Missing hunters in Colorado

[Blowdowner]

Just seen this on FB

Oh hell there a waterfall there.

A single downed tree, blow down, rockslide, etc would easily hide a couple people wearing camouflage that nobody would ever find them, even in a much smaller search area.

Of course that they're in the woods is still the most logical theory. I just wanted people to consider a way to determine foul play i.e. the car being tampered with.

 

[AZ8]

I'm confused by the Los Pinos and spruce hole location updates. Were they camped at one and just parking at the other? Those places are at least a few miles away from each other and on opposite sides of the highway.

If you look at that update from post #219, it appears they were seen at Spruce Hole at 10am, then drove back to Los Pinos with the last ping there at 11am.

Sounds like they were covering ground back and forth.

Full disclosure: Pure speculation on my part.

 

[Bobrobheimer]

There have been several missing people in the San Juans the last handful of years and they aren’t necessarily found during the search or ever. It seems reasonable that despite the search efforts if they were struck by lightning, a blow down, etc. their bodies could be very hard to turn up. (Though I don’t know how capable the search dogs are - they seem like they could be pretty capable)

 

[fracguy]

Rough on Google Earth, x is about where the car is, dots are pings according to my previous post that I found on FB. I'm honestly wondering about a mud slide or rock slide on their climb down the hill. It would make it almost impossible to see someone in that

 

[TexasCub]

There have been several missing people in the San Juans the last handful of years and they aren’t necessarily found during the search or ever. It seems reasonable that despite the search efforts if they were struck by lightning, a blow down, etc. their bodies could be very hard to turn up. (Though I don’t know how capable the search dogs are - they seem like they could be pretty capable)

Those were solo hunters and several have been elderly fellas, two young mid twenties men completely vanish , that is IMO quite different. Think about the overlap between two hunters gear, even in daypacks. Seems we’ve heard very little about the Utah resident, all the info seems to be coming from the Virginia hunters wife. Two phones with Onx , maybe two GPS’s, no info whatsoever from either of them, this whole thing is weird.

 

[Steve300xcw]

I could see running minimal gear, somebody takes a header and gets hurt. Hunker down for the night, possibly wet and morning never comes.

We've had a few situations that could have easily ended up that way.

 

[Bobrobheimer]

Those were solo hunters and several have been elderly fellas, two young mid twenties men completely vanish , that is IMO quite different. Think about the overlap between two hunters gear, even in daypacks. Seems we’ve heard very little about the Utah resident, all the info seems to be coming from the Virginia hunters wife. Two phones with Onx , maybe two GPS’s, no info whatsoever from either of them, this whole thing is weird.

For sure. Though that’s why a lightning strike seems of concern.

 

[Coopsdaddy]

Man, you guys cracking jokes about these two when there is a good chance they won't be found alive is a serious lack of class and respect.

For all you know their wives or family could be looking at threads like this.

Well if you been hear long enough you know it’s almost always going to happen.Some super smart dudes with great advice on here but a lot of douche bags and that’s getting to be the norm.

 

[Chasing elk]

They are not safe! They are still missing. The hotel deal was a lie by some crazy person online.

 

[fracguy]

I could see running minimal gear, somebody takes a header and gets hurt. Hunker down for the night, possibly wet and morning never comes.

We've had a few situations that could have easily ended up that way.

Yup, I got myself in trouble years ago in very similar situation solo. Got turned around in the dark in a snow storm. Things go bad very fast.

 

[fracguy]

 

[AZ8]

24 hour lightning animation beginning on 9/12 @ 11am (last ping)

America :: Archives :: Maps :: USA (Big)

See lightning strikes in real time across the planet. Free access to maps of former thunderstorms. By Blitzortung.org and contributors.

www.lightningmaps.org

 

[fracguy]

View attachment 937269

Phone is being retarded, looks like trail cuts up that hillside, honestly where the pins were dropped, doesn't look like very rough hiking. I know all of it looks different boots on the ground but the hillside going up that looks pretty bad. If there was a mud/rock slide, may have gotten them into the water and down stream. Not sure how big that creek is but with massive rains, small streams can turn into rivers. This is my speculation anyways after looking at where they were at. I don't see how you could really get lost there, don't really think it was foul play either, well hopefully not

 

[HairyScandinavian]

They are not safe! They are still missing. The hotel deal was a lie by some crazy person online.

