Hello Friends!
We are so used to hearing stories and accounts of people who go missing in the wilderness,
somewhere in the world, and they’re never seen or heard from again.
It's almost like it’s a common occurrence... because... basically it is now!
This happens so much and many people don’t even realize what’s going on.
How is this possible?
Maybe it’s because of the lack of reporting; whether by authorities in charge, news media
or perhaps even government entities who are trying to figure out what’s going on behind
the scenes so as not to cause a global panic.
Whatever the reason, it seems we in this community are still consumed by these occurrences.
We have been bringing to your attention these cases and so much more and will always continue
to do so.
Today though we have one of our less common occurrences.
We will be talking about a case of a man, his daughter and their dog who were missing
but then rescued, alive!
Needless to say it’s always a great day when we can bring you a story like this as
it happens far less often than when someone goes missing and never comes back or is found
deceased.
Here it is folks, a Canby man and his family rescued after being lost for a harrowing 48
hours in the wilderness.
37 year old Peter William Munro, his 7 year old daughter Leila and their dog, Buck were
hiking in Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest and were going to make a family trip of it.
Peter’s wife, Camille, was planning on joining her husband and daughter on this trip the
day after they left.
Camille said she’d arrived at the family’s Kinzel Lake campsite to join them on a camping
trip, but when she got there, they were nowhere to be found.
She assumed they’d gone on a hike but when they never returned, she set off the next
morning to search for them.
Camille had no luck, and called police after she found Peter’s truck at the Devil’s
Peak trailhead with his keys and Leila’s stuffed animals still inside.
I just want to point out here that, once again, the name Devil is involved with a place where
people have gone missing in the wilderness somewhere.
It was around 2:30 in the afternoon on Wednesday, September 2nd, 2020 when Camille Munro called
911 from the Devil’s Peak trailhead to report that her husband Peter, their daughter Leila
and their dog Buck had been missing for at least 24 hours.
Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office search and rescue coordinators activated a rescue
mission immediately that same afternoon.
The search area featured challenging terrain, and the mission would soon involve volunteers
from the CCSO SAR Trail Running Rescue Team, search K9s, rope team and ground team; Pacific
Northwest Search & Rescue (PNWSAR); ARM's Reach & Treat (RAT) Team; Mountain Wave Emergency
Communications; Portland Mountain Rescue; Oregon Office of Emergency Management (OEM);
The 304th Rescue Squadron; 125th Special Tactics Squadron, a special forces unit of the 142nd
Fighter Wing of the United States Air National Guard; and the Hood River Sheriff’s Office
Air Unit.
About 50 searchers ended up participating in the mission.
Most of these volunteers sprung into action immediately upon being called and were eager
and willing to help out in any way they could.
Searchers worked through the night, with additional resources from the 304th Rescue Squadron and
125th Special Tactics Squadron deploying to the field at about 2 o’clock in the morning
to assist the tired crews who had worked through the night.
At approximately 6 a.m. on Thursday, September 3rd, searchers from the 304th Rescue Squadron
were able to make voice contact with Peter.
It took at least another hour for them to reach the trio though, due to the harsh and
difficult terrain.
Peter Leila and Buck were found northwest of the Kinzel Lake trailhead, in a ravine
which was located about 1.25 miles and approximately 1,200 feet below where they had first set
out for their hike on Tuesday.
Peter was injured and unable to walk.
Leila and Buck were in good spirits, but needed assistance.
Crews quickly began to assess and provide first aid.
They learned Peter had become lost and had been moving downhill to where he thought a
trail was located; injuring himself in the process.
After stabilizing Peter, crews began the exhausting process of carrying him out of this remote
location through difficult terrain.
They reached a waiting medical crew on Still Creek Road — about 7 miles from Highway
26, near Rhododendron — at about 12:30 in the afternoon on Thursday, September 3rd.
Peter, Leila and Buck were lost and stuck in the wilderness for over 48 hours without
supplies!
This means no water and no food.
It’s an absolute miracle they survived relatively unharmed.
Peter was transported to an area hospital for his injuries.
Buck and Leila were reunited with their family and were getting some much needed rest.
After his rescue and hospitalization, Peter spoke to reporters from the back of an ambulance
and made this statement, “I just want to thank all the first responders and everybody
else that helped get me out of that hole.
I don’t think I would have made it out, especially without any other adults, so I
owe you guys my life.
Thank you.”
Search crews want to offer special thanks to a nearby construction crew working on the
Still Creek Bridge repair project.
The construction crew sped up the rescue operation by using a crane to hoist the special forces’
vehicles over the river.
Authorities mentioned that without this help, it would have taken an estimated additional
four hours to take the longer route to reach the location.
It was definitely a dramatic and dangerous rescue operation and the crews and volunteers
who participated are truly heroes.
We are glad to report that Peter, Leila and even Buck are all fine and have suffered no
long term injuries or lasting effects from this terrifying ordeal they endured when out
for a simple family hike.
