Found Safe CA - Stephen Mcguire, 67, Three Rivers / Kings Canyon National Park, 18 May 2018

[cybervampira]

National Park Seeks Public's Help in Finding Missing Hiker

Park Rangers are seeking help from the public in the search for a missing hiker. 67-year-old Stephen McGuire, from Washington, was last seen near Kearsarge Pass in Kings Canyon National Park on Friday, May 18, by another hiker who said that Mr. McGuire seemed tired and low on food. He was reported missing to the U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday, May 23.

[...]

McGuire is 5’6” white male who is athletically built, and has black hair and a beard, both partially gray. In the picture attached, he is wearing a black puffy jacket, and believed to be carrying a green backpack and green tent.

Personnel from the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are currently working with Inyo National Forest and the NPS Investigative Services Branch to gather information. If you have any information, or if you have hiked between Mt. Whitney and Reds Meadow since Thursday, May 10, whether or not you think you saw Mr. McGuire, please call the tipline at (888) 653-0009.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

 

[cybervampira]

@SequoiaKingsNPS & @PCTAssociation
Missing Hiker
Stephen McGuire
Trail Name: Bible

INTENDED ITINERARY: Contacted his wife from Mount Whitney on 5/15. He was last seen near Kearsarge Pass on 5/18.

Please call our Tipline 888-653-0009 if in the area 5/10/2018.

SpecialAgentNPS on Twitter

 

[Steelslady]

National Park Seeks Public's Help in Finding Missing Hiker

Park Rangers are seeking help from the public in the search for a missing hiker. 67-year-old Stephen McGuire, from Washington, was last seen near Kearsarge Pass in Kings Canyon National Park on Friday, May 18, by another hiker who said that Mr. McGuire seemed tired and low on food. He was reported missing to the U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday, May 23.

[...]

McGuire is 5’6” white male who is athletically built, and has black hair and a beard, both partially gray. In the picture attached, he is wearing a black puffy jacket, and believed to be carrying a green backpack and green tent.
View attachment 134943 View attachment 134942
Personnel from the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are currently working with Inyo National Forest and the NPS Investigative Services Branch to gather information. If you have any information, or if you have hiked between Mt. Whitney and Reds Meadow since Thursday, May 10, whether or not you think you saw Mr. McGuire, please call the tipline at (888) 653-0009.
View attachment 134944
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

Oh for Pete's sake- the hiker that last saw him thought he was tired and low on food on May 18th, so we let him keep on going without calling for help, in case he miraculously gets a burst of energy an he finds a back pack of fresh food to eat with a garden full of fresh veggies ready to pick?

Also, I have a FIL in his 80's who does stuff by himself like this, and it really upsets us. Why not go in a group or with a friend? It isn't safe at any age to go alone, especially these days, but now he's missing and no one knows where he could be since the last day he was seen was the 18th of May, unless someone else comes forward. To me, this is very selfish of people that do this.

 

[RickshawFan]

Oh for Pete's sake- the hiker that last saw him thought he was tired and low on food on May 18th, so we let him keep on going without calling for help, in case he miraculously gets a burst of energy an he finds a back pack of fresh food to eat with a garden full of fresh veggies ready to pick?

Also, I have a FIL in his 80's who does stuff by himself like this, and it really upsets us. Why not go in a group or with a friend? It isn't safe at any age to go alone, especially these days, but now he's missing and no one knows where he could be since the last day he was seen was the 18th of May, unless someone else comes forward. To me, this is very selfish of people that do this.

The description of this man as an "experienced hiker" is absurd. #1 He evidently made some rookie mistakes; and #2 thru hiking is not a day hike nor a weeklong backpack. It takes ultra-distance experience before mastery sets in.

Many thru-hikers scrimp on emergency necessities to save weight. This means they depend on others for survival. I'm not saying this is what happened here, but it happens frequently on long-distance trails. This is extremely selfish, unethical. Search and rescue puts volunteers at risk and mooching off other hikers (e.g. by making better-prepared hikers move out in a crowded shelter because you didn't feel like bringing a tent) is all kinds of not right.

Been there, done that. I was even on a Sierra Club trip where someone showed up at the trailhead without a tent, and I was required to let her share mine. I had a 1 1/2 person tent. I had to carry it myself. Sharing made the trip hell.

Literally, backcountry hikers should pull their own weight, but often don't.

Sometimes, there are genuine emergencies. Perhaps you are two days late to your drop, which would leave you one day short of food because you MUST carry a spare day. However, on these long-distance trails there are plenty of day hikers and short-time backpackers who are more than eager to hand over their extras. There's something seriously wrong here if no one had spare food on a busy trail like this.

Solo hiking is generally not a problem on busy trails like the AT and PCT, except maybe by bandits in desert sections, where hikers generally group up. It seems much more fearsome to folks who aren't experienced hikers.

I hiked ultra-distance for several weeks with a 90-year-old solo hiker I'd never met before. It was one of the best experiences of my life. He gave others so much pleasure and himself as well.

This missing hiker might easily have succumbed to hypothermia or altitude reactions such as hallucinations. He could have run down the batteries in his headlamp and not had a spare set because he was trying to save weight: high likelihood of stepping into the abyss. And, hey, most day hikers would have been glad to walk him out to their car so he'd be safe. People go out of their way to help out thru-hikers and they love the stories they get in return.

Final thought. This hiker started the PCT in March. That's very early for a start. Plus he's hit the high Sierras much earlier than normal hiking season. Very easy to get into weather trouble. As a plus, he evidently did have a support person following the trail by road and re-supplying him; there is some safety (and luxury) in this that's not available to most thru-hikers.

 

[cybervampira]

Found safe!

Missing hiker found safe in Kings Canyon National Park

 

[Seajay]

I love a happy ending. So glad he was found safe and well. So many missing here are not. God Bless him.

 

[LAhiker]

National Park Seeks Public's Help in Finding Missing Hiker

Park Rangers are seeking help from the public in the search for a missing hiker. 67-year-old Stephen McGuire, from Washington, was last seen near Kearsarge Pass in Kings Canyon National Park on Friday, May 18, by another hiker who said that Mr. McGuire seemed tired and low on food. He was reported missing to the U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday, May 23.

He's been found safe.

Missing hiker found safe in Kings Canyon National Park

 

[JerseyGirl]

Stephen McGuire, 67, of Washington state was last seen May 18 by a fellow hiker, who was concerned that McGuire looked tired and was low on food. McGuire was listed as missing May 23 after he failed to arrive as planned to pick up new supplies near Mammoth Lakes.

Pacific Crest Trail backpacker is missing