Climber Jared Townsley found dead on Mount Hood

MOUNT HOOD, Ore. –  A climber missing on Mount Hood was found dead soon after morning search efforts began Tuesday, search team members said.

Jared Townsley, 32, left Timberline Lodge at midnight Monday intending to reach the summit. He signed the climbing registry when he left, but did not sign back in to indicate his return. He was an experienced mountain climber.

Tuesday morning, search crews headed back up the mountain and said they found tracks in the snow below where Townsley was last seen near Crater Rock.

Townsley slid down into White River Canyon, Deputy Scott Meyers with the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office said. His body was found at the end of the slide at an altitude of about 9,200 feet.

Shortly after Townsley's remains were located, Townsley's family released this statement through the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.

His father, Gregg Townsley, said that Jared was skilled climber who had summited Mount Hood at least a dozen times, including six solo climbs.

Townsley, who lived in Tigard, was married and had two children.

Gregg Townsley also thanked everyone involved in the search.

"It's a beautiful mountain. It is rugged. All those things that make it fun and challenging to climb are the same things that make it dangerous," said Clackamas County Sheriff's Office Sgt. James Rhodes. "Mr. Townsley, I'm sure like most climbers, knew that there is a risk involved in climbing the mountain."

Search team members carried Townsley's remains off the mountain.

Several searchers had spent the night on the mountain Monday after looking for Townsley and were joined by more searchers Tuesday morning. A Black Hawk helicopter crew also arrived at about 8:15 a.m. to search for Townsley from the air.

Twenty searchers in total looked for Townsley on Tuesday morning.

Searcher Nate Thompson said conditions were icy on the mountain.

"You're not going to find footprints," he said. "We haven't had any fresh snow. Everything is frozen over."

Townsley was expected to be at a meeting at 11 a.m. Monday but never arrived. He was reported as missing to the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office just before 2 p.m.

Other climbers spotted him around 8:30 in the morning Monday near Crater Rock, just below the summit. He appeared to be on his way down. He was found dead near that area.

He was not carrying a locator beacon. Townsley had a cell phone but it was turned off.

Still, rescuers said after the fall he took, finding him sooner probably would not have made a difference.

Townsley's website features numerous photos of mountain climbing.

KATU News reporters Joe English, Anita Kissée and Bob Heye contributed to this report.