A GP from Altrincham fell 300 feet to his death after visiting a mountain ridge where he had proposed to his wife 27 years earlier.
An inquest in Cockermouth heard that Jamie Butler, 54, had returned to Striding Edge in the Lake District with his wife Margaret in order to relive the moment he popped the question in 1994.
After walking on alone in poor visibility to find the exact spot, Butler fell from the mountain, suffering a fractured skull.
His body was later found by mountain rescuers and he was pronounced dead.
Coroner Kirsty Gomersal concluded the death of Dr Butler – who had also worked as team doctor for Sale Sharks – was an accident.
He had been facing unspecified historical “allegations” and was suspended from his practice at the time of his death, but his doctor told the inquest that he “was sure there was no suicidal intention”.
Doug Jones, head physiotherapist at Altuis Healthcare in Hale, who worked with Butler at Sale Sharks, said: “He was a really fantastic guy who didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone. He was very loved by the staff and players at both Sale and Man City.
“In his last treatment before he died he stopped me in the waiting room and asked me to walk out with him to his car. The last thing he said to me was that he was so happy to see how Altius had grown from nothing to what it is now and that I should be very proud of the whole team there.
“A wonderful guy who I am sure will be very missed.”
Margaret Butler described her husband as “a loving husband with two twin boys who he adored. He will be forever missed. He died doing what he loved.”
