Climbing star and influencer Balin Miller has died at the age of 23.
Known for his “touch of Robin Williams’ wild energy”, he built a large following by sharing videos of himself summiting mountains around the world.
Mom’s words
Tragedy struck in Yosemite National Park on October 1, when U.S. influencer and climber Balin Miller fell to his death while live streaming a climb of the park’s iconic El Capitan rock formation.
On the day of the accident, Balin had been solo climbing a 2,400-foot route called Sea of Dreams and was filming himself when he fell while trying to retrieve a bag of equipment that had become stuck.
According to photographer Tom Evans, who was in Yosemite at the time, Miller seemed unaware that his rope was too short to reach the bag, leading to the fatal fall. His climb was being broadcast live on TikToK, where fans referred to him as the “orange tent guy” because of the color of his gear.
One TikTok user who says he accidentally livestreamed the fatal fall of climber Balin Miller in Yosemite National Park has also come forward to share his account and push back on early speculation about the incident.
In a video posted Friday evening, the creator behind the account mountainscalling.me identified himself only as Eric and explained that he was the “sole witness,” observing Miller from El Capitan Meadow when the tragedy occurred.
”I just wanted to make this video to address what happened here at El Cap on Wednesday,” he said. ”I’m Eric. I am a Yosemite superfan and somebody who loves national parks and nature.”
”We then saw him rappel off the end of his rope,” Eric recounted. ”I then saw him fall the entire distance down to the ground. I couldn’t believe it. I was in absolute shock.”
Bystanders called 911, and rangers along with a helicopter arrived to recover Miller. The fall happened on the first day of the federal government shutdown, during which Yosemite remained open with limited operations.
Eric also refuted early reports claiming Miller had been livestreaming himself:
”He was not involved at all in the process of the filming or livestreaming. He’s not an influencer or anything like that. I did see some reports that indicated that, which is totally untrue.”
He estimated that “over 100,000 people” had watched his streams over several days, with “a few hundred people” tuned in at the moment of Miller’s fall. Eric later shared the video with Yosemite law enforcement rangers.
Authorities say the incident remains under investigation.
The accident happened on the first day of the U.S. federal government shutdown, though national parks, including Yosemite, remained generally open with limited services. Miller’s death was confirmed in a heartbreaking Facebook post by his mother, Jeanine Girard-Moorman:
”It is with a heavy heart I have to tell you my incredible son Balin Miller died during a climbing accident today. My heart is shattered in a million pieces. I don’t know how I will get through this. I love him so much. I want to wake up from this horrible nightmare.”
“As a nurse, we see people lose people. I lost my mom, my dad. But losing a child, a full grown child, your soul is shattered. It’s turned inside out and ripped into pieces,” Jeanine Girard-Moorman later told People. “It’s drowning in sorrow and comes in waves that are just unbearable.”
Began climbing when he was 3
Paying tribute to her son, she added:
”He’s been climbing since he was a young boy. His heart and soul was truly to just climb. He loved to climb and it was never about money and fame.”
Miller had already achieved remarkable feats for his age.
He was the first person to solo climb the challenging 9,000-foot Slovak Direct route on Alaska’s Denali and had completed climbs in Patagonia, Mount Hunter in Alaska, and the Canadian Rockies.
”He loved to climb,” his mother told The New York Times. ”He was so well loved by so many people. I can’t believe he’s gone.”
According to The Guardian, Miller began climbing with his father at just three years old in Alaska, and by the age of 12, he was completing ice climbing routes.
Miller supported his climbing passion by working seasonal jobs in Alaska as a crab fisherman and in the mines, but most of his time was spent living out of his Prius.
Wherever he went, friends across the country always made sure he had a place to stay.
Tributes have since flooded social media. On Miller’s Instagram page, one fan wrote, ”May you forever rest in peace and climb the highest with the almighty.”
Another added, ”Just heard. Deviated. Sending thoughts for your family,” while a third said, ”Farewell to a legend.”
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