It should go to show you to please be careful out there.
Whether alone or with a group or even with your pet- no one is immune to the rough and
tumble nature of Mother nature.
Always beprepared.
Peter and his family were extremely lucky to have survived and been rescued.
Next Up...
We bring you the story of a mother and son became lost in the colorado wilderness.
It’s never a fun time when you are lost in the wilderness.
It doesn’t matter what age you are, the unknown and mysterious depths of the woods-
even the most well traveled and scenic tourist spots- can become deadly and your situation
desperate really quickly if you don’t know where you are once you’re off the main trails
and clearly marked paths.
If you don’t know where you are then how can you possibly know where it is you are
going?
Once this realization sets in, it must be very hard to suppress the rising fear and
panic that surely sets in the moment you think to yourself, “I’m lost out here.
Will anyone be able to find me?”
Usually in these areas where we go to hike and camp, cell phone service is completely
unreliable and spotty on the best of days.
Now imagine all of this, and add to it being lost with one of your children.
This is exactly what happened to a mother in Colorado and her 14 year old son when they
decided to go for a day hike and spend some time together on Thursday August 5th, 2021.
It was a typical day for the pair, spending some time together in the great outdoors;
taking in the beautiful scenery and clean, fresh air.
Just trying to get in some outdoor activities and exercise opportunities before the summer
ends and the chill hits the Autumn air.
The pair had somehow gotten turned around and lost and ended up having to spend the
entire night in the freezing cold, extremely dark and predator infested woodlands of the
back country of the Flattops Wilderness area between Trappers Lake and
the Stillwater Reservoir.
The Stillwater Reservoir is a scenic alpine lake located southwest of Yampa, Colorado.
The Stillwater Reservoir rests at 10,259 ft (3,127 m) in northeast Garfield County.
It offers opportunities for fishing, hiking, and camping in the surrounding White River
and Routt National Forests.
The as yet unnamed mother and son were reported missing by the woman’s husband and young
kid’s father when they failed to return home by 11pm that same night.
The Garfield County Sheriff's Emergency Operations Division took the report and immediately began
a full search and rescue operation to try and locate the pair before it was too late.
The husband went out himself to go and find his wife and son and met some people known
only as two “good samaritans” along the way.
The three continued out together on foot to try and locate the man’s missing family.
Garfield County Search and Rescue sent out an alert shortly after midnight for all available
members to meet at the operations barn in Rifle at 5 a.m.
Friday, which was the following morning.
The two had been missing nearly 24 hours at this point and the search was fast becoming
desperate.
“Cell service in the area is very limited; however, they were able to receive a ping
from one cell phone to assist in finding approximate location coordinates of the hikers,” the
release states.
“Garfield County Sheriff’s Office along with Garfield County Search and Rescue coordinated
their rescue efforts with the Routt County Sheriff’s Office and their Search and Rescue
Team to begin at dawn.
Garfield County S&R deployed at Trappers Lake with Routt County beginning a ground search
farther east from Stillwater Reservoir.
“Care flight was requested to join in the search with their helicopter to provide any
necessary medical support and transport when the hikers were located,” the release states.
It took just about an hour and a half but eventually, at around 7:30 am that same Friday
morning, it was reported by the father that he and the good samaritans had a visual on
the missing duo.
The mother was dehydrated and hypothermic but would make a full recovery.
The 14 year old boy had no injuries and was able to walk out to the Stillwater Reservoir
with his father and one of the other Samaritans, completely unharmed.
The other good Samaritan who was helping the father in his desperate search twisted and
injured his knee.
He was taken by ground transport, with the unnamed mother to a hospital which was about
a two hour drive away.
The mom was hypothermic and dehydrated but would go on to make a full recovery.
“All parties would be safely re-united at Stillwater Reservoir,” the release states.
“This was another successful mission of the volunteers of Garfield Search and Rescue.
These volunteers are called upon regularly to assist in various rescues from water rescues
to climbing accidents; they assist in the rescue of lost or injured hikers, travelers
or other outdoor enthusiasts in the back country.”
Luckily this story has a happy ending where all parties involved, including those who
were initially injured, made full recoveries and made it home safely.
All too often this is not the case and the decisive action of the husband and swift measures
taken by the search and rescue crews in Garfield county Colorado definitely contributed to
this idyllic outcome.
Please, no matter if it’s a day hike or family camping trip, be sure and carry a personal
locator beacon.
Always pack extra clothes, food and water in case the unthinkable happens.
All too often the outcome of these day hikes gone wrong aren’t as fortuitous and people
can even end up losing their lives.
Next... 24 year old Gina Allen and 28 year old Brandon Day, both from Dallas Texas were
in California for a financial convention when they decided to go for a day hike together
on some trails just west of Palm Springs.
