Missing hiker
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There is another missing hiker on Mt St Helens. 😢
If you hike, don’t hike alone, take proper provisions, let someone know where you’re going, etc. BE SAFE!3 -
The missing hiker story was in my news feed this morning
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/08/17/search-continues-for-seattle-hiker-missing-more-than-two-weeks.html1 -
Still hoping for a positive outcome...1
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This is a good lesson. A lot of people have been searching for this lady for more than two weeks now. There are helicopters, dogs, people on the side of a mountain, people driving back roads in case she walks out. Almost all of this is a volunteer effort. If she had been found, there would be no charge for any of this.
In the US, rescues virtually never have a price tag. If you have to be flown to safety in a helicopter, in my neck of the woods it's often provided by the armed forces and written off as a training exercise. Or HRT which is made up of volunteers.
If you're ever in a bad situation, call for help before you make it worse. Don't take that call lightly, but it's often the case that the longer you wait, the more dangerous it is for people to come after you. If you're ever in trouble, SAR volunteers are kind and professional, do not pass judgement, and would rather help a person out of trouble than extract a body.9 -
DoubleUbea wrote: »The missing hiker story was in my news feed this morning
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/08/17/search-continues-for-seattle-hiker-missing-more-than-two-weeks.html
That's just weird how the boyfriend said she was last seen with a strange man. Something about that rings wrong. I can't help but wonder if she isn't even on that mountain but very far away 😢. Hope they find her soon...4 -
NorthCascades wrote: »Tomorrow I'm getting up at the crack of dawn and joining 100 other people to walk around in circles through thick slide alder, in the hope of finding someone who was last seen a week and a half ago. It's been very warm and there's plenty of water in the area, so a good outcome is still possible.
When you hike alone, leave a note with a responsible person, telling them where you'll be. Set a check in time, this is when they'll call for help if they haven't heard from you. There's no point in "start worrying at 6 pm," that doesn't mean anything. "I'm in trouble if you haven't heard from me by 9." Bonus points if they know what color your jacket and pack are, and can describe your car.
If you get lost and can't find your way, stay put and wait.
Some years back, my husband and I drove up to Killarney, Ontario for a few days. (I'm working on a novel and I wanted to set part of it in the area). It's about five hours away, a hiking, fishing, and camping spot. And one thing I do recall, beyond discovering that what I'd always thought were "hikes" were really "nature walks" was the lodge where we were staying asking all guests going on hikes to file a route plan with the front desk, complete with anticipated time back. And they made no bones about stating, "So we know where to send a search party if we have to."
Something that might not have occurred to this city-dweller.
Adding my prayers for the missing person's safety.6 -
DoubleUbea wrote: »The missing hiker story was in my news feed this morning
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/08/17/search-continues-for-seattle-hiker-missing-more-than-two-weeks.html
That's just weird how the boyfriend said she was last seen with a strange man. Something about that rings wrong. I can't help but wonder if she isn't even on that mountain but very far away 😢. Hope they find her soon...
Just read the article.... that does seem weird.1 -
I hope with all of my heart that you find this woman, alive.
There's a new trend of hiking gurus that recommend that women go hiking alone. Their advice is leading others into dangerous situations. Those with wisdom don't recommend that men or women go hiking alone on the Appalachian Trail or Pacific Crest Trail or any trail. If you break a leg or fall down a chute, no cell phone service, there you are. Don't go alone.
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To be honest it also seems weird that he left Cliff Bars and ponchos but no beacons or signal mirrors. But a beacon is $300 and might get stolen.
(A personal locator beacon, PLB, is a device that will call in the cavalry from anywhere on earth when you hit the panic button. Highly recommended for hikers in rugged terrain.)1 -
Wow...was in Seattle last week and heard about this. I have a cousin who works a mine (for fun) out that way and he has been searching. He told me that the terrain and area can be pretty brutal.1
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I hope with all of my heart that you find this woman, alive.
There's a new trend of hiking gurus that recommend that women go hiking alone. Their advice is leading others into dangerous situations. Those with wisdom don't recommend that men or women go hiking alone on the Appalachian Trail or Pacific Crest Trail or any trail. If you break a leg or fall down a chute, no cell phone service, there you are. Don't go alone.
I thuhiked the Appalachian Trail solo, twice. I have many female friends who have done likewise. Yes, there are risks, but most of the time nothing bad happens. If I had not gone alone, I would never have gone, and doing the thruhike changed my life for the better in innumerable ways.7 -
The other hiker who was lost on Mt St Helen's about the same was found alive..11
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spiriteagle99 wrote: »I hope with all of my heart that you find this woman, alive.
There's a new trend of hiking gurus that recommend that women go hiking alone. Their advice is leading others into dangerous situations. Those with wisdom don't recommend that men or women go hiking alone on the Appalachian Trail or Pacific Crest Trail or any trail. If you break a leg or fall down a chute, no cell phone service, there you are. Don't go alone.
