One winter in college a group of us hiked up Mt Washington and spent a night in a snow cave on the way up. We were all experienced outdoors people. On the last stretch to the top we were in almost zero visibility and got quite strung out along the trail, only sporadically in sight of each other. I was in the middle but after a couple of hours in a near white out and the wind I started to hear voices and see shapes even though I wasn’t anywhere close to the others. At one point I nearly walked off an edge, not realizing it was there until one foot was out in space. When we all got to the top it turned out I wasn’t the only one with those experiences. When your brain is deprived of sensory input for long enough it starts to create things to fill in the blanks. We stayed much closer together on the way back down.
I’m so glad you and your friends got off the mountain safe. Mt Washington is notoriously dangerous. My father and I climbed in the summer of 1976 -August- and we almost didn’t make it. I was only 13 years old. We were on a lunar surface, rocks covered with lichen, in dense fog, cold, with high wind. My father held me close to him as the conditions worsened. The worst part was disorientation- we had no idea of how far we had to go until we reached the top. We still talk about that day. Thank God we made it ok.
Another one that’s even more strange was the sudden vanishing of Barbara Bolick . Good weather, a few feet away from hiking companion who had looked away from her for a moment. Looked back and she was completely gone from an open area.
I love when you tell stories of my backyard! Yes Rainer is very dangerous! I lost a cousin that was search and rescue up there while he was trying to rescue some female who had no business up on a mountain. Some people are very selfish and risk our rescue guys lives! Makes me sad and angry. We grew up in these mountains and we were told by my Dad from a very young age If you're not able to get yourself up there and back DONT GO! Don't risk others lives!
I agree with you that people who aren’t skilled enough or prepared properly for whatever hike, climb, hunt, etc. they decide to go on are being irresponsible when they go out regardless and can be risking the lives of SAR people.
@@carmenmartinez2882so true,but they know the risk and choose to do that line of work anyway. If they don’t want to die doing something dangerous then that’s the wrong profession to be in❤ We are fortunate to have fearless ,risk taking humans around to try and save victims tho.
@@micadean1600 - the rescuers aren't fearless. They do fear not going home to their families. They are just more empathetic than the people who hike unprepared.
It was a horrible day to be climbing that day! Visibility was really bad and for all accounts, they shouldn't have been going for the summit that day! Other climbers had been bundled at the cabin trying to stay warm due to the weather. Eric did make a snow cave so it is believed that he was alive for a while after he removed his clip. His bag was found and just because they didn't see any footprints after a certain point wouldn't be uncommon due to how windy and snowing it was. My guess is he fell after coming from his snow cave. It's also not uncommon for bodies to be lost in the mountains. Sad his friends went to the summit without their partner. He died doing what he loved!!!
Well it clearly wasn’t summit fever related at least but in retrospect maybe they should of checked more below before going above. Hindsight’s always 20 20 unfortunately, it’s easy to think what we would of done differently in these situations but irl it’s very easy to make bad mistakes. Outcomes are just what measures if others reflect on it or not. Plenty of people make questionable choices in the mountains but you don’t hear about them if they find the friend and the outcomes positive
They made a bad call that day but it does happen more often than you think. The other mountaineers all stayed at the cabin that day because of the weather. Sometimes judgment clouds their brains and that's when tragedy happens. He died doing what he loved!
Three incidents very similar to this have happened in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park since 1969. Not climbing, just hiking. They were with groups and simply just disappeared with no trace.
ya know...and i may have mentioned this b4. I remember a combing accident, where a group of ppl were involved. They are climbing (it was here in the US. Rainier or Hood or somewhere West of the Rockies is all I can recall. A documentary was made too. This ground were making their way up the Mtn. slope when they turned around, the people behind them had vanished. It was several ppl. One was a man and his son. The father felt horrified to know he led his son into the death trap. What happened, for some reason all the others got across, but repeated ppl weakend the frozen snow and they (a handful of people, including the father and son well into this crevice. THe snow followed and covered them all up. Many were unconscious from the fall, or had serious life threatening injuries. Somehow the father and son were able to find each other. The father kept hollering for his son. Finally out of all the silence he heard him. He was alive. SO the father started making escape plans or ways to let the other know they were indeed actually down that rabbit hole, and I believe the father was unable to move much. Broken leg(S) etc...his son was able to move despite any of his injuries. There was no room for movement, but they had luckily landed on a somewhat "edge" they landed on. Father instructed the son, that if he could, and don't take any changes that'll cost you your life. Find the other men, at one time were moaning and groaning, so you kinda knew their whereabouts under all that snow, ice and debris. Well the others I believe all perished, but the son was able to get much needed survival gear from the other ppl. They weren't needing it now. Miraculously they both survived, was able to lead rescuers to the spot and retrieve the bodies of the men. Sad story, but at least they knew how to survive and able to send help for the other men still stuck frozen in that crevice. Seems like this was a known hike trail to the summit, but accidents still happened. THe man and his son said you absolutely could not see the crevice, until right upon it. Even then, looking into it, you could not see people. They had been covered up with snow, and ice and debris. They were clinging to this little lip/edge inside the crevice. It was an amazing story of survival. They had to spend days down there. Until it was notice the party didn't return with everyone. Search insueded. Happy ending for that family, but not for the others who all perished in the crevice , but al least ere retrieved. You just never know, no matter how experienced at any of this you are. When it's time, it's time.
