Strange Disappearance on Rainier’s Wonderland Trail

[drm]

We haven't mentioned the audio side for those still alive - you can yell if somebody gets close. On the other hand, the impression I get from TV shows is that lost people's wanderings almost always extends their time being lost, unless they really know how to get out. In which case they weren't truly lost. It's very hard to sit still and wait or rescue, but if you are truly lost, that is what you should do. You should only move to get to safer ground or shelter if necessary, or to open areas more visible to flying searchers.

But I'm not at all amazed that the deceased go unfound. Our forests are thick, leaves or other debris may cover the body, at least partially. Line of sight visibility is very short. I wonder how long it is before an animal either drags the body somewhere or otherwise covers or hides it.

[200,000']

No updates on the missing hikers mentioned prior.

Here's another missing hiker where the details sound very familiar, except this one is on the AT in Maine. Gerry Largay:

http://franklinhomepage.com/fhp-exclusi ... L3VdSwWlhk

Unlike a lot of our local cases, from Google results, it looks like this incident had a lot of media coverage.

[Stefrobrts]

Looks like a resolution for one of the lost hikers

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Body ... 14431.html

[miah66]

We were talking about this before in the thread, I believe. This particular hiker left his pack and food setup about half mile from the trailhead and his body was recovered 1/3 mile and 1000' above the trail. No wildlife interactions. Decided to scramble a gully and had a heart attack maybe? Got spooked by a bear or mountain lion? We'll never know I guess.

[Koda]

In the absence of foul play, it would not surprise me if out of respect of the family that any evidence of the cause of death at the scene would not be disclosed to the media by SAR.

Resolution perhaps, but certainly still a strange disappearance. Looking at the terrain of that area there is no reason to abandon your gear and willingly bushwhack 1000 vertical feet uphill off trail.

http://www.hillmap.com/m/ag1zfmhpbGxtYX ... ICgxYO2Cww

condolences to the family.

[Bosterson]

Looking at the terrain of that area there is no reason to abandon your gear and willingly bushwhack 1000 vertical feet uphill off trail.

Go see the sunset while dinner is rehydrating? Unknowns aren't necessarily mysteries.

[Lurch]

I feel like I've been neglecting this thread.. I've started at least 4 replies that got lost, or never finished, and now there's so much material to comment on I don't even know where to begin.

This thread brings up so many awesome discussion points that have the nerd in me peaked. Lost person behaviors, myths and misconceptions about how SAR really works, and the truth buried in the ORSAR statistics reports would barely scratch the surface.

I for one am not shocked that there are that many people still missing in our wilderness. To be honest I'm surprised that number isn't higher. SAR in general is a statistics game, mixed with some educated guesstimation to manage resources and place them where they're most likely to do the greatest good. It doesn't always work, but it definitely does *most* of the time, and the art has been refined over the last 100 years or so down to a pretty solid science.

I don't know the stories behind *most* of those mission persons, so I can only surmise a few of the most likely possibilities. 1: They're off trail, 2: They didn't follow their plan, leave a plan, or have a plan, so SAR had little to nothing to go on from the start, and/or 3: They never wanted to be found.

I am all for some solid discussion. But I'm a bit too far behind the thread to catch up at this point or it's going to be a full page of me replying to posts from weeks ago.

[200,000']

Resolution perhaps, but certainly still a strange disappearance. Looking at the terrain of that area there is no reason to abandon your gear and willingly bushwhack 1000 vertical feet uphill off trail.

Indeed.

Late in the day, on a familiar trail, close to the terminus, for some reason he apparently stops to make food. That seems strange right there.

Then the body is found ~1000 higher in elevation. What prompted him at this time and place to climb what sounds like a nasty and un-inviting piece of terrain?

Search teams were immediately in the area and couldn't track him. That in itself is significant. If searchers and their dogs found signs of bear or cougar that might have spooked him, it wasn't mentioned. This guy seems to have been familiar with the locale. I really don't think a common bear or cougar would cause him to climb 1000'. Think about it. If you have to escape something, which way are you fastest? Out the flattish trail to the trailhead a quarter mile away and the relative safety of your vehicle? Downhill where you might run faster but are cut off by a river. Or climbing very steep, brush choked terrain without a path. Logic dictates the last would be the least appealing choice. Why go?

The uncomfortable question is - did he choose to go there or was he forced to? Did he go there willingly, or was he taken there? What really happened?

[retired jerry]

"An investigation at and around the scene showed no indications of foul play or wildlife interactions"

I wonder if there'll be an autopsy. I wonder if they'll release the conclusions?

1/3 mile, 1000 feet elevation gain - that is very steep. A steep trail is like 1000 feet in a mile

Interesting mystery but sad for his family.

My wife says I'm cut off. No more solo trips. I'm 60 years also.

[Lurch]

It's a safe bet unless death is expected and in a hospital, there is going to be an autopsy