Found Deceased CO - Kevin Rudnicki, 20, hiker, Mount Herman, Pike National Forest, 3 Sep 2018

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We searched today with no results. Myself, mar90, Kevin's stepdad and others joined us. We had access to a gentleman who organized the civilian search for Tim Watkins in the same area a year ago. My team went to the area where we believe his sunglasses were left. We hiked the ridge to the west and searched that area. Lots of boulders! Very difficult terrain. We tried as best we could to traverse back and forth and cover the entire area. I crawled in caves an around boulders. All the while, asking myself where the hell are you? It was difficult and discouraging. Questioning everything. Starting to wonder if we are looking in the wrong place. It was sunny, about 30 degrees. Some snow. Microspikes came in handy. Planning our next mission.
 
Kevinsmom98 said:
We searched today with no results. Myself, mar90, Kevin's stepdad and others joined us. We had access to a gentleman who organized the civilian search for Tim Watkins in the same area a year ago. My team went to the area where we believe his sunglasses were left. We hiked the ridge to the west and searched that area. Lots of boulders! Very difficult terrain. We tried as best we could to traverse back and forth and cover the entire area. I crawled in caves an around boulders. All the while, asking myself where the hell are you? It was difficult and discouraging. Questioning everything. Starting to wonder if we are looking in the wrong place. It was sunny, about 30 degrees. Some snow. Microspikes came in handy. Planning our next mission.
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I can't imagine how difficult today was for you, Kevinsmom, and thank you for the report on how the day went. I know this sounds trite, but tell yourself the areas you covered today do tell you where Kevin is not. It gets you a little bit closer as to where he might be. I hope you can get some rest tonight. God bless.
 
As Tripod noted, you now know where Kevin is not, so you have reduced the search area. This increases the probability of him being found somewhere in the remaining search area. If all of the trails have been searched, that is additional area that can be checked off, further reducing the search area. A very fit individual can walk up to 30 miles in a day on a flat trail with no obstructions. Hilly terrain, wearing a pack and hiking on rough terrain reduced that significantly. If you take the last known spot (PLS) Kevin was seen at, put a dot on the topo map. Figure a max of 20 miles, using the scale of the map. Take a compass, set it for the 20 mile distance, put the point on the PLS and draw a circle. Kevin is inside that circle. Draw a second circle at 10 miles. Search the 10 mile circle first. This concentrates your efforts in the area of highest probability. This may be as simple as he walked into thick underbrush to relieve himself and fell, or as complex as searching out a quite place with a nice view, that is somewhat inaccessible. Do not make the mistake not searching a wash, depression, thicket of briers, etc thinking he did not or could not have gone in there. If the area is very difficult or dangerous, have the SAR teams high angle experts do the looking.
 
Trackergd said:
As Tripod noted, you now know where Kevin is not, so you have reduced the search area. This increases the probability of him being found somewhere in the remaining search area. If all of the trails have been searched, that is additional area that can be checked off, further reducing the search area. A very fit individual can walk up to 30 miles in a day on a flat trail with no obstructions. Hilly terrain, wearing a pack and hiking on rough terrain reduced that significantly. If you take the last known spot (PLS) Kevin was seen at, put a dot on the topo map. Figure a max of 20 miles, using the scale of the map. Take a compass, set it for the 20 mile distance, put the point on the PLS and draw a circle. Kevin is inside that circle. Draw a second circle at 10 miles. Search the 10 mile circle first. This concentrates your efforts in the area of highest probability. This may be as simple as he walked into thick underbrush to relieve himself and fell, or as complex as searching out a quite place with a nice view, that is somewhat inaccessible. Do not make the mistake not searching a wash, depression, thicket of briers, etc thinking he did not or could not have gone in there. If the area is very difficult or dangerous, have the SAR teams high angle experts do the looking.
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Perfect advice!
 
Kevinsmom, if you need more advice on how to break down the search area into grids, let me know. If you have a SAR team in the area who has at least one member who has taken the NASAR Search Management or like training program, they should know how to do this.
 
Another suggestion. This operation appears to be a good candidate for a grid search operation. Line up all the volunteers and SAR members in a line, fingertip to fingertip. Have a leader behind them to keep them in line. The line moves only as fast as it's slowest member. When a clue is found, halt everyone and don't touch anything. The leader then radio's the GPS location of the team and what was found to the incident commander. Wait until the clue is verified before the line moves forward again. I suggest the team also include a medic and have supply logistics in place for re-supply of water and food in addition to means of evacuating an injured or sick team member. When one grid area is searched, the team can be moved to a new location by the incident commander. Multiple grid teams can operate at one time as long as you have a top notch radio operator at the command post to update the incident commander and SAR manager. In the above method, you search every inch in the path of the team, and even small bits of evidence, like sunglasses, clothing and equipment are detected and identified.
 
And another (sorry to overwhelm you). Contact Tom Brown's Tracking School in New Jersey and see if the have anyone who has taken advanced classes that are living in your area. Have the School get them in contact with you. These are experienced trackers who can work independently or as teams and cover lots of territory in "hasty searches" They are experts in detecting tracks and small bits of evidence. Make sure you have a recent pair of Kevin's shoes for them to look at for wear patterns. They will be able to tell Kevin's surviving tracks from anyone else. Make sure they have a radio operator with them that has GPS.
 
A local police officer got into a heated argument with a family friend recently, insisting that Kevin had been found. However, he refused to give any details. Our mom emailed the chief to confirm this. We know this has been a rumor circulating ever since the initial days of the search, but we had no idea that the police took these to be truth. Kevin is still missing, he has NOT been found. In fact, we had been wondering who had been taking down the missing posters all over town; I suppose it was probably the police.

If the authorities had found Kevin, they would certainly notify the family, right? I have no reason to believe that they would hide this from us and the public; after all, when they find a missing person, it is often in the news. I am guessing they police are just spreading a rumor to be us and the public to stop bothering them.

Today, I am going out to search with a friend. I know from facebook there is another group of people going as well.
 
I am greatly saddened to say that Kevin's friend and I found Kevin today at 9:20 am. Of course, we cannot convey how saddened we are, but we are also relieved that the search is over. We are extremely grateful for the kindness and advice this board has had to offer.

I am open to answering any questions, we have been prepared for this for a while now. Kevin was in the area that the dog wanted to pull, about 1/10 a mile down the hill from the road. Backpack, belongings, clothes, and the skeleton remain.

Again, we thank you all for your immense help.
 
So sorry to hear this :(
My thoughts are with you and your family as you walk through the grieving process.
Know that many people are supporting you from this board!
Does it appear that he had fallen, or simply gotten lost and couldn't get back on a trail?
 
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