Mental Health in the Mountains: Special Guest Josie McKee Shares Her Journey With Trauma and Resilience

Jackson, Wyo. — Every spring in Jackson, it’s not uncommon to see a scattered flock of friends and neighbors walking around on crutches. It’s understandable. During the downtime between the powder frenzy of winter and the chaos of summer, we get those physical injuries sorted.

If only we were similarly aware of our stress injuries, and had the grace to open the doors for those same friends and neighbors—and ourselves—who need a proverbial crutch for mental health. With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, we as a community need to continue to recognize how critical this issue is.

Treating our brains with the same amount of care and compassion we give to our physical injuries is not just good for general wellness, we also know it can keep you and your partners safe in the backcountry.

As a climber, Josie McKee has numerous speed records and first ascents to her resume. But her relationship to climbing has included significant stress trauma and injuries, fear, and mental health struggles. She shares her experience on May 8 at the Black Diamond store in Jackson. Photo: Josie McKee

“Teton County Search & Rescue recognizes that mental health is equally as important as physical health when going into the backcountry,” says TCSAR volunteer Ryan Combs. “Peer support, access to therapists, education, and promoting self-awareness are all part of the tool kit used by the team to maintain mental health when rescuing. The same principles apply to individuals recreating in the backcountry.”

To highlight the importance of mental health, we could not be more excited to host guest speaker Josie McKee at the Black Diamond store in downtown Jackson on the evening of May 8. A member of Lander Search & Rescue and the Director of Operations and Communications at the Responder Alliance, McKee brings a wealth of experience and knowledge about how backcountry enthusiasts can recognize stress injuries and how to treat them in healthy, positive ways.

This event is FREE thanks to support from Teton County Public Health, Black Diamond, and Yeah Buddy Pizza. As part of TCSAR Foundation’s Backcountry Zero outreach and education programming, McKee’s talk marks the third in a series focusing on managing mental health in the mountains.

Photo: Courtesy of Josie McKee

McKee has decades of experience climbing mountains, guiding, working in Search & Rescue, and teaching wilderness medicine. Her own journey with stress and trauma began in Yosemite National Park, working on the Yosemite Search & Rescue team and constantly pushing her own limits in climbing. This combination led her to understand the impact of stress exposure and the value of resilience training.

Please register for this event, as space is limited to the first 60 who sign up.

Be safe out there, and remember to be kind to yourself.

Media contact: Maddie Johnson, TCSAR Foundation PSAR Manager, maddie@tetoncountysar.org

TCSAR and JHMR Ski Patrol Rescue Skier After Fall From Cody Peak

On Thursday, April 3, Teton County Search & Rescue volunteers were alerted by Jackson Hole Ski Patrol that a skier had fallen down Central Couloir, Cody Peak’s most prominent line south of the resort boundary. 

In this archive image (not from the incident in question), Central Couloir can be seen cleaving down the center of Cody Peak. Photo: Matt Hansen

The skier, a 54-year-old woman from Victor, Idaho, lost her balance and began falling about halfway down the couloir and went over the exit cliffs at the bottom. Ski patrol made the initial response. After assessing the skier’s injuries, patrol called for helicopter assistance from TCSAR. 

Volunteers dispatched a team in the helicopter. The ship landed near the patient, who was then loaded internally for transport to the base of Teton Village, where she elected to self transport for higher medical care.

This incident serves as a cautionary reminder that small mistakes can have big consequences in steep, unforgiving terrain. Thanks to JHMR ski patrol for the valuable assist.

Another Weekend of Rescues: Short-Haul, Short-Haul, Snowmobile, Short-Haul

Jackson, Wyo. — Local rescuers had a busy weekend with four callouts. Three calls came on Saturday: an injured skier on Pucker Face outside of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort; an injured skier in Stewart’s Draw in Grand Teton National Park; and a snowmobiler who was stuck in a creek in the Togwotee Pass area. The rescue on Sunday involved an injured skier in Avalanche Canyon in GTNP.

In one of three calls on March 8, TCSAR responded to a snowmobiler who’d become stuck in a creek in the Gros Ventre Mountains. The mission took 8 hours, 32 minutes, with volunteers getting back to base at 3:45 a.m. Photo: TCSAR

On Saturday, March 8, the first call came in at 10:43 a.m. regarding an injured male skier on Pucker Face. JHMR Ski Patrol arrived on scene and requested helicopter assistance from Teton County Search & Rescue. A heli team flew to the scene, where they short-hauled the local skier to a waiting ambulance at the base of Teton Village.

Later, at 2:45 p.m., Jenny Lake Rangers in GTNP requested helicopter assistance from TCSAR after receiving an emergency call regarding an injured male skier near the bottom of Stewart’s Draw. A heli team including park and TCSAR personnel responded to the accident site. The team short-hauled the local skier out of the backcountry, from where he elected to self-transport.

Saturday's third rescue call came at 5:43 p.m. for a snowmobiler in the Togwotee Pass area. The local male had been crossing a snow bridge on his machine when the snow collapsed beneath him, causing him and the machine to fall into a creek.

TCSAR sent four volunteers up the Gros Ventre Road via snowmobile, while another team entered the backcountry from Togwotee Pass. A friend of the stranded snowmobiler also joined the effort. The friend made contact with the subject at 11:23 p.m., followed by TCSAR volunteers about 30 minutes later. The subject was reported to be extremely tired and cold.

After trying to warm the subject, TCSAR transported him out of the backcountry to the Gros Ventre Road. After making it out of the field, the team provided the man with a ride back to town. The volunteers arrived back at the SAR headquarters at approximately 3:45 a.m.

On Sunday, the Jenny Lake Rangers called TCSAR at 1:40 p.m. requesting helicopter assistance to help an injured female skier in Avalanche Canyon. The TCSAR pilot flew the county ship to the park and picked up a team of rangers. The team extracted the patient via short-haul and flew her out of the backcountry. The woman decided to self-transport from there.