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Missing Skier - Information Needed

4/15/08
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Posted by ashcan on 4/28/08 12:31pm
Were you out skiing Mt. Baker this weekend?  Did you see somebody (most likely solo) skiing?  We have a friend who is overdue.   He has red hair and was possibly wearing a red or green jacket.   Please contact the Whatcom County Sheriffs Office (306-676-6911). 

Thanks. 
His car was found on the Glacier Creek road so he was likely skiing up the Coleman-Deming route.

**positive vibes**

Let's hope this has a happy ending...

My buddy and I drove up Glacier Creek Road to the snow line and saw a red hatchback (I think a geo?) parked there.  That would have been at 3PM or so on Sunday, April 27th.  We had just driven up there to see how far we could get up the road for a recon for Baker next weekend, so we didn't get any farther than that.  I don't know if that helps at all.  I hope everything turns out...

Thanks Andyrew.  At this point everything helps.  We believe that he may have left his car Saturday evening intending to summit on Sunday.  Were there any other cars on the road that looked like they may have belonged to skiers?

I went up Glacier Creek road also to see how much snow was on the road. I just saw the one car like Andrew describes, simmilar to a Geo Metro (red), that was the only care parked there around 1pm Sunday.

I hope all is well. Let us know if you need anymore info. Many of us have been in the area a lot and know it very well and can surmise places to look or places to get lost or hunker down, etc.

Thanks Jason.
The sheriff has indicated at this point that they want to limit the number of people on the mountain and let the SAR team do its job.
However, they will let us know if the search continues and they need more help.
We'll post updates if we hear anything.

Sending some positive vibes ~~~~~~~~~
Hoping all is well.  Keep us posted, you're all in our thoughts.

Weather has bad up there today; 50 mph winds and poor visibility with an estimated 12-18" of new.  Needless to say, the helicopter flown by Customs and Border Patrol couldn't make it in.  SAR teams did OK searching in the trees, but their search area was limited, and with all the new snow, it makes it hard to find any clues.  If things remain the same tomorrow (Wednesday), ground crews will be on hold. 

If you pray, pray for a break in the weather so these guys (and the CBP helicopter) can get in to do their thing. 

The missing climber is Kevin LaFleur, one of my best friends and one of my two main climbing partners. He called a friend around 10am on Saturday to say hi, but we're not sure if he was high enough on the mountain for cell reception or if he was still driving there. Either way, he would have been on the CD/Roman Wall area way after John Scurlock was flying by, hence no tracks.

If anybody who was skiing off Glacier Creek Rd. has any info whatsoever on any solo climbers they saw or talked to that were planning on skinning above 7000 feet it would be very helpful. He was using Atomic Kongur skis (black with the blue splotchy marks) with Fritschi bindings; probably a red/orange jacket; probably a blue golite ski pack. He has reddish brown hair,is of average height (5'8" or so), has a stocky athletic build, and often wears a white sweatband when skinning up. He is an excellent skier and a fast climber. Below are links to two trip reports I've posted in the past six months that he's been on with me. The face shots on the second report are better, but they both give a sense of his gear and build.

http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Main/57230/Number/764011#Post764011

http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Main/55012/Number/733042#Post733042

We've spent the past two days searching but the weather has been really bad, and all tracks are now completely covered over. Thanks for reading...

Latest info at http://www.turns-all-year.com/skiing_snowboarding/trip_reports/index.php?topic=9929.0

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missing-skier-information-needed
ashcan
2008-04-28 19:31:11