- Spending two days cold and wet must’ve been miserable, but this man could’ve met a much worse fate.
You should always check out what’s behind a waterfall, at least if adventure stories are anything to go by. There’s bound to be an ancient cave full of wonderful treasures hidden behind the cascade.
In reality, however, it’s best to leave waterfalls unexplored. Their hidden areas are miserable and cold at best, and fatally dangerous at worst.
Ryan Wardwell can vouch for that. The Californian rock climber was recently forced to spend two days trapped behind a waterfall.
During a rappelling excursion, Wardwell got too close to the falling water. The force of the cascade ripped him off his lines and sucked him in, stranding him on a small rock ledge hidden from view.
Wardwell was fortunate in that he had friends waiting for him. When he failed to show up, they alerted the authorities who immediately launched a search and rescue operation.
Still it took them two days to find Wardwell behind the waterfall. All’s well that ends, though, and Wardwell is now back home safe and sound.
Lone Adventurer
Ryan Wardwell is a 46-year-old guy from Long Beach, California. He and his friends are enthusiastic rock climbers and canyoneers, and they had decided to go on a late summer adventure.
On August 10, Wardwell and four of his buddies set out to rappel down the famous Seven Teacups waterfall in the Sequoia National Forest. This star-step waterfall consists of several cascades, each plummeting into a small pool below them — hence the name “teacups.”
However, when Wardwell’s party got to the waterfalls, the area didn’t look like they expected. Last year’s heavier-than-usual snowfall had fed the stream running to the falls so much that the water was flowing much higher and faster than usual.
His friends decided that his wasn’t for them and tapped out. Wardwell, however, chose to proceed with the plan.
In his defense, he was very familiar with the area. He had previously rappelled down the waterfall four times, so he certainly knew what it was like.
So, Wardwell bid farewell to his friends as they started the hike back. Wardell strapped on his backpack, containing sandwiches and water, and began to rappel down the rock face.
Behind the Falls
Wardwell’s climb down the waterfall started fine. Suddenly, however, it all went wrong.
Perhaps he strayed too close to the rapidly flowing water, or perhaps he underestimated how strong the current was. In any case, Wardwell contacted the free-falling water — and they took him with them.
According to the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO), the “extreme hydraulics” of the waterfall ripped Wardwell off his rappelling line. The current sucked him behind the wall of water and deposited him on a narrow rock ledge.
In a way, Wardwell was very lucky. He could’ve very easily been smashed to a pulp against the surrounding cliffs or drowned in the teacup pool below.
However, Wardwell probably didn’t feel very lucky. He was hopelessly trapped behind the waterfall, with no way to get through the current.
Search and Rescue
Yet, fortune really was on Wardwell’s side. As his friends left the area, they placed a note on Wardwell’s car, telling any passersby to call rescuers if the car was still there the following morning.
It was. So, the TCSO got an emergency call about a missing rock climber, and they sprung to action.
“TCSO units began an extensive search of the area, using aircraft equipped with camera and infrared technology and identified Wardwell’s possible location,” the TCSO said in a statement.
Wardwell, however, had no way of knowing someone was looking for him. And he would remain ignorant of the fact, as the fading daylight and difficult terrain of the area forced the TCSO to call off any rescue efforts for the day.
They came back early in the next morning, though. The rescue flew a small camera-equipped drone behind the waterfall and sure enough, there was Wardwell.
The TCSO called in a helicopter from the California Highway Patrol. The chopper lowered a member of the rescue team into a waterfall, who harnessed Wardwell to a lifeline before reeling both of them to safety.
Wardwell escaped his ordeal with only minor scrapes and dehydration. He reunited with his family and went happily home.
‘A Drowning Machine’
There’s a very real chance this story wouldn’t have such a happy ending. The Seven Teacups waterfall can be extremely dangerous during high waters.
“It’s basically a drowning machine,” Capt. Kevin Kemmerling of the TCSO told San Francisco Chronicle.
Excess rainfall or snowmelt can create powerful circular currents in each of the “teacups.” If you were to get trapped in the eddy, there’s little chance of you getting out.
August 2024 gave us a grim reminder of the waterfall’s dangers. Three friends had been rappelling down the same spot that Wardwell was when the current swept them away.
Unlike Wardwell, they didn’t land behind the waterfall. The force of the water pushed them into the teacup, where all three drowned.
Kemmerling reminded all intrepid rock climbers to not go out on solo adventures, no matter how experienced they are. Additionally, he encouraged everyone to steer clear of wild-running rivers in the name of safety.