--- title: Man Stranded on Morro Rock After Proposal description: Man stranded on Morro Rock ledge after proposal has to be rescued. canonical: https://time.com/4286721/man-proposal-rescued-stranded-ledge-morro-rock-california/ author: Olivia B. Waxman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-08T15:56:02.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:46:39.745Z og:title: Man Had to Be Rescued After Scaling Giant Rock to Propose to His Girlfriend og:description: Man stranded on Morro Rock ledge after proposal has to be rescued. og:url: https://time.com/4286721/man-proposal-rescued-stranded-ledge-morro-rock-california/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4cdb94d0e5e2e74b/69888e4ea988ca37d56b7543/marriage-proposal-hel_waxm.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2658 og:image:height: 1495 og:image:alt: Michael Banks, Todd Gailey og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Man Had to Be Rescued After Scaling Giant Rock to Propose to His Girlfriend twitter:description: Man stranded on Morro Rock ledge after proposal has to be rescued. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4cdb94d0e5e2e74b/69888e4ea988ca37d56b7543/marriage-proposal-hel_waxm.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Man Had to Be Rescued After Scaling a Giant Rock to Propose to His Girlfriend > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=62d40185-f7a3-4d19-b3f9-b7317837b767&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Apr 8, 2016 3:56 PM UTC  In this photo provided by Bob Isenberg, Michael Banks is rescued after being stranded on a ledge some 80 off the ground on Morro Rock, a landmark in Morro Bay, Calif., Thursday, April 7, 2016\. He had scaled the rock to make an Internet proposal to his girlfriend - who said yes - but then got stuck on a ledge and couldn't get down. A helicopter had to be called, and Morro Bay Fire Department Capt. Todd Gailey was lowered by cable to pluck Banks and take him to safety.(Bob Isenberg via AP) In this photo provided by Bob Isenberg, Michael Banks is rescued after being stranded on a ledge some 80 off the ground on Morro Rock, a landmark in Morro Bay, Calif., Thursday, April 7, 2016\. He had scaled the rock to make an Internet proposal to his girlfriend - who said yes - but then got stuck on a ledge and couldn't get down. A helicopter had to be called, and Morro Bay Fire Department Capt. Todd Gailey was lowered by cable to pluck Banks and take him to safety.(Bob Isenberg via AP) Bob Isenberg—AP  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Apr 8, 2016 3:56 PM UTC A California man’s proposal to his girlfriend nearly put him over the edge—but not in a bad way. He literally ended up stranded on a ledge about 80 feet off the ground on Morro Rock in California. Michael Banks had climbed the rock to pop the question over FaceTime. She said yes, but then he got stuck, and rescuers were called in via helicopter, the [Associated Press reports](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/5d23a567da68495295d255e75c8b1d15/rocky-romance-copter-saves-man-who-scaled-cliff-propose) via Morro Bay Fire Captain Todd Gailey. “The gentleman will be billed for the chopper ride and other related costs,” according to a post on the City of Morro Bay’s Facebook page.  In this photo provided by Bob Isenberg, Michael Banks is stranded on a ledge some 80 feet off the ground on Morro Rock, a landmark in Morro Bay, Calif., on Thursday, April 7, 2016. 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