A 47-year-old Sacramento man plunged 800 feet down the south side of a ridge between Flagpole and Echo peaks Sunday, El Dorado County Search and Rescue reported.
At one point, Paul Frydendal - who suffered from a severe head injury and broken leg - flew about 30 feet in the air upon hitting the rocks, SAR paramedic and technical ropes expert Jim Marino said.
Frydendal was taken via California Highway Patrol helicopter to Washoe Medical Center where he was in serious condition after undergoing surgery.
Apparently, Frydendal slipped on the ice when he took his cross country skis off and hiked on top of the ridge with two other friends who were staying in a cabin at Echo Lakes. After tumbling over cliffs, he came to rest about 500 feet above Lower Echo Lake's edge when the call came in at 12:30 p.m.
Marino said Frydendal was lucky to have survived the fall on a slope of about 45 degrees from mountains towering over 8,300 feet in elevation.
Frydendal was not wearing crampons and didn't carry an ice ax.
He drifted in and out of consciousness and suffered from shock, Marino added.
Frydendal's rescue was tricky with the snowy, windy conditions, Marino said. Another crew rode a CHP helicopter into the scene while Marino rode in on a snowmobile.
Contact Susan Wood at swood@tahoedailytribune.com or (530) 542-8009.
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