A helicopter joins in the search for Rocky Mountain National Park Ranger Jeff Christensen on Monday morning in the Lawn Lake Trailhead area. Two helicopters and more than 125 volunteers took part in Monday's search. Christensen has not been seen since he set out on a backcountry patrol Friday.
Jeff Christensen
I was just in RMNP two weekends ago. Sooooo many places for a person to meet with tragedy. I fear this man's fate is not a good one. I pray I am wrong. Lots of hikers this time of year. I hope someone comes across this poor fella.
I hope he just wanted to disappear (a la Jennifer Wilbanks). Otherwise I fear for his safety.
...Park spokeswoman Kyle Patterson said it is possible he was attacked by a mountain lion or other wildlife, but loose rock and exposure to the elements are more likely threats to the missing man......
.....the PETA Wildlife invironmentalists NUTS have been re-planting.....WOLVES.....through out all Rocky Mountain States for years now!!!
Ranchers have been complaining about..... the WOLF PACK DANGERS...... with NOT any 'human' ACLU-PETA help...etc.
/abortion clinics on wolf packs?
.....ongoing prayers......
The ACLU-PETA-U.N. ,.....'parks'......are NOT safe anymore....
.....protect yourself and children....in the...'parks'....carry many Guns!
/sarcasm?
Was he in a vehicle when he headed out? If so - have they found that?
The Perp?
Critters? Impossible. The park rangers are always telling me how harmless lions and bears are and they must be right otherwise it wouldn't be criminal to carry a sidearm inside a national park.
How terrible. It sure doesn't look good, but I pray he is found alive.
I saw this on the news here last night and thought it was pretty strange. My wife hikes around up there quite a bit and it rough. They have a lot of people searching for him and he had a certain route he was supposed to take so if they haven't found him I'm thinking something strange has happened.
From the RMNP site:
Yesterday, searchers received clues that may help to narrow the search area. During the late
afternoon, park visitors reported hearing gun shots in the search area. There were also reports of
smoke in the same general area. At approximately 8 P.M., park rangers responded to the reported
location and stationed themselves at critical areas. One of them discharged their weapon
(standard procedure in search operations) to elicit a response. Another ranger in a different
location reported hearing a response shot a few minutes later. More rangers were then brought in
to the area and spread out along road and trails to listen for more responses. No new gun shot
responses were heard, but they did hear a radio being keyed after several gun shots from the
rangers. At this time, there is no confirmation that the responses came from Christensen, but it
does raise hope that it could possibly be him.
This morning, searchers will concentrate their efforts in this section of the search area, using
ground crews, dog teams, and a helicopter equipped with a device that can help detect heat from a
person. Today’s weather is forecasted to be cloudy and rainy which will hamper helicopter
operations at the higher elevations.
Jeff is 31-years-old and is an experienced mountaineer. He is extremely fit and capable of
covering long distances in a short period of time. Although Jeff was not intending to spend the
night he had a backpack with a variety of gear. He also had a park radio with him, however, in
some drainages radio coverage is spotty or his battery could have run out. This is his fourth
season as a park ranger at Rocky Mountain National Park. Jeff is an EMT (Emergency Medical
Technician) and has worked ski patrol at Winter Park for the past seven years. His hometown is
Fraser, Colorado."
http://www.nps.gov/romo/downloads/press/christensensearchthursday.pdf
Fingers crossed.