When you dont know something is gonna happen how hard do you pay attention? Peoples recollections suck, half of what makes these weird is when the person they were with gives a recollection that defies logic and people beleive it as fact and not a mistaken memory.
It was STUPID to climb on a day like that and STUPID to unhook, but then hypothermia doesn’t just Wham! hit you it comes on slower, and that’s probably what happened to him as he couldn’t think straight. I didn’t realize it but what those other hikers said about being an hour or two with no sensory input and your brain starts playing games is no doubt true.. And his age also was a factor too. Mountaineers think they are invincible.
It does seem like a very strange case. The only reason I can think for him unclipping himself would be to stop to go to the bathroom, or something similar. Perhaps because he had summited it many times before he was getting complacent and thought he would be safe, but then couldn't find the rope and the others again afterwards. Which would be pretty difficult in 5ft visibility. Then maybe fell into a small crevasse that was then snowed over again before anyone else saw it. Or maybe made another snow cave which he never left. And in 5ft visibility conditions I think it would be quite easy for any footprints to disappear by the time the others came back to search around for him. Very sad.
Thank for keeping his memory alive. Sending love and light to his friends and family. I have been up this route several times myself. For those of you attempting to climb Rainer, this is how I do it. Choose three weekends to go. And chose the best weather window. I know that’s easier for us locals, but it’s just a thought. Stay safe friends. Big love.
Have you read the Missing 411 non fiction series, by David Paulades? The bizarre cases of missing people in state parks and hiking trails, mountains, etc? The author states that in most of these insane mysteries, the weather always turns for the worse and the searchers can't find a clue. The missing person seems to vanish in thin air. Very strange . . . Your channel is excellent! Thank you for all you do!
Finding mysteries fascinating, I used to be a big fan of Missing411 myself, until I started to double check the cases Paulides referred to and discovered how much vital information he actually repeatedly leaves out. Something which can only be deliberate in order to keep them mysterious so that he can keep selling his expensive books. Bryan's channel is _way_ more reliable, as he actually bothers to include all available details, hence why I only follow his cases nowadays. :)
His buddies decided the best course of action was to go ahead and summit. After that very important task was complete they decided to see if they could find him. Nice.
Bryan said they went to the summit first, to see if he was there. The visibility was so bad, they thought he may have gotten around them, without them seeing him. When he wasn't there, they proceeded to work their way back down the mountain, looking for him.
Ps I hike with an inreach but I go solo a lot. If anything ever happens to me I hope you’ll make a video about me. I told my friends to bother you, I have SAR 50 on my inreach insurance so I’m hoping I don’t end up in one of your videos but I’ve tried to be safer after watching your channel and others. Thanks for keeping hope alive for families and friends. I hope the families get closure and find something one day too in these cases. There’s always hope for closure and answers, even when hikers aren’t found for years at times
Hey Bryan, I think the TH-cam algorithm now requires you to create short videos. That’s what my friend said, his engagement dropped fast until he started creating shorts and then they rose again. Thanks, keep up the good work.
Arghh I've watched your channel for years, I get so worried when my daughter visits her friend outside Tacoma, they hike Mt. Ranier and I always caution her to be careful. She also visits a friend in Hawaii and hikes. Hello from Oregon.