The pair ended up lost when they wandered off the trails and ended up not being able
to find their way out.
This is when their simple hike turned into a life or death ordeal and the thing that
saved them is what makes this story not only very special, but also quite bizarre to say
the least.
When the couple first realized they were lost, Brandon said he wasn’t too worried because
at that point he could still hear voices and so he assumed there were people around, most
likely on the trails they were trying so hard to find their way back to.
He said he kept thinking the trail would be, “right around this boulder.”
However the trail never reappeared and the couple knew they had to do something.
Night was closing in on them and they had not come prepared for more than a simple day
hike to take in the sights.
They didn’t even bring their cellphones let alone food or spare clothing.
They were only wearing light jackets as well.
They were completely helpless and at the mercy of the woods.
They went into a cave and spent the night freezing and scared, starving and terrified
of what may come and find them when they closed their eyes to sleep.
If sleep would come, they were so cold and afraid.
The next morning they decided to do something they had learned somewhere at some time and
that they had somehow been able to retain.
They started following a boulder strewn path downhill, struggling to stay with the stream
running downhill right with them.
That night they were frequently awakened, but not by the animals they so feared but
by their own shivering.
Brandon stated, “The mantra for the day was, ‘we’re going to get out of here.
We’re not going to die.
It’s not our time.’”
By the third day Gina Allen was very weak and didn’t even know how much longer she
could continue on like this.
She said she couldn't stop thinking the worst and that she was praying a lot.
Eventually they discovered a campsite.
It was in a dead-end gorge but they decided to look and see if there was anyone around.
They found a foam sleeping mat, razors, a poncho which was thrown into some of the branches
so that they could make some shade if they needed to, a spoon, a pair of tennis shoes
and a backpack.
They were relieved and elated, thinking for sure whoever owned this gear would be able
to show them to safety.
However that elation turned to fear when they realized this campsite was deserted, Among
the many items were a corroded flashlight and a broken radio.
The gear was soaking wet.
Nobody was going to help them.
They searched through the gear for more supplies and came up with identification belonging
to a 60 year old retired social worker from Virginia named John Donovan.
The couple found a journal of sorts, written on some sketch paper and the backs of maps,
and realized that John Donovan himself had been lost, and as he wrote these little notes,
he was a man who had lost all hope of ever getting out of the woods or being rescued,
at least not while alive.
In John’s backpack Gina and Brandon found a warm sweater she immediately put on to keep
warm and stop the shivering, he was able to put on the dry socks to help him warm up and
they even found dry matches to be able to start a fire.
They tried with a small fire to signal to a nearby helicopter but nobody seemed to have
seen the signal and they were still completely stranded but at least now, thanks to John
Donovan, they had hope for survival in the supplies he had left behind.
Brandon Day said of the journal, “His last journal entry was one year to the day we found
it, which was very eerie.
Nobody knew where he was, nobody knew to come looking for him, so he was preparing for the
end.
We were looking at the words of a man who was passing.”
The couple later learned a little more about the man who had inadvertently and unintentionally
saved their lives.
John Donovan was an experienced hiker who was following the 2,650 mile Pacific Crest
Trail, which goes from Southern California right up to the Canadian border.
On May 2nd, 2005 when he vanished, the conditions were very icy and he must’ve lost his way
or become too injured to keep going.
The next day they came to a large culvert which was completely covered with dried leaves,
vines and other types of foliage.
With the strike of just one more of those matches they found in John Donovan’s backpack,
they were able to light up an entire acre or two of forest, create a huge smoke signal,
and finally get the attention of a helicopter crew who rescued them.
Miraculously, when they were taken to the nearest hospital, they had only sustained
minor bruises and some blisters.
Brandon Day stated, “We feel great.
We’re thankful.
We feel like we’ve been given a second chance.”
Gina Allen and Brandon Day lasted all of that time in the rugged terrain of those mountains
thanks to a man who has been presumed dead for a while now.
Unfortunately John Donovan has never been found.
His remains have never been found either.
Was it a coincidence?
Fate?
Synchronicity?
Destiny?
We may never know.
It’s always good when we get to see something wonderful like hope and the gift of getting
to continue living coming out of something so tragic as a very experienced hiker losing
his way and never being seen again.
John Donovan was a social worker in his career.
He helped people.
He made it his life’s work to go out and help people.
The disenfranchised and the marginalized and here he is, though most likely dead himself,
going out of his way to help a couple of inexperienced hikers who almost certainly would have died
themselves had it not been for his great sacrifice.
Well friends, there you have it!
What do you think of these amazing true tales of survival?
It is refreshing to be able to have an episode of people that made it out alive.
Be safe out there in the woods!
Live to tell the tale!
Thanks for listening, I look forward to your comments but please keep it friendly!
In the meanwhile be good to yourselves and each other.
I'll see you just a little farther on down the trail...
I'm Steve Stockton and i'll talk to you next time!