SUMMIT CO., Utah — Friends say Christian Helger was soft spoken and witty. They also say he had a true love and passion for the outdoors.
"He was impressive from the start," said Jon Tierney, friend of the 29-year-old killed in a chair lift accident in Park City.
No matter the season, the mountains were like a second home for Helger.
"Christian was trying to be good in all disciplines, not just rock climbing, but ice climbing, mountaineering, as well as backcountry skiing," said Tierney.
Tierney said Helger came to his school, Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School in Bar Harbor, Maine, after graduating from the University of New Hampshire to hone his outdoor leadership skills.
"It's a school that we are pretty well known for in terms of helping young guides mentor their technical components of their guide development," he said.
When he wasn't up in the northeast, Helger could be found climbing in the mountains in North Carolina.
"He actually ended up living in an apartment below my house that I kind of just only rent out to guides and he jumped on that," said Karsten Delap.
Helger worked for Delap for four years as a guide and over time the two became friends.
"Wanted to be outdoors, wanted to be around people and helping people," explained Delap.
A few years ago, Delap says Helger decided to ventured west to the Beehive State. Most recently, he was living in Millcreek and was part of the ski patrol at Park City Mountain Resort.
The Summit County Sheriff's Office said Monday morning, a large tree fell onto a cable of the Short Cut chairlift on the Canyon's Village side of the resort, which Helger was on.
Investigators say Helger fell nearly 50-feet from the lift.
Sheriff deputies entered a ravine in chest deep snow before finding Helger, who they say died at the scene. The medical examiner is now determining whether Helger died from the fall or from suffocation in the snow.
"Everybody that knew Christian is deeply saddened by this, but none of us can really process it, because there is no logical explanation," said Helger.
For Delap, he's now left with treasured memories with his friend, who he says he last saw briefly in Salt Lake City about six months ago. One of those memories is a ski trip they took together last year to Mount Rainier.
"I took a photo of him in front of this hut on Rainier and he was doing something with a notebook ... I took it on an iPhone, but he was actually drawing a picture of the mountains and me and the mountains, and he ended up giving that to me at the end of the trip, which was pretty cool," remembered Delap.
"Everybody who interacted with him would have a positive experience, and I think that is what he would be remembered for," said Tierney.
