Welcome to the segment of the Crux podcast called Disaster Strikes. While our regular episodes

focus on survival stories where people overcome incredible odds, this bi-weekly segment examines

outdoor adventures that ended in tragedy. These stories are meant to paint a clear picture of how

quickly things can go wrong in the wilderness,

and the cascade of decisions often small and seemingly reasonable in the moment that can lead

to devastating outcomes. By studying these incidents respectfully and thoroughly, we can all learn

valuable lessons that might save lives.

The stories are difficult, but the education they provide is invaluable.

I'm your host, Julie Henningson.

And today we're heading to the Adirondack Mountains in New York State.

So here's something I bet you didn't know.

There are exactly 46 mountains in New York's Adirondack Park that rise above 4,000 feet.

And there's this whole community of hikers.

They call themselves the 46ers who make it their mission to climb every single one of them.

It's like a really challenging, really beautiful,

really exhausting scavenger hunt that can take years to complete.

Leo Dufour was 22 years old,

and he was 32 peaks into this quest,

32 down 14 to go. Not bad for a university student from Quebec,

who was studying to become a teacher. His Instagram was exactly what you'd expect from someone

obsessed with mountains. Summit selfies, sunrise shots, those wind-swept photos where your

hair is going in 17 different directions,

...