Elk Hunter Missing in The Crazy Mountains

[TheJason]

While deer hunting with a friend in Wyo, he started to show signs of hypothermia and had been complaining about his feet all day. When we finally made it back to the road he was getting worse. I left him by the side of the road and hoofed it back to the truck. When I got back he had taken his boots off, threw them in the river and was not making much sense. Hypothermia makes people do strange things.

Yep. Folks get disoriented and lose their cognitive abilities, start to see and hear things and do wierd stuff.

 

[Apparition]

I think Mt Muley is correct, either that or his buddies did him in.

 

[NoWiser]

I agree with the hypothermia. I got it bad once after going through the ice while fishing. I remember trying to talk and the words just wouldn't come out of my mouth. I could hardly walk and I felt like I was sweating and hot. Luckily I made it to shore and found help. They said that I seemed super drunk except for the layer of ice on me. Probably should have seen a doctor for that one...

So, while I pray that's not what happened to him, I can see why things look like they wouldn't make sense when you're dealing with a possibly hypothermic individual. You hear lots of stories of people removing layers of clothes during the final stages of hypothermia.

This is a bad situation. I feel awful for his family and friends.

 

[.280 Remington]

Hypothermia, no doubt.

 

[Nameless Range]

People can get hypothermic in warmer temps than many would think. The nearest weather station in Wilsall said the high the day he contacted his friends via radio and said he was lost was 85, but the low was 39.

I became hypothermic hauling a deer out of the hills a few years ago and it was in the 50s. If you exhuast yourself and in the process soak yourself in sweat you could really be in a bad way. In my case, I knew I was F'd up and left the deer a quarter mile from the truck, drove 30 minutes home, and took a two hour shower before I began to warm up. Consider this guy was lost, possibly panicking, in some unforgiving country, and it was probably below freezing. He told his friends he was headed to Sunlight Lake (8800 ft), Wilsall is at 5059 ft. The adiabatic lapse rate for wet air is 3.5 (dry air 5.5) degrees per 1000 ft. So, being 3800 ft higher that hunter may have been looking at temperatures nearly 10 degrees cooler than Wilsall - well below freezing.

The only other possiblity I can see is if he were held at gunpoint and made to say these things, otherwise why would he leave his bow and gear?

Someday they will find him if he is up there. The remains of the guy in the Big Belts that I mentioned in post 106 were just found this spring - nearly a year and a half after he went missing.

 

[double_a85]

Nameless, I think you kind of hit the nail on the head with that. Every article you read about that talks of hypothermia states the people kinda "lose their mind." They found things here and there, with no real reasoning behind it. My hope was they would find his body somewhere in the vicinity so the family could have some closure... but how far could he wander in a couple hours before passing out, or giving up? And in which direction? I do not envy the responsibilities and the job duties of search and rescue... it has to be about as high stress as one can be put through.

 

[genesis273]

People can get hypothermic in warmer temps than many would think. The nearest weather station in Wilsall said the high the day he contacted his friends via radio and said he was lost was 85, but the low was 39.
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I'm glad you brought this up. I was elk hunting a unit not too far from there when he went missing. I know that there could have elavation differences which would have made a big difference in the two areas temperatures, but I do remember that it wasn't bad at all, and quite confortable.

I hope they find him, for the family's sake!

 

[JEL]

http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/ap_news/montana/remains-found-may-be-those-of-hunter-missing-for-years/article_8a04c38a-e256-5332-8664-6c04f911c48b.html

 

[Schaaf]

Wow, hope his family can finally get some peace.

 

[Southern Elk]

Prayers for his family. At least they will now have closure.

 

[Southwind]

I have wondered about this from when it was first posted here. At least his family will be able to bring him home now. Unforgiving country that any little mistake can end up costing you your life especially when you are going it alone.

 

[sbhooper]

I have wondered about this from when it was first posted here. At least his family will be able to bring him home now. Unforgiving country that any little mistake can end up costing you your life especially when you are going it alone.

Yep. I have been in some pretty scary stuff over the years. It can go bad real quickly in the high country.

 

[RobG]

My wife and I were just up Sweetgrass creek this weekend wondering about him.

I see the Chronicle is now pointing to the Big Timber paper for the details of the story: http://bigtimberpioneer.net/content...-near-melville-believed-belong-missing-hunter

 

[bobbydean]

That is a sad way to die. I would not want it to happen to myself or anyone I know. I cannot imagine the despair in your mind laying on the ground and waiting to die. Prayers to his family. Closure is good.

 

[schmalts]

Sad, but finally some closure for the family.

 

[Trial153]

Terrible. Hopefully the closure and time brings the family some small comfort

 

[RobG]

I think the The Big Timber Pioneer has a big article on this, but you have to subscribe to get it. Between this story and the teaser in the Pioneer you can gather a lot. I was at Moose lake on a break from counting goats on Saturday and mtmiller was just above it. This is really sad as he was right by some homes. In fact the Sweetgrass trail basically goes through their yards. The Pioneer indicates maybe the guy was afraid of getting caught for trespassing.

 

[RobG]

46°10'5.82"N/110°10'10.05"W is the Rein Ranch on Sweetgrass Creek, supposedly in sight of where they found Hedges. I assume the "ridge" mentioned was the one to the south.

 

[Southern Elk]

Maybe I missed it, but do they know how he died? What killed him?

 

[Poke 'Em]

Maybe I missed it, but do they know how he died? What killed him?

Probably hypothermia.