It was April 1st, 1981, when Johnny Waterman, a 29 year old brilliant climber and haunted soul, set out from the Mountain House deep in the Ruth Glacier of Denali National Park.  His goal was the East Buttress of Denali, approached via the northwest fork of the Ruth - an audacious, almost impossible route in the winter.

He carried remarkably little: a sled, snowshoes, not much food, and wands to mark his route. No tent, no sleeping bag. He told a fellow climber he believed he could manage with minimal gear.

He was last seen somewhere around 11,000 feet - cutting a straight line through a labyrinth of crevasses and snow chutes. 

Then…. He vanished.

Listen as we dive into Alaska, the case of Johnny Waterman, and how to stay alive on vacation.



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Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter



Sources:

https://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12198233700/John-M-Waterman-1952-1981



https://youtu.be/zyIB180NitE?si=9I0i-IcWpFMI_Mx8



https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/shining-brightly-briefly-johnny-waterman-165023821.html



https://explorersweb.com/shining-brightly-briefly-johnny-waterman-and-his-1978-solo-traverse-of-mount-hunter/



https://murder-in-the-last-frontier.blubrry.net/2025/06/04/the-strange-and-tragic-lives-and-deaths-of-guy-and-johnny-waterman/



https://sites.lafayette.edu/raicha/files/2010/08/Waterman.pdf



https://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/13198201900/Climbing-Alone-Alaska-Mount-KcKinley



http://www.supertopo.com/climbers-forum/2193010/The-Legendary-incredible-JOHNNY-WATERMAN



https://uncovered.com/cases/john-waterman



https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/natural-death/