Missing Endangered Melvin Heaps

[Dave]

Yes, they had aircraft tracks that are not represented on the map.

 

[Perry]

It would have been interesting to see the progression of the search effort by seeing daily updates.

 

[Dave]

A few thoughts based on the map presented by the SCSO:

We are severely hampered by not having an indication as to which trail Heaps might have taken. Without narrowing it to one trail, a huge swath of terrain becomes suspect.

Highway 150 essentially presents a hard eastern and southern boundary to the search area.

The Middle Fork Weber River gorge can be considered a north-western boundary, as it's unlikely Heaps would have crossed it laterally and moved uphill on the western side.

The red lines represent foot and horse searches. The purple lines are dog searches. One of the dog teams veered very near to the site of Kim Beverly and Carole Wetherton's shelter rock, south-west of Mount Watson.

The area surrounding Trial/Washington Lakes has been covered extensively and can likely be ruled out for future searches.

The area between Wall/Watson/Clyde Lakes could be searched more thoroughly.

Presumably the area of the Three Divide Lakes was not searched by foot because it is above tree line and visible from the air. Hidden Lake is surrounded by trees and has not been searched.

It appears only one person or team went over the Notch and to Ibantik Lake, and the data from their GPS track is unreliable. Given the fact the Notch is a clear landmark and target for hikers, it seems a good area to focus future efforts.

Google Earth's imagery database has updated to include coverage of this area from 6/22/2017. There is still some snow present, but it is better than the previous imagery that was largely snow covered.

 

[andyjaggy]

It's a bit humbling to see the amount of coverage and search area, and to then realize how much ground still hasn't really been covered. You start to realize why it is so easy for people to get lost and never be found. there are still huge tracts of land that haven't been searched where he could easily be.

 

[Perry]

I think this proves that the most important thing to do when going solo is tell someone exactly where you are going. If you want to change your plans after the fact, don't do it unless you have the means to communicate with the home base.


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[Rockskipper]

And carry a SPOT or PLB. A good PLB can be had for around $250 on REI.

 

[Perry]

Funny you should mention that... I just now sent a "Just checking in" message to my wife on my InReach


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[Rockskipper]

You must be out in the backcountry, eh? Or maybe you've been in line at Starbuck's for a long time...

Wait, you live in Morgan - no SB there, even if you drink coffee. I really liked Morgan when I stopped in there a few weeks ago. Very pretty place, esp. with the river. I actually contemplated moving there for awhile and still may next summer.

 

[Perry]

Hehe that's hilarious! But yes, taking a little hike up to Thurston Peak here in the Wasatch.


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[Deleted User]

It's kind of interesting there are zero tracks on any of the mountains like Haystack, Watson and Notch. I'm assuming they "covered" them with helicopter? Do they think he cannot be on any of those mountains just because they are above tree line and they can "see" it all? Just seems strange to me.

He was last seen on the 31st at Island Lake at noon by a hiker that posts on one of the Facebook groups I am a part of. From all accounts this info was passed to Melvin's wife and S&R. Looks like from the map that Dave posted, they searched all the places I would have looked. I did keep an eye out since the trail I was on last week loops to Crystal Lake TH. It just feels like another Missing 411 case. It has all the requirements to meet the profile. The Uintas seem to literally swallow people up and they are never seen again. One route that I cannot see if it was searched was the trail from Island Lake to Big Elk Lake. I know backpackers that do that route. It would be interesting to know if that route was checked.

 

[Deleted User]

I'm guessing they want to see if anyone captured Melvin on a trail cam.

The Uintas are not the usual place to put up a trail cam. Especially in this area. Too many people frequent this area.

 

[Perry]

He was last seen on the 31st at Island Lake at noon by a hiker that posts on one of the Facebook groups I am a part of. From all accounts this info was passed to Melvin's wife and S&R. Looks like from the map that Dave posted, they searched all the places I would have looked. I did keep an eye out since the trail I was on last week loops to Crystal Lake TH. It just feels like another Missing 411 case. It has all the requirements to meet the profile. The Uintas seem to literally swallow people up and they are never seen again. One route that I cannot see if it was searched was the trail from Island Lake to Big Elk Lake. I know backpackers that do that route. It would be interesting to know if that route was checked.

See this is a great example of what bugged me about the relationship between Summit County SAR and the Bardsley organization who was organizing and running the volunteer search effort. I had heard the same that someone had seen him on a trail somewhere. I asked the Bardsley folks where he was seen and the said they didn't know anything about that. What's up with that? Were they not told by SC SAR ?

 

[Dave]

The Uintas are not the usual place to put up a trail cam. Especially in this area. Too many people frequent this area.

And yet, I routinely hear gunshots when hiking up there and have found many hunter camps off trail in the bush. They use the area, just later in the year than the summer crowds.

 

[Dave]

I had heard the same that someone had seen him on a trail somewhere. I asked the Bardsley folks where he was seen and the said they didn't know anything about that. What's up with that? Were they not told by SC SAR ?

Could be that the information was not verified, or that it was a false sighting. It could also be that the search and rescue organizers simply gave volunteers something to do so they would feel helpful.

 

[Dave]

I've obtained a copy of the GPS files from Summit County. It's a pretty hefty data set but pretty fascinating to overlay on Google Earth. It will also be invaluable to understanding how close searchers came once Heaps is located.

 

[Deleted User]

And yet, I routinely hear gunshots when hiking up there and have found many hunter camps off trail in the bush. They use the area, just later in the year than the summer crowds.

I am not sure on the hunting regulations out there. I've heard the target practice shooters out there as well. Ruins the experience IMHO. The only lake I have not been to in that drainage is Hidden Lake below Beaver Lake. I have done a lot of off trail in that area over the years and have never seen a trail cam out there. I just thought it was a interesting request that I have not seen from a S&R before.

 

[Rockskipper]

The Sand Flats Rec Area above Moab has a number of trail cams up, and they're not for watching the critters, but rather for monitoring trail use and damage. I used to know a guy who worked at Arches (now retired) and was responsible for cameras there, which they have in various strategic places that are hard to patrol, such as above the Great Gallery. I practically lived at the Sand Flats for years and never saw one of their cameras until a friend who works there pointed a few out to me - they're easy to hide. Regular folks also put them out in strange places looking for Bigfoot, that kind of thing.

 

[Megan Trujillo]

Hey all! I know it's been some time since this all started, but I was wondering if Melvin had been found? I only just heard about his disappearance, and was saddened to not be able to find any more information that went past mid August. I've know Melivn and his wife since I was a baby......many years! And this just breaks my heart to think what she is going through right now.

If anyone has any info I would be very grateful for any news. Praying for Melvin and his family!

 

[Dave]

If anyone has any info I would be very grateful for any news. Praying for Melvin and his family!

Megan, I've not heard any additional updates from Summit County (the lead agency in the search). I work in the news industry and keep a pretty close ear on these kinds of stories... and have paid close attention to this search in particular. My past experience tells me that once the original SAR effort ends, the searchers will sometimes arrange informal searches months later. This is in part how Kim Beverly and Carole Wetherton were located in the same general area after they disappeared.

I'd be interested to hear your impressions of Melvin, though that's a topic better handled in direct messages.

 

[RSW]

Will there be a chance to gather aerial photos of before and after 2018-7-31 for comparison, and then suggest some spots for search? Will this tedious job be workable in Utah's climates and geography? Perhaps, no such aerial photos suitable for this use?