This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 8:52 AM- As two teens now know, it's easier to climb to Hognose Cave in the mountains north of Ogden than it is to get back down.
A rescue team that included 17 climbers spent about four hours Thursday night retrieving the two 16-year-olds from the mouth of the cave near 900 N. Mountain Road, according to Weber County Deputy Brent Butler.
Apparently lured by the spring-like weather, the boys decided to hike to the cave after school. They didn't have any gear or warm clothing, and the cell phones they carried didn't have service on the mountain, Butler said.
The deputy described the area of Hognose Cave as a "flytrap" on the mountain. "You can get up there on all fours, but once you're up it's really difficult to get back down without climbing gear," he said.
People who live at the base of the mountain heard the boys yelling for help and called 911 around 5 p.m. Rescuers called for the climbing teams an hour later.
One team of four climbers made their way from the bottom of the mountain and were able to talk to the boys, "who were a little upset and wanted to climb down," Butler said. The climbers had the teens stay put as another team rappelled from the top of the mountain with gear for the boys. A third team was on stand-by at the command center.
The rescuers helped the teens off the mountain and they were reunited with their parents by 10 p.m., Butler said.
There were no injuries to the boys or the rescuers.