Rainier is just dangerous cuz of the glaciers. As long as you use the right gear and self arrest quickly it’ll be fine. If you fail to self arrest and your whole group falls, that’s one of the biggest nightmares I think on glaciated peaks
Mt Rainier is not all that notably more dangerous to day hike in or backpack than anywhere else in the PNW, aside from a few locations where debris flows can be more common, like the Tahoma Creek Trail or in the river valleys where debris flows can flow down. Particularly on the SW side of the mountain because that side is a lot less stable. But risk wise, it is not that bad really. And as far as actual eruption hazards, there should be ample warning. Mt St Helens is far more likely to erupt again next in the near future and yet there are tons of hiking trails around it. Mountaineering on Rainier is considerably more risky though, but hiking is completely fine and no real need to be concerned over it more than other places in the PNW. It may even be relatively safer because the trails are typically better marked, which means you are less likely to get lost. Your biggest risks in the backcountry won't be volcanic or debris flow related, but more common risks like getting lost or hypothermia, which is about the same for Mt Rainier, Mt Hood, etc.
Hiking is not as dangerous as climbing. Hiking trails around Paradise are very well marked, and there are always lots of people there. Not like climbing to the summit. Big difference between hiking and climbing.
Like your stuff and happy to like and comment, you're always thoughtful. So for a little lighter subject I remember hearing about these hikers in Colombia where about a group of 30 tourists were ambushed by kidnappers. The 7 Australians were sent back by the kidnappers because of inappropriate footwear. They were all hiking in thongs (or flip flops if you're from other countries). Sometimes it pays to be a relaxed Australian!
It looks so scary! Watching the guy in the red jacket so close to very long falls freaks me out. Very dangerous place to be on your own for sure and it could be the simplest of things that made him disappear as you said. Thanks Brian and take care.
The fact his remains were never found makes me think he either died in a crevice or ice cave. So many reason he could have unhooked from rope. I hope someday is remains are found. This is a very sad story.
With very low visibility and 40mph winds this doesn't seem like an impossible occurrence. He unclipped his carabiner, yes but people aren't always rational or make good decisions. Him being very experienced I don't necessarily agree with. When I hike in an alpine environment or at elevation or in a remote area, I always bring a Mylar blanket and a puffy besides my regular gear. It's a combined 10oz and insurance one has a chance to make it through an unexpected night.
Anytime a person vanishes off a mountain that people hike daily, weekly, yearly, it means they fell into a crevasse on a glacier. Then the crevasse is covered up again. Opens and closes.
They Chinook isn't used because of its altitude capability, for example even a UH-60 has an altitude capability of 5.8km, not much lower than the 6.1km of the Chinook. The reason they use Chinook for operations like this, is because the Chinook is far more stable, it also can carry far more equipment etc. It's rare to lose control of a Chinook, but standard helicopters are far less stable and can lose control more easily, especially in high and windy places. You want stability and endurance for these operations, and the ability to have all the required equipment needed inside.
I live East of Mt Rainer. I can see it on a clear day. Yrs ago a man in his 50’s hiked to the Summit with his son. The father backed up for a Photo opp and fell in. The news said they couldn’t rescue him because helicopters can’t fly that high.
I lived in Olympia, WA for 11 years and went to Paradise quiet often and have hiked to camp Muir a few times. I’ve never heard of someone summiting Mount Rainier without winter apparel. That just doesn’t make sense. Him having so much experience would be unwise not to have safety gear to include sleeping bag, extra food etc…
I climbed Mt. Rainier 3 times getting ready for my Denali expedition in 2008. Very strange to vanish in thin air. Maybe he wanted to disappear. Took his backpack off, and retracted his own foot steps.
As to why he may have unhooked himself; I've seen utterly bizarre behaviour from hikers above 14k feet in Nepal due to AMS. At 18k on the Thorung La, I've seen extreme tourettes-like symptoms from someone without a history of such. He came right at 13k. AMS can hit anyone at any time but being older doesn't help. As to the disappearance, that's odd.
No footprints? How quickly would footprints be covered by snow with the high winds? We are also told visibility was 5ft, if true then the footprints could possibly be missed in the immediate hours after he disappeared.
Guy unclips for no apparent reason, backpack a few hundred feet from rest spot with footprint stopping there. Something mysterious definitely happened in my opinion. I think the only way to find him will be to think outside the box. Personal note: I think it takes a strong, humble and big person to ask for help when they need it. I was watching a psychology video the other day where they said that a trait of lesser-degree narcissism is unwillingness to ask for help when you need it. I agree with that... it's important to know when your ego is holding you back from success. ❤ That being said, i'll make sure to share your videos when applicable ❤ Have you ever thought of starting a online store promoting and selling the hiking gear you use? It's just an idea... maybe it could help you fund more trips where you help on recovery missions.