What kind of sick POS makes up stuff like that?

 

[3forks]

24 hour lightning animation beginning on 9/12 @ 11am (last ping)

America :: Archives :: Maps :: USA (Big)

See lightning strikes in real time across the planet. Free access to maps of former thunderstorms. By Blitzortung.org and contributors.

www.lightningmaps.org

I wondered about this too thinking that looking at locations where strikes occurred might be a strategy, but from what I saw - trying to pinpoint a strike is difficult due to accuracy limitations.

I’m know SAR professionals have best practices regarding coordinating a search, and they must take into account what a hunter might do as opposed to a hiker or backpacker, but I would think they’d send searchers to places like glassing points hunters may want to get to, or features elk may use in an attempt to turn up any sign of the hunters. Of course, if the hunters went after a bull they saw (as reported), who knows where that might have occurred or would take them.

 

[AZ8]

I wondered about this too thinking that looking at locations where strikes occurred might be a strategy, but from what I saw - trying to pinpoint a strike is difficult due to accuracy limitations.

I’m know SAR professionals have best practices regarding coordinating a search, and they must take into account what a hunter might do as opposed to a hiker or backpacker, but I would think they’d send searchers to places like glassing points hunters may want to get to, or features elk may use in an attempt to turn up any sign of the hunters. Of course, if the hunters went after a bull they saw (as reported), who knows where that might have occurred or would take them.

Yeah, definitely not actual ground confirmation of strikes, but it does give us a bird's eye view of the general conditions at a specific time. What it shows me was there were very intense storms in and around that area at the time they were hunting.

Nothing will beat boots on the ground data, but it is a tool to use.

 

[OXN939]

What kind of sick POS makes up stuff like that?

Probably a bot.

I could see running minimal gear, somebody takes a header and gets hurt. Hunker down for the night, possibly wet and morning never comes.

Sucks to say, but that seems plausible. I assume whatever SAR assets they have out there must have gotten thermals on the area over the last day or two since the WX broke, which would have covered everywhere near the trailhead and last known locations. While it isn't a magic wand, pretty much anyone who's coherent while a helo flies over gets pretty easy to find.

Fingers crossed they're hunkered down somewhere with a rolled ankle or something.

 

[The_Jim]

Yup, I got myself in trouble years ago in very similar situation solo. Got turned around in the dark in a snow storm. Things go bad very fast.

Agree, you can’t use a headlamp in a snowstorm, and the trail gets covered. I ended up looking at my phone screen while I walked to my tent. Once I got close I wandered in circles to find it for a few minutes even though I was like 10’ away from it.

 

[fracguy]

Agree, you can’t use a headlamp in a snowstorm, and the trail gets covered. I ended up looking at my phone screen while I walked to my tent. Once I got close I wandered in circles to find it for a few minutes even though I was like 10’ away from it.

I ended up about a mile from my truck. Spent the night out there under a makeshift lean to from pine branches. Was years ago before I had a cellphone. Could have went way bad really fast. Had I not been a smoker and had a lighter I probably would have froze. Hopefully these guys didn't learn the really bad way. It's crazy how fast panic will set in once you realize you're lost, rational thoughts can go right out the window when hypothermia and panic gets to you. From what I've gathered that storm came in really fast and was hammered with fog and heavy rain which I think would be worse than snow because it's instant wet and cold.

 

[HairyScandinavian]

From what I've gathered that storm came in really fast and was hammered with fog and heavy rain which I think would be worse than snow because it's instant wet and cold.

I've been out in 50 degree weather and chilled to the absolute bone in fog and light drizzle even with my rain gear on, it's no joke. I'd much rater have a foot of snow fall on me.