zecats
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The avalanche evidence found was near the beginning of his trip. He may not have gotten very far at all.This is a virtual tour of the route, although it starts from the Kings Canyon NP side, not the eastern Kearsage Pass route he took
It's beyond amazing without any snow on it
I wonder how he planned to navigate this vast expanse of snow and rock when the major landmarks were heavily snow covered and only intermittently identifiable between storms. Wouldn't he have at least had a GPS of some sort? (unfortunately, those run on batteries and batteries are heavy to carry and don't work well in the cold - I've slept with batteries in my clothes while camping to keep them warm and functional). If a GPS, why not just do the safe thing and carry a PLB as Dawookie mentions above?
What would his winter warfare training at Pickel Meadows Marine base have taught him about winter survival? Did he leave more detailed plans of his route with any buddies or family? Did he leave information about bail-out plans?
How much experience as a back country skier did he have? A solo backcountry skier.
My gut suspicion is that he is out there within 40 miles of Kearsage Pass. Please let them find him soon
Avalanche debris found as search for US Marine missing after ski trip continues
The Onion Valley parking lot photo is a testament to this, sadly.
Missing Marine's SUV found, crews continue search ahead of late-winter storm, authorities say
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