Lost Hiker on Mt Holy Cross

[tenpins]

Suspending the search literally means that VMRG has exhausted all reasonable efforts to find the subject. Sounds like beyond the _expected_ route he was planning to do, there has been zero clues or anything else to guide the search. Clues are what keep searches going. When we run out of clues, sometimes there is a last hail mary effort, and then suspend.

Anyone heading up that way with the intent of doing their own informal search keep in mind a few things:
NUMBER ONE: DO NOT get yourself into a situation where you will need VMRG to come assist you. If you can't assure us all you can stay out of trouble, then I can assure you that no SAR team on this planet wants your help.

#2 - Look for clues, not the person. This is the hardest part. Not every piece of litter out there is a clue. A substantial clue is the most likely thing to restart a search. For instance earlier this year we found a woman's sweater snagged on a branch in the Arkansas river, positive ID by the mother. This fueled another full day of searching. If you can find an article of clothing or something, that would be huge.

Whatever you do, be careful.

[Hobnobber]

Lot's of enthusiasm in this thread to 'help' the various SAR teams in our great state. Crazy idea: how about helping by joining your local SAR team? You don't have to be Gabe Walker to be a productive member and it's getting close to that time of year when most teams start accepting applications. Get the knowledge, get the training, and get out there and give back to your community. Just a thought.

[turntable]

We live in Minturn and saw a group of about 25 divided into two groups head up the Martin Creek trailhead this am (Wed).. They were wearing the orange search vests associated with SAR but not sure if it was an organized VMR unit or if it was even related. When I read the article, the quote from Sherrif Hoy was that the search was suspended yet they would still be looking for clues.
Praying for a safe return...

[djkest]

I think I am going to take off from work Friday to do Holy Cross. However, I'm wondering if it would be more productive to hike somewhere else, I was thinking Fancy Pass area. Kind of a short hike and I wouldn't be getting that far into the backcountry on that route. It is almost a 4 hour drive for me, so I want to make it count. Weather should be good Friday /Sat, for minturn they are saying mid 50s for a high and mid 30s for a low. 10% precip chance thursday, 0% friday, 10% saturday.

If nothing else, the weather has turned for the better. This may help our survivor.

I've thought about joining a SAR team actually, I wish I lived a little closer to these back-country areas. Wonder if I should contact El Paso county and see what the deal is?

[tmathews]

I think I am going to take off from work Friday to do Holy Cross. However, I'm wondering if it would be more productive to hike somewhere else, I was thinking Fancy Pass area. Kind of a short hike and I wouldn't be getting that far into the backcountry on that route. It is almost a 4 hour drive for me, so I want to make it count. Weather should be good Friday /Sat, for minturn they are saying mid 50s for a high and mid 30s for a low. 10% precip chance thursday, 0% friday, 10% saturday.

If nothing else, the weather has turned for the better. This may help our survivor.

I've thought about joining a SAR team actually, I wish I lived a little closer to these back-country areas. Wonder if I should contact El Paso county and see what the deal is?

tenpins is a member of EPCSAR. He might be able to give you some info about it if you send him an email or PM.

[confederate_korean]

Thank you all for continuing the search.
I believe the GPS that James has is in the Garmin GPSMAP family. UPDATE - Delorme Software = Delorme GPS?
James is an experienced backpacker and I dont think he would stray off the trail with a working GPS. Even without, he wouldn't go far and would check his map and backtrack. From my experience with him, he is very organized and I don't think he would change his itinerary and change his plans.

From what I can gather, I think this is his planned route.
http://i1233.photobucket.com/albums/ff4 ... 1287031995" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
UPDATE - It looks like he was planning on bushwacking up East Creek at end of his route.

It is a rough outline of the trail and it comes out approximately to 24/25 miles described.

Looking at the elevation change, it is exactly the type of trip he would plan. Challenging at the start but easier towards the end.
http://i1233.photobucket.com/albums/ff4 ... 1287032090" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I know that the SAR team scoured the planned area, but I keep having a feeling he is on the South/Eastern part of the ridge near Falls Creek or Fancy Pass near water.

Again, thank you!

[cwm]

With the size of the search and the lack of clues this is somewhat like the disappearance of the lady in Sep 2005. After a massive search she was never found.

In Sep 2008 I was looking at the signs at the beginning of the 4 x 4 road to Holy Cross City. There was a flyer on the sign regarding her disappearance.

[JB99]

I've thought about joining a SAR team actually, I wish I lived a little closer to these back-country areas. Wonder if I should contact El Paso county and see what the deal is?

This might help answer some questions; http://www.epcsar.org/info/FAQ_EPCSAR_A ... _final.pdf

[TdotW]

I know that the SAR team scoured the planned area, but I keep having a feeling he is on the South/Eastern part of the ridge near Falls Creek or Fancy Pass near water.

Again, thank you!

Confederate_korean, tombesore is thinking of heading out to CO to do some looking. Are you interested? If so, please contact him via FB.

[landcruiserbob]

Here's some info from a friend who saw James at the trail head & could be the last person to speak to him (he didnt see the girlfriend at the trail who took the photo). James started hiking on the trail approx 45 min before this person & was caught & passed within 10 min of my friend hitting the trail. He said he was moving very slow.

Open questions for the forum or people the who know James

-Was James fit enough for this type of activity?
-25 miles over five days is very conservative. If he traveled 1mph he would only hike 5hrs a day; what was he planning to do with the rest of his day? Photo's, fish, hobbies??? This would really help in the search since some activities would take him off the beaten path once camp was made. I take my rock climbing shoes & look for new boulders to climb. He must have had other activities planned.
-Given his pace he would not have tried hiking Holy Cross.
-Nobody has seen him since October 3rd; this is odd since many people were on that trail until the weather closed in on the 9th.
-All of the creeks in the area lead out to a road after a days walk max.

We searched for Michelle who went missing in 2005 for weeks without a single clue. I have searched all of the cliff bands in the area below where she was last seen & found nada.

There is something very odd about the photo at fall creek.

Sometimes nature keeps them & other times we dont want to be found........................

[silverlafs]

I'm curious if the police gets involved at all, would there be any other type of investigation, in addition to the search? Maybe tracking of his credit cards or anything like that, to rule out any type of criminal activity?

Also, I probably would know the answer to this had I watched more CSI.....could his GPS be tracked any way, or would there be a way to go back to the 3rd and track activity then? I know this can be done with cell phones, but I have no clue how the GPS works?

Thoughts go out to his fiance, family and friends, what a horrible experience to go through!

[djkest]

I don't think a personal GPS unit could be tracked at all. Otherwise, there would be no reason to buy a SPOT. If he could have been tracked in this manner, I'm sure the Vail SAR would have done it already. Just saying.