I thuhiked the Appalachian Trail solo, twice. I have many female friends who have done likewise. Yes, there are risks, but most of the time nothing bad happens. If I had not gone alone, I would never have gone, and doing the thruhike changed my life for the better in innumerable ways.
I hike alone often, it’s ridiculous to say that we cannot live life if we are single or don’t have friends that can hike with us. I always let someone know when I am going and when I will be back. If I didn’t hike alone I would never leave my house, that’s insanity! There are risks, but there are also risks associated with driving to the store for groceries... I think it’s fabulous that you thru hiked the Appalachian trail solo!!! I would love to do something like that and think very highly with anyone that has.
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I'm a frequent hiker and always leave my husband a note where I'm going and with who
He also has a list of my hiking friend's car description with plate numbers.
The only time I needed his help is when a bunch of cows had us trapped behind a fence, but a cute cowbay saved us before my husband came. 😁
I pray that she is found safe.2 -
WickAndArtoo wrote: »spiriteagle99 wrote: »I hope with all of my heart that you find this woman, alive.
There's a new trend of hiking gurus that recommend that women go hiking alone. Their advice is leading others into dangerous situations. Those with wisdom don't recommend that men or women go hiking alone on the Appalachian Trail or Pacific Crest Trail or any trail. If you break a leg or fall down a chute, no cell phone service, there you are. Don't go alone.
I thuhiked the Appalachian Trail solo, twice. I have many female friends who have done likewise. Yes, there are risks, but most of the time nothing bad happens. If I had not gone alone, I would never have gone, and doing the thruhike changed my life for the better in innumerable ways.
I hike alone often, it’s ridiculous to say that we cannot live life if we are single or don’t have friends that can hike with us. I always let someone know when I am going and when I will be back. If I didn’t hike alone I would never leave my house, that’s insanity! There are risks, but there are also risks associated with driving to the store for groceries... I think it’s fabulous that you thru hiked the Appalachian trail solo!!! I would love to do something like that and think very highly with anyone that has.
Statistically the most dangerous part of a normal hike is the drive home. Most people have pretty good instincts and won't do anything they're not comfortable with. It's a good trend that people have activity trackers and that more of them have GPS, and that people use it to record their hikes. A lot of watches can guide people back to where they started. (Mine lost GPS for a couple hours while we searched, so of course this doesn't always work. But most of the time is better than not having it at all.)5 -
thereshegoesagain wrote: »I'm a frequent hiker and always leave my husband a note where I'm going and with who
He also has a list of my hiking friend's car description with plate numbers.
The only time I needed his help is when a bunch of cows had us trapped behind a fence, but a cute cowbay saved us before my husband came. 😁
I pray that she is found safe.
I’m glad your husband understand the importance of this! My bf doesn’t really understand why it’s important that I leave with him my flight schedules, a passport copy, lodging information and a contact for who I’m traveling with (and sometimes the contact info for their significant other who is also staying home). Or my expected hiking route and schedule, even if I’m not going alone.
As others have said, there are risks associated with everything we do, and hiking is just one of those things. This happened maybe 12 years ago but it still bugs me, I was on a skiing holiday in a big ski destination with both downhill and cross country skiing, and mid-week there were reports of a lost cross country skier. They started searching right away (good thing she had given her route and schedule plan to someone!), but there was heavy snowfall that day, and she wasn’t found until several months later when snow melted. She had fallen on a downhill that ended in a turn, and tumbled straight out of the turn into the woods, and couldn’t get up. There was so much snow she had fallen pretty deep, and with fresh snowfall all tracks of her falling and tumbling were covered. She was just a few feet from the ski track. This was back in the day before personal GPS devices, and could have happened to absolutely anyone whose fall isn’t immediately seen by someone else.3 -
thereshegoesagain wrote: »I'm a frequent hiker and always leave my husband a note where I'm going and with who
He also has a list of my hiking friend's car description with plate numbers.
The only time I needed his help is when a bunch of cows had us trapped behind a fence, but a cute cowbay saved us before my husband came. 😁
I pray that she is found safe.
I’m glad your husband understand the importance of this! My bf doesn’t really understand why it’s important that I leave with him my flight schedules, a passport copy, lodging information and a contact for who I’m traveling with (and sometimes the contact info for their significant other who is also staying home). Or my expected hiking route and schedule, even if I’m not going alone.
As others have said, there are risks associated with everything we do, and hiking is just one of those things. This happened maybe 12 years ago but it still bugs me, I was on a skiing holiday in a big ski destination with both downhill and cross country skiing, and mid-week there were reports of a lost cross country skier. They started searching right away (good thing she had given her route and schedule plan to someone!), but there was heavy snowfall that day, and she wasn’t found until several months later when snow melted. She had fallen on a downhill that ended in a turn, and tumbled straight out of the turn into the woods, and couldn’t get up. There was so much snow she had fallen pretty deep, and with fresh snowfall all tracks of her falling and tumbling were covered. She was just a few feet from the ski track. This was back in the day before personal GPS devices, and could have happened to absolutely anyone whose fall isn’t immediately seen by someone else.
