. I will be tethering in, regardless of how comfortable I am up top, because of her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe all do it,\u201d wrote another.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo many of the greatest climbers over the years move on in this way,\u201d added a third. \u201cThey become very comfortable, bypassing\/overlooking foundational redundant aspects of the system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/redlin-ertzfuneralhome.com\/obituary-detail.php?obituary_id=10763430\">memorial posted by the funeral home<\/a> that organized her service, Pelosi was born and raised in Duluth, Minnesota. In her early adulthood, she worked at Ski Hut Duluth, a local ski and bike outfitter, where she met her husband, Jimmy Robinson. The pair married, and later moved to Baraboo, Wisconsin, where Pelosi became a fixture in the local outdoor community.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAudrie was known and loved for her contagious dry wit, her authenticity, and her ability to make everyone feel loved,\u201d reads the memorial. \u201cPeople gravitated toward her naturally. Whether she was sharing stories around a campfire, helping someone conquer a climbing route, or simply making friends laugh with a perfectly timed comment, Audrie brought light wherever she went.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of Pelosi\u2019s friends, Anastasia Exterovich, set up a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-brand-primary underline hover:text-brand-primary\/85 break-words overflow-wrap-anywhere underline-offset-[3px]\" data-afl-p=\"0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/support-for-audries-family-and-memorial\">GoFundMe<\/a> to raise money for Pelosi\u2019s family in the wake of her passing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn my last conversation with Audrie, she joked about selling her handmade bike chain link earrings to anyone who wanted them for \u2018free.99,\u2019\u201d Exterovich write on the GoFundMe page. \u201cIt was such a simple statement made in passing, but it perfectly encapsulated who she was as a person. Even when she didn\u2019t have much, she would give things away freely without hesitation, whether that was earrings, a smile, a laugh, a quick bike tune-up, or a belay.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Outside offers our condolences to Audrie Pelosi\u2019s friends and family.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><span hidden=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.outsideonline.com\/outdoor-adventure\/climbing\/audrie-pelosi-climbing-death\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The midwest climbing community is mourning the tragic loss of Audrie Pelosi, who died while guiding at Devil\u2019s Lake State Park in Wisconsin Climbing tethers and anchors are taking center stage after a tragic fall in Wisconsin (Photo: Helen H. Richardson \/ Getty Images) Published June 10, 2026 02:37PM The Midwest climbing community is mourning<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14768,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wild-living"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14767\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14768"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}