You kind of have to wonder if he realized something terrible was suddenly happening and unhooked himself in order to save his friends from the same fate
:25 thanks for the conversion on feet to meters. Wish more people on TH-cam would do it. With the wind & snow it would've been almost impossible for his tracks not to be covered. So many things could've happened.
Very similar to the case of Christopher Carlton Thomkins the surveyor who was last in-line of a group of 4 and was out of sight of his co workers when a Thunderbird grabbed him, his boot getting stuck on the fence as the bird struggled to gain height ! These huge Crows never fail to fascinate me...
Eric Lewis was last man inline of a group of 3 and he was out of sight of his companions when the giant Thunderbird grabbed him, its beak slicing through the rope... typical of these majestic birds striking when they can’t be seen !
All Right then1 Thunderbirds.. not a bad idea. Or more liikely a giant Pterodactyl. no kidding . One night in the 80’s I was listening to Art Bell radio talk show. A caller at Greenlake , a lake in Seattle city limits, called in and he and a co-worker taking a cigarette break, just outside a restauraunt along the Lake shore,..saw 2 huge black flying Lizards gliding silently over head, One of the lizards spotted the glowing tips of their cigarettes, turned its head and let out a croak. .. the caller and his friiend were totally scared out of their wits. That thing saw them.. but the pair of flying lizards kept going and disappeared over the waterfront of Lake Union which was a short distance south of Greenlake park.. I used to l ive in Seattle and know the area around te Lake. it is dark there at night. So if these things can live unnoticed in a big city, no problem in the wilderness i figure. maybe the climber on Mt Rainier fell into a crevasse, but other hikers have disappeared almost inito thin air elsewhere in our parks. Does anyone recall the wave of animal mutilations in the 80’s? livestock stock mostly, and elk and deer, found dropped out the sky onto a farmer’s field, cetrtain parts having been surgically removed and the wounds cauterized as if by a laser. all the blood was taken also. People reported seeing a “door” in the dark sky at night open and the animals dropped out. Whatevver the craft that dropped them was it was totally invsible and silent. Who was doing that?- snatching up livestock into a craft and dumping them off later. You don’t hear of mutilated aimals anymore. Now it seems to be people disappearing.. nobody sees or hears anything..even if the person is just a few feet away. and of course,hikers off alone..no witnesses..just gone. Does this all sound crazy? OK yeah, but there sure is a lot of disppearing people who are never found. The 411 Paulides stories are even crazier and scarier.. i stopped reading about them long time ago…
I agree! Over 15 years ago I was hiking up to Spray Park (Mt Rainier) to photograph the wild flowers. A well travelled trail with many others hiking up with their families. I was alone. My eyes were on all the little things on the forest floor. At one point I realized that I could no longer hear the voices and looked up and around and was not even on a trail, but was on a hillside of granite boulders. Somehow I was in some type of trance, for lack of a better word. I snapped to my senses and was amazed at how far I traversed without knowing this. I had crossed a running cascade over boulders and did not even realize this. It took me about a half hour to backtrack to where I could hear voices of the other hikers, and then another 10 minutes or so to find the trail. Being spooked by what happened I headed straight down and back to the parking lot.
@@rebeccawesteren9851 holy crap that's scary!!! That's the same area where the professor just went missing from recently. I've never experienced that in the wild, just while driving which is also scary.
I imagine he fell and slid down the mountain and than froze to death, sadly enough. Or he step aside to use the bathroom and fell into some sort of hole or crevice that was covered with snow. RIP Eric.
Very unusual and unfortunate case. Possibilities might include: Foul play. Or, he wasn't really ever there. Or, he unlatched and fell off, or into a crevasse. To not be prepared for weather was a bad thing. Maybe there was a disagreement, the other two wanted to continue on and he didn't due to weather or whatever, he unlatched and made a snow cave, they went on, he decided to try to get back down and something happened. Very mysterious.
At time stamp 8:52, where you state there were no crevasses anywhere nearby, the news article shown on screen, quoting National Park Service spokeswoman Lee Taylor, states "he probably fell into a crevasse."
There are crevasses all over there..I just meant where his footprints ended. In that particular spot they didn't find any.. meaning they looked and dug around to see if he possibly fell but didn't find any evidence of that. Thank you for your comment and for watching!
