Alaska State Troopers based in Juneau received notification on Wednesday that two climbers who had set out to climb the Mendenhall Towers in the Mendenhall Ice Field had not returned by their scheduled time on Wednesday evening.

Family and friends reported that the two climbers, 34-year-old George “Ryan” Johnson of Juneau, and Marc-Andre Leclerc of British Columbia, both experienced climbers, had been dropped off near the towers on Monday. It was reported that last contact with the climbers was on Monday after they had ascended the towers.

Johnson and Leclerc were to hike/ski back to Juneau using the Mendenhall Glacier Trail and arrive no later than Wednesday night, the family reported.

But, on Wednesday, a “significant snow storm” moved through the area on Wednesday and neither climber was equipped with a sat phone or emergency beacon.

A chartered Coastal Helicopter was utilized in the search for the climbers and it is reported that some of the climber’s gear has been located.

AST report that search efforts are continuing.[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adsense-responsive”]

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