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Death at Fawn's Leap

Report or discuss current events in the Catskill Mountains.
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dave
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Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2009 3:14 pm
Location: Acra New York

Death at Fawn's Leap

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Update (09/02/19) - His name has been released to the public: Benjamin Bochtler, 20, of Bellevue, Nebraska

New York State Troopers are Investigating an accidental death at Fawn's Leap in the Town of Hunter. Fawn's Leap is located on Kaaterskill Creek. It is located approximately 250' west of Moore's Bridge on Rt 23a in the Kaaterskill Clove. The accident occurred on Saturday, August 31, 2019 at approximately 11am.

A young man approximately 20 years old was hanging from a ledge at Fawn's Leap, when the ledge broke off, and he fell. The young man suffered significant trauma that required CPR to be performed. But, they were unsuccessful in saving him.

Over the years there have been multiple accidents and deaths at this location. It is one of the few swimming holes that kids can still use in the Catskill Mountains. And, a significant number of kids do use this location for swimming. Fawn's Leap is 24' high, and has a deep hole for jumping and swimming. Several years ago officials at the Town of Hunter restricted parking in the Kaaterskill Clove to make it difficult for kids to swim there. But, those measure had little effect on the usage of the swimming hole. But, it did reduce the amount of garbage and glass containers at the site. Law enforcement still spends time at the location.

The victim was a Cadet Candidate at the United States Military Academy Preparatory School, located at West Point, N.Y. The victim's name is being withheld for 24 hours per Department of Defense policy.

More information about Fawn's Leap can be found on Catskill Mountaineer's web site: http://www.catskillmountaineer.com/WF-KC-FL.html
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