It`s my convinction that if you do a dangerous hke like this together you stay together, no matter what. So as soon as the two friends notoced Eric is no loger there, they should have turned around immediately looking for him. I believe he had an accident bc of the bad weather conditions.
@Supersonic I think there are to many hikers who are experienced and equipped who wanish in thin air. I live in Canada and never heard someone is missing like that. I am from Europe and I was in mountain climbing club, no one was missing. So that's why in US maybe is mother nature, ground or something still unknown?
@John Greydanus Those are young, fit people with experience and well equipped and on the end most of them just wanished on known places. If they are found, no one knows cause of their death. You don't see anything strange in that?
Just trying to imagine his lost moments is horrifying. His poor family will never have closure. Doesn't seem possible especially since there were no footprints.
Could it have been a simple case of Hypothermia? Sympathetic Undressing and Burrowing are two common results of Advanced Hypothermia. This would explain the unclipping, the backpack and shovel, and the snow cave.
Why would he unclip without any warning, that question alone is hard enough to answer. And why then, so close to the summit? Something highly unusual must have occurred and very suddenly too. That's not much of an answer but just like Carl Landers and Tom Messick, it's difficult to come up with any rational explanation . Not finding the body makes for an even sadder story,I know there is an opinion on social media that Eric's two friends murdered him. I don't buy that for a second. Another unsolved mystery it appears.
A lot of these missing hiker cases seem like they were literally airlifted out of there - extremely quickly - like a big bird just swooped them up. So strange.
I think he fell down a crevasse. When the visibility is shit on the mountain and you are in white out conditions it is very disorienting. I was hiking in snow shoes towards Pam face one day and the weather was shit with shit visibility. I turned around. The mountain will be there tomorrow.
Sounds like he put himself in harm’s way in regards to a number of issues. Whether it was intentional or he was over-confident is yet to be determined.
Medical emergency including hypoxia which makes the brain barely function, if we assume he untethered himself. If someone or something unclipped him, we have a Yeti-type encounter or similar. Poor chap. God rest his soul.
Question … when two or more people are tethered together & one person needs to stop (for whatever reason) can’t they just pull on the rope a couple times to alert the person(s) they are tethered to? Vs unclipping.
When people deliberately put themselves into dangerous and deadly situations, I don't think any other people should be expected to also put themselves into danger in order to try to rescue them or recover their body
Mountain climbing is such a frightening and arduous activity. I can barely look at the footage. When he unhooked himself, the other climbers didn't feel that apparently. A few feet? But was the visibility clear? He passed on Mount Rainier. God bless him🙏
What were the weather conditions at the time of the disappearance? I ask because it almost sounds like he was blown off the mountain during the brief window he unhooked himself.
Dedication to discipline in extreme circumstances is your survival key he had done this 10 times sometimes because of familiarity we get lax mistakes begin to happen because of extreme conditions everything is. Magnified what we think is minimal can turn to a crux as you go gear wise mental physical. The wild is a crusher to the weak
Well with Winds as high as they were I'm pretty dang sure most of his foot prints were covered over by blowing and drifting snow...he probably unhooked to take a leak, slipped and just kept going...Something along those lines...May he Rest in peace...woods
My guess is he had a sudden medical event and realized he could not summit and was then a liability to the rest of the party and so immediately un-clipped himself .Seeking shelter in a small snow cave until his companions returned to assist his descent he at some point stepped out and fell to his death.
Very weird, maybe wind covered up his foot prints with drifts? A crevasse makes a lot of sense given the areas history. He could of unclipped for a bathroom break or altitude sickness maybe but no idea how they wouldn’t find him in a crevasse
The first thing that came to my mind was that he intentionally chose the rear position, waited for an opportune time and location, unclipped from the group and followed their same footsteps back down the mountain. He stashed his gear in a cave to travel easier and to make it look like he was there and now missing all his gear so he must be dead...right? Maybe he made his way back down and drove off in a preplanned escape off the grid.
Did he have life insurance & did they payout? Do climbers remove their bags and un clip? If I were to remove my bag on such a serious winter climbI I would be clipping it on a belay line before taking it off! It’s your life line makes zero sense. Any proof he actually climbed any portion of the mtn on that day?
