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Friends, family say goodbye to ‘lover of life’

Neil Falkner remains returned to the place he called home It was a long journey home for Neil Falkner, the popular Whistler ski patroller who died April 12 in a skiing accident while doing the Wapta Icefield Ski Traverse in Banff National Park.

Neil Falkner remains returned to the place he called home

It was a long journey home for Neil Falkner, the popular Whistler ski patroller who died April 12 in a skiing accident while doing the Wapta Icefield Ski Traverse in Banff National Park.

On May 11, friends and family gathered on an exposed section of rock at the peak of Whistler Mountain, in an area known as Friday’s Chute, to scatter Falkner’s ashes to the wind.

Friends read letters and poems, including The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, during the informal ceremony.

His mother, Judy Lynne of Vancouver, shared a recent phone conversation she had with Neil, who was at the peak of Whistler at the time and as happy as she had every known him to be.

One of Neil’s friends played the bagpipes. Others took part in a fly-by with an air ambulance, something Falkner saw a lot of during his five years as a patroller for Whistler Mountain. Another wore his ski boots.

His family, including brother Scott and sister Lucy Falkner, then invited Neil’s friends to help spread his ashes around the area.

Greg McDonnell, one of Neil’s closest friends and one of the skiers that was with Neil on the trip, helped to organize the service at the peak and a memorial at Millennium Place on April 20. His family organized another service in Vancouver.

For McDonnell, and many of Neil’s close friends, it was a good-bye that was worthy of a man who was described as a lover of the mountains, a free spirit and a loyal friend.

"The support has been phenomenal," said McDonnell. "One of the things I am most grateful for is that his mom chose to share the spreading of Neil’s ashes with what she called his Whistler family. So many people up here needed that contact as part of their grieving process."

While it may be little comfort, "there is some comfort knowing that he died doing what he loved, with his skis on his feet. Neil skied 150 days a year for the last six years."

Falkner, McDonnell and Dave Smith were on their second last day of the Wapta Icefield Ski Traverse, April 12, when the accident occurred. The trip was to take five days, from the starting point at Peyto Lake to the West Louise Lodge, 14 kilometres west of Lake Louise, climbing as high as 11,000 feet.

The traverse is heralded as one of the most spectacular in the world, with visitors paying up to $1,300 for a guided tour of the area and for the chance to summit the surrounding peaks. However, the Falkner party didn’t see a lot of scenery on that trip.

"The whole week we travelled the weather was crappy, it was pretty much a white out," said McDonnell. "On that particular day it was almost a total white out and we had to travel what I call the crux of the whole trip, the most difficult portion, and that’s up the Balfour High Col."

According to McDonnell, Falkner successfully led that section with a map and compass.

"The day he died was such an amazing day for us. We were totally happy, totally in the moment. He led, and we ended up exactly where we had to be. He was at his best that day, doing what he loved."

Newspaper reports from Canmore and Banff said the group was travelling without the aid of ropes, and didn’t take the necessary precautions. McDonnell said they used ropes to get to the top of the High Col, and then unroped for the descent of the glacier, as was the common practice.

"Another quote said we were being complacent, which was not the case because we were at the top of our game, travelling with compasses in a complete whiteout, and we knew exactly where we were."

The descent down the glacier is slow and gradual, and the group stopped occasionally to make pole plants to make sure they were on the correct compass bearing.

At that point the group included Sean Fraser and Eric de Nys, who they met up with at the Balfour Hut the night before.

"Neil just took a couple of extra pole plants in the direction he thought we should be going and that’s when he fell off the cornice."

There was a cornice on the eastern edge of the glacier and because of the extremely limited visibility, they couldn’t see the edge. Falkner fell several hundred feet and died.

The group initiated a two-hour rescue mission, and at one point contemplated rappelling down to Neil, who they could see as the weather cleared slightly. They rejected this idea because of safety considerations, and found another route down into the bowl.

Fraser, who had the most first aid experience in the group, went to Neil but couldn’t find any vital signs.

"We heard he was dead, and Dave and I wept, but we couldn’t wait. We needed to wrap our heads around our own safety because the hour was getting late and we still had to navigate to the next cabin in the white out. It was a challenge not to just give up at that point, but that wasn’t in the cards," said McDonnell.

The group made it to the Scott Duncan Hut at about 7:30 that evening, where they spent a sleepless night. The following day they skied out, once again in blizzard conditions with low visibility, and contacted the authorities. Because of the remote location and the persistence of the storm, it wasn’t until the following Friday, April 19, that his body could be recovered and flown out by helicopter.

"Just by being at any of the services, you could get a really good feeling of the kind of person that Neil was. He was just a fantastic guy, super fun, and he had a lot of close friends – he was a really popular individual," said McDonnell.

Neil was born in Vancouver and had lived in Whistler for the past seven years. He started volunteering for the Whistler Ski Patrol five seasons ago, and three years ago was hired as a Level 3 pro patroller. He was 32.

Neil’s Obituary

Neil Douglas Falkner of Whistler, B.C., died suddenly on Friday, April 12, 2002, in a skiing accident on Balfour High Col on the Wapta Icefields in Alberta.

Neil is much loved by mother Judy Lynne, brother Scott and sister Lucy of Vancouver; father Keith Falkner of Sarasota, Florida; grandparents Lillian Ilson of Mississauga and Helen Falkner of Toronto; friends Dave Gindhu, Marney Renaud, Chris Roscoe and his Whistler family, who continue to be with him in spirit.

Neil is remembered as a skier, a motorcyclist and a mountain biker; a teacher of life, passion and commitment; a man who loved the snow, trails, mountains and backroads of B.C.; a never-ending spring of enthusiasm; and a son, brother and friend.

His confidence was contagious. To be near him was to know that anything is possible. His joy was in bringing his imagination to life in his actions. Simply to try was to be successful.

In recent years his enthusiasm for a life without limits grew to include a love of listening, learning and finding common ground. His goal was to savour the moment, to live now, in the present, always and completely. He lived.

We cherish his friends, Dave Smith and Greg McDonnell of Whistler who were with him at his death, and we appreciate beyond words the tremendous courage of Sean Fraser of Prince George, and the support and presence of Eric de Nys of Calgary.