‘Can kitty belay?’ Climbers bring cat on Colorado climb — and get stuck on dark cliff
You’ve heard of cats getting stuck in trees, but what about a cat getting stuck on a cliff?
That’s exactly what happened when Link the “adventure cat” tagged along on a Colorado climb with her humans — and the trio became trapped in the dark, Rocky Mountain Rescue Group said on Monday, April 1.
“Moonlighting as MEOWtain Rescuers!” the group said on Facebook and Instagram. “Although we primarily train for assisting humans, this week we had the opportunity to meet this adorable kitty when his human climbing partners became stuck in the dark on the First Flatiron” in Boulder County, about a 30-mile drive northwest from Denver.
A photo shows two climbers sitting on a rocky ledge as one of them holds the cat tightly against their side.
Rescuers gave the human climbers headlamps and lowered all three safely to the ground, officials said.
Commenters on Facebook and Instagram were understandably confused.
“Do you mean that the climbers took the cat with them? To climb a Flatiron? That’s crazy,” someone said.
On Instagram, the climber responded from Link’s account, which is dedicated to showing off the pair’s shared passion for climbing together.
“That’s me! Link loves going climbing with me,” they said. “Between me and the cat, I was the bigger liability.”
“Can kitty belay?” someone asked, and “Link” said she’s “a better crag cat than belayer.”
According to Link’s Instagram, the 1-year-old cat was adopted from Texas in October 2022 and now lives in Colorado — where she’s “climbed” in several state parks from the safety of a clear backpack.
Her most recent Instagram post shows her and her human, Austin, ascending the North Ridge on Montezuma Tower in the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs during an April 2023 trip.
“This just seems unnecessary and dangerous…” someone commented, prompting an explanation on how Austin keeps Link safe during climbs.
“I rarely take her out of the backpack while we climb unless there is a solid ledge to stand on,” they said. “I have also installed many redundancies to keep her safe in the backpack and harness to provide extra safety measures.”
They don’t let go of Link the whole time she’s out of the backpack, they said, adding that “safety is a main priority” when they climb together.
“Her life is of the (utmost) concern to me and I take it very seriously whenever we’re out doing something like this,” they said. “I would not do any of this if she did not enjoy being out there.”
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