Man Falls 300 Feet To His Death After Issues On Famous Instagram Ladder In Austrian Mountains

A British adventure seeker who was climbing Austria's Instagram-famous "Stairway to heaven" ladder in the Dachstein Mountains fell 300 feet to his death after slipping off a ladder bridge, according to reports.

The 42-year-old hiker was on the 130-foot-long ladder when he experienced trouble and fell to the floor below. Investigators say it was an accident and there wasn't a mechanical flaw with the ladder, which is said to be the final stage of a four-stage experience where thrillseekers use steel cables, rungs, peg and ladders to make it to the 6,740-foot peak, known as the Großer Donnerkogel.

Two helicopter crews were sent to save the man, but there was nothing they could do but retrieve his body from what's being described as a "deep gully" under the ladder.

But this one death isn't going to stop the Instagrammers from coming to get that content. The risk of death is there, but the results on the other side have been worth the risk for so many. Go back to 2021 when Stefanie Millinger did this on the ladder. She lived to tell her story and now has nearly 680k Instagram followers who can't get enough of her extreme athletic accomplishments.

In 2022, a Reddit user explained the experience of climbing the Stairway to Heaven ladder.

"I just completed this two weekends ago (called the Donnerkogel via ferrata). The ladder is only a small segment of a 3+ hour climbing route. But the descent is a regular hike that you can also use to summit, there is absolutely no descent on the wire!

"What this video doesn’t show is that this time of day there can be hoards of people waiting for you to climb the ladder (4 people allowed at a time). We did it very early in the morning with no interruptions, but learned later that people were waiting for an hour+ just to get on the ladder."

Are you clipped to the ladder?

"Yes. A vía ferrata lanyard and climbing harness is required to be used along the entire route," the Reddit user explained.

"Two large clips that you clip alternately to ensure you are always attached as you pass from segment to segment. They also have an “airbag” system that extends the length of the rope in the event of a large fall to lower the impact on the wire itself. You’ll see arborists and utility company workers with similar gear for high climbing work."