MESA COUNTY, Colo. — A 48-year-old man was hospitalized after he fell at least 120 feet while climbing Saturday south of Grand Junction, according to the Mesa County Sheriff's Office.
The man, from Grand Junction, was on the Tooth and Claw climb in the area of Mother's Buttress when he fell. That's north of Highway 141, south of Whitewater, the sheriff's office said.
The Mesa County Sheriff's Office, Gateway Fire Department, CareFlight, the Bureau of Land Management and search and rescue volunteers responded to the scene.
They deployed a drone that found the fallen man and a companion on a ledge about 200 feet from the base, where they waited for rescue climbers to reach them.
The man was flown to a local hospital via helicopter. The sheriff's office didn't share his condition but said he was stable.
Highway 114 was temporarily closed in both directions during the rescue.
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