YOUNG NJ WOMAN DIES CLIMBING NEW YORK'S HIGHEST MOUNTAIN, HER DOG SURVIVES
BRIANNA L. MOHR FELL CLIMBING MT. MARCY AND FROZE TO DEATH BEFORE RESCUERS COULD REACH HER
Brianna L. Mohr climbing Mt. Marcy in December with her dog, Fezco. She fell and died there last Wednesday. Photo credit: unknown, via Instagram.
MALONE, NEW YORK Feb. 17, 2026
The 21-year-old woman who died climbing New York's highest mountain alone on Thursday has been identified.
Brianna L. Mohr ”slipped off the trail near the summit of Mount Marcy and were unable to get back on the trail,” according to a news release by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. She called 9-1-1 for help just after 3:00 PM, the DEC said, setting in motion a dramatic but failed attempt to rescue her before the cold killed her. Her dog, Fezco, survived.
Standing 5,343 feet tall, Mt. Marcy is the highest mountain in New York. In winter, conditions at its summit are arctic and deadly. Its located in the center of the state's forbidding High Peaks wilderness area, more than seven miles from the nearest road. The mountains that surround it are a rogue’s gallery of New York's other highest, rock-jagged mountains, blocking easy access.
In response to Mohr's call for help, State Forest Rangers raced toward her in a snowmobile, a “tracked utility task vehicle” and a State Police helicopter with two Forest Rangers on board, the DEC said. Because of the rugged mountain terrain, the snowmobile and the utility vehicle were only able to get within about four miles of her. From there, rescuers proceeded on foot.
Meanwhile, the State Police helicopter with Forest Rangers on board approached the summit of Mt. Marcy “for a possible hoist rescue,’ the DEC said. But, “due to the heavy cloud cover, the two Rangers in the helicopter could not see the missing hiker. At 6:06 p.m., one of the Rangers in the helicopter was inserted into the Marcy Dam Outpost to search on the ground.”
The Rangers moved as fast as they could, but deep snow slowed their progress. When they got near the summit, they spread out to search. By the time a Ranger found Mohr late Thursday night at 9:51 PM, it was too late.
"Mohr was showing no signs of life and was pronounced deceased near the summit of Mount Marcy," State Police said in a news release. Her body was recovered on Valentine's Day. She died of hypothermia, a medical examiner found, the State Police said.
“Rangers also found the dog alive and hiked it out to safety,” the DEC added. “The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation offers its condolences to the family.”
(1 & 2) Brianna L. Mohr at Marcy Dam in the Adirondack High Peaks with her dog, Fezco in December; (3) Mohr on top of Maine’s highest mountain, Katadin; and (4) Mohr along the Appalachian trail in West Virginia. Photo credit: unknown, via Instagram.
Mohr's Instagram account shows her to be an experienced outdoorswoman.
Photographs documented her hiking in Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, California, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Maine and multiple locations in New York's Hudson Valley. They also capture her hiking Mt. Marcy previously in winter, including this past December.
But even experienced adventurers can quickly fall victim to the cold and cliffs in the Adirondacks.
As of Feb. 11, snow was 49 inches deep at the Forest Rangers' Lake Colden Interior Outpost, which is about three miles downhill from Marcy. At 2,750 feet, the Outpost is more than 2,500 lower than Mt. Marcy's summit. While no recorded temperatures are available for Mt. Marcy, temperatures from a weather observatory at the summit of nearby Whiteface Mountain are available. Its been near or below zero for weeks, even during the day. Counting wind chill, temperatures regularly drop into double-digits below zero. At night, its even colder.
At 4,867 feet, Whiteface is New York's fifth highest mountain and lower than Mt. Marcy. Since temperatures also drop the higher one climbs, the temperature at Mt. Marcy's summit would be even lower. Minus-20 and, factoring in wind chill, minus-40 or even minus-60 would not be unusual.
This reporter has climbed Mt. Marcy about 20 times during his life, including three solo winter ascents. The treeline stops at about a mile and a 1000 feet of elevation short of the summit, which rises like the cone of a volcano. Its all rock, no trees, and in winter its covered in ice. The wind blows snow sideways, usually from the north or west.
It can be difficult to find the trail. The blowing snow quicky covers the tracks of previous visitors. In summer, splashes of yellow paint on rocks called “blazes” mark the way. But in winter those blazes are covered. Piles of rocks, known as cairns, are supposed to provide guidance in winter. But sometimes there covered in ice and snow too. Blowing snow can make them difficult to see.
This reporter finding his way on Mt. Marcy during bad weather in 2020. Photo credit: Nick Pinto.
Just off the trail, the terrain drops away steeply—sometimes in cliffs.
Even the slightest injury, like a twisted ankle, can spell doom if you are not properly prepared with a below-zero rated winter sleeping bag—which is why you must always carry one anywhere in the High Peaks, even if you're only going to a day hike.
Mohr's father did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ryan Mohr, Brianna’s brother, said in an Instagram post on Monday that she was "the best friend and sister I could have ever asked for growing up with you was awesome …. You are the reason I am the person I am, you have helped me in so many ways.”
"You were always there when I needed to talk or a ride to the job you got me lol," Ryan added. "I will always cherish the time we spent together and the memories we made. I loved our jam sessions and our food runs and playing with fezco and the cats together. I am so grateful that you are my sister, when we meet again we will pick up right where we left off, I love you forever Bri. Rest in peace."
The Winter Mountaineering School teaches hikers how to survive in the Adirondacks in winter.
Its operations were temporarily suspended this year because of budget cuts by its main sponsor, the Adirondack Mountain Club. Its re-organizing itself as an indpendent group and plans to resume operation next winter.
Send tips or corrections to jasonbnicholas@gmail.com or, if you prefer, thefreelancenews@proton.me