I am all for hiking alone, skiing alone... not so much! I grew up between two large ski mtns in MT the risks are too many and too high to be skiing alone. Even my most experienced skiing friends always bring a friend!0 -
WickAndArtoo wrote: »thereshegoesagain wrote: »I'm a frequent hiker and always leave my husband a note where I'm going and with who
He also has a list of my hiking friend's car description with plate numbers.
The only time I needed his help is when a bunch of cows had us trapped behind a fence, but a cute cowbay saved us before my husband came. 😁
I pray that she is found safe.
I’m glad your husband understand the importance of this! My bf doesn’t really understand why it’s important that I leave with him my flight schedules, a passport copy, lodging information and a contact for who I’m traveling with (and sometimes the contact info for their significant other who is also staying home). Or my expected hiking route and schedule, even if I’m not going alone.
As others have said, there are risks associated with everything we do, and hiking is just one of those things. This happened maybe 12 years ago but it still bugs me, I was on a skiing holiday in a big ski destination with both downhill and cross country skiing, and mid-week there were reports of a lost cross country skier. They started searching right away (good thing she had given her route and schedule plan to someone!), but there was heavy snowfall that day, and she wasn’t found until several months later when snow melted. She had fallen on a downhill that ended in a turn, and tumbled straight out of the turn into the woods, and couldn’t get up. There was so much snow she had fallen pretty deep, and with fresh snowfall all tracks of her falling and tumbling were covered. She was just a few feet from the ski track. This was back in the day before personal GPS devices, and could have happened to absolutely anyone whose fall isn’t immediately seen by someone else.
I am all for hiking alone, skiing alone... not so much! I grew up between two large ski mtns in MT the risks are too many and too high to be skiing alone. Even my most experienced skiing friends always bring a friend!
Have you read 'Missing 411', about missing hikers in the national forests and parks. I've attended several Search & Rescue schools in Colorado and know many backcountry rangers. If you're going out into the backcountry to prove something by the experience this is the wrong mindset. There is no question something can go wrong when you hike alone. The risks are high. A GPS messenger unit should be a must if you're going alone. It's the taxpayer that picks up the tab for almost all search and rescues. Hikers are free to take risks but endangering the S & R team members searching for you is a high risk, too.
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WickAndArtoo wrote: »thereshegoesagain wrote: »I'm a frequent hiker and always leave my husband a note where I'm going and with who
He also has a list of my hiking friend's car description with plate numbers.
The only time I needed his help is when a bunch of cows had us trapped behind a fence, but a cute cowbay saved us before my husband came. 😁
I pray that she is found safe.
I’m glad your husband understand the importance of this! My bf doesn’t really understand why it’s important that I leave with him my flight schedules, a passport copy, lodging information and a contact for who I’m traveling with (and sometimes the contact info for their significant other who is also staying home). Or my expected hiking route and schedule, even if I’m not going alone.
As others have said, there are risks associated with everything we do, and hiking is just one of those things. This happened maybe 12 years ago but it still bugs me, I was on a skiing holiday in a big ski destination with both downhill and cross country skiing, and mid-week there were reports of a lost cross country skier. They started searching right away (good thing she had given her route and schedule plan to someone!), but there was heavy snowfall that day, and she wasn’t found until several months later when snow melted. She had fallen on a downhill that ended in a turn, and tumbled straight out of the turn into the woods, and couldn’t get up. There was so much snow she had fallen pretty deep, and with fresh snowfall all tracks of her falling and tumbling were covered. She was just a few feet from the ski track. This was back in the day before personal GPS devices, and could have happened to absolutely anyone whose fall isn’t immediately seen by someone else.
I am all for hiking alone, skiing alone... not so much! I grew up between two large ski mtns in MT the risks are too many and too high to be skiing alone. Even my most experienced skiing friends always bring a friend!
Have you read 'Missing 411', about missing hikers in the national forests and parks. I've attended several Search & Rescue schools in Colorado and know many backcountry rangers. If you're going out into the backcountry to prove something by the experience this is the wrong mindset. There is no question something can go wrong when you hike alone. The risks are high. A GPS messenger unit should be a must if you're going alone. It's the taxpayer that picks up the tab for almost all search and rescues. Hikers are free to take risks but endangering the S & R team members searching for you is a high risk, too.
I use well established trails and am very prepared as well as careful to let people know where I am going and I never do anything “ to prove something”. Something can go wrong no matter what we do, but to expect individuals that don’t have friends or are for whatever reason unable to buddy up every time for a hike to just never experience the outdoors is ridiculous. There is risk involved in everything we do everyday, and as long as people are planning ahead, prepared, and smart about their adventures (keeping risk to a minimum) it is a reasonable option. I agree though, using a gps device is a very smart option. I always send my husband a gps beacon through strava on any run or hike whether it be on road or trail.1
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