Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

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Bosterson
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Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by Bosterson » October 10th, 2018, 9:23 pm

Fingers crossed for a good outcome for this guy. As he was backpacking, he has the gear to survive for quite a while if he's just lost or injured, and the weather is in his favor.

https://kcby.com/news/local/search-cont ... line-trail
#pnw #bestlife #bitingflies #favoriteyellowcap #neverdispleased

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mjirving
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by mjirving » October 10th, 2018, 9:56 pm

Seems so odd with him being so close to the finish. So thankful for the good weather.

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adamschneider
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by adamschneider » October 10th, 2018, 10:09 pm

Yeah, this part is pretty weird:

"He hiked nearly 40 miles with a friend over the weekend, but they split up about one mile from the end."

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retired jerry
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by retired jerry » October 11th, 2018, 6:22 am

yeah, they split up 1.5 miles south of Timberline Lodge, where the Timberline trail splits off of the PCT above White River. If you believe news reports :)

There are few trees on that ridge. You can see Timberline Lodge pretty much the whole way. You just keep walking up that ridge. Difficult to get turned around or anything. There aren't huge cliffs right off the trail.

They'll hopefully find him right away.

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Waffle Stomper
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by Waffle Stomper » October 11th, 2018, 6:50 am

retired jerry wrote:
October 11th, 2018, 6:22 am
yeah, they split up 1.5 miles south of Timberline Lodge, where the Timberline trail splits off of the PCT above White River. If you believe news reports :)
Another report that I read said they were looking for him near Ramona Falls, that doesn't make sense.
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir

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mjirving
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by mjirving » October 11th, 2018, 7:08 am

retired jerry wrote:
October 11th, 2018, 6:22 am
They'll hopefully find him right away.
Yet they searched all day yesterday in good weather and didn't find him. Very odd. Fixed wing with Flir today...hopefully that does the trick.

squidvicious
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by squidvicious » October 11th, 2018, 7:13 am

adamschneider wrote:
October 10th, 2018, 10:09 pm
Yeah, this part is pretty weird:

"He hiked nearly 40 miles with a friend over the weekend, but they split up about one mile from the end."
It definitely seemed sketchy initially, when they were saying Yaghmourian was "injured" and his friend left him, but if what's come out since is true it's more understandable. They were both hurting, knees bad, and the guy who went ahead had been feeling ill--it sounded like he'd let himself get a bit dehydrated. So with one guy saying, "I feel like crap, I need to rest" and the other saying, "I feel like crap, I need this to be over ASAP," it doesn't seem so odd that with the end literally in sight they'd decide to finish each at their own pace.

But apparently just disappearing into thin air, that part's absolutely weird.
Last edited by squidvicious on October 11th, 2018, 7:25 am, edited 2 times in total.

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retired jerry
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by retired jerry » October 11th, 2018, 7:19 am

When hiking with my brother sometimes I'll go ahead for a while because I'm a little faster, or if he's ready and I'm still packing up he'll start off and I'll catch up with him.

I don't think there's anything weird about the two splitting up for 1.5 miles. He could have gone to the lodge, got some refreshments, and started back to meet up with the guy, refreshment in hand.

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mjirving
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by mjirving » October 11th, 2018, 7:23 am

Yeah I don’t think that part is weird either, it’s that he was so close in a spot that’s easy to see the finish, and even weirder that they can’t find him after a full day of searching that even involved a helicopter.

squidvicious
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Re: Missing hiker on the Timberline Trail

Post by squidvicious » October 11th, 2018, 7:25 am

Waffle Stomper wrote:
October 11th, 2018, 6:50 am
Another report that I read said they were looking for him near Ramona Falls, that doesn't make sense.
Bear in mind that when the news reports on stuff like this they tend to use the nearest landmark they think people may have heard of, which sometimes you're lucky if it's in the same state. But I did see one thing that suggested that by the time he started moving visibility had dropped, and he might have missed the lodge and kept going. You'd be hard pressed to be *that* far off, though!

Of course it could also mean they're not sure the friend is giving the full story....

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