One winter in college a group of us hiked up Mt Washington and spent a night in a snow cave on the way up. We were all experienced outdoors people. On the last stretch to the top we were in almost zero visibility and got quite strung out along the trail, only sporadically in sight of each other. I was in the middle but after a couple of hours in a near white out and the wind I started to hear voices and see shapes even though I wasn’t anywhere close to the others. At one point I nearly walked off an edge, not realizing it was there until one foot was out in space. When we all got to the top it turned out I wasn’t the only one with those experiences. When your brain is deprived of sensory input for long enough it starts to create things to fill in the blanks. We stayed much closer together on the way back down.
Wow! Glad none of you went missing!
What kind of drugs were you guys on, sounds fun
Scary experience! I’m glad that you all made it out.
Mt.Washinton is famous for separation of climbers and hearing and seeing odd things...
I’m so glad you and your friends got off the mountain safe. Mt Washington is notoriously dangerous. My father and I climbed in the summer of 1976 -August- and we almost didn’t make it. I was only 13 years old. We were on a lunar surface, rocks covered with lichen, in dense fog, cold, with high wind. My father held me close to him as the conditions worsened. The worst part was disorientation- we had no idea of how far we had to go until we reached the top. We still talk about that day. Thank God we made it ok.
Another one that’s even more strange was the sudden vanishing of Barbara Bolick . Good weather, a few feet away from hiking companion who had looked away from her for a moment. Looked back and she was completely gone from an open area.
It is indeed a bizarre disappearance.
Abducted.
I think they went through a year in time....I know it sounds crazy but I do.
Crevasse??
I love when you tell stories of my backyard! Yes Rainer is very dangerous! I lost a cousin that was search and rescue up there while he was trying to rescue some female who had no business up on a mountain. Some people are very selfish and risk our rescue guys lives! Makes me sad and angry. We grew up in these mountains and we were told by my Dad from a very young age If you're not able to get yourself up there and back DONT GO! Don't risk others lives!
Everyone is free to go on a mountain if they choose. If it's not a good decision then they will have to deal with the consequences.
@@journeysalkebulan agree but unfortunately they risk the lives of rescuers.
I agree with you that people who aren’t skilled enough or prepared properly for whatever hike, climb, hunt, etc. they decide to go on are being irresponsible when they go out regardless and can be risking the lives of SAR people.
@@carmenmartinez2882so true,but they know the risk and choose to do that line of work anyway. If they don’t want to die doing something dangerous then that’s the wrong profession to be in❤ We are fortunate to have fearless ,risk taking humans around to try and save victims tho.
@@micadean1600 - the rescuers aren't fearless. They do fear not going home to their families. They are just more empathetic than the people who hike unprepared.
It was a horrible day to be climbing that day! Visibility was really bad and for all accounts, they shouldn't have been going for the summit that day! Other climbers had been bundled at the cabin trying to stay warm due to the weather. Eric did make a snow cave so it is believed that he was alive for a while after he removed his clip. His bag was found and just because they didn't see any footprints after a certain point wouldn't be uncommon due to how windy and snowing it was. My guess is he fell after coming from his snow cave. It's also not uncommon for bodies to be lost in the mountains. Sad his friends went to the summit without their partner. He died doing what he loved!!!
Well it clearly wasn’t summit fever related at least but in retrospect maybe they should of checked more below before going above. Hindsight’s always 20 20 unfortunately, it’s easy to think what we would of done differently in these situations but irl it’s very easy to make bad mistakes. Outcomes are just what measures if others reflect on it or not. Plenty of people make questionable choices in the mountains but you don’t hear about them if they find the friend and the outcomes positive
They made a bad call that day but it does happen more often than you think. The other mountaineers all stayed at the cabin that day because of the weather. Sometimes judgment clouds their brains and that's when tragedy happens. He died doing what he loved!
@@Bella.216 NO ONE wants to die while "doing what they loved".
@@lindaschad9734 But they are willing to risk death to be "doing what they loved".
3,300 men die on motorcycles each year “doing what they loved”.
Three incidents very similar to this have happened in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park since 1969. Not climbing, just hiking. They were with groups and simply just disappeared with no trace.
They got off the trail and got lost.
Not even a puffy jacket!!! 😂😂
Absolutely love the realness of your videos!! Well done!!
ya know...and i may have mentioned this b4. I remember a combing accident, where a group of ppl were involved. They are climbing (it was here in the US. Rainier or Hood or somewhere West of the Rockies is all I can recall. A documentary was made too.
This ground were making their way up the Mtn. slope when they turned around, the people behind them had vanished. It was several ppl. One was a man and his son. The father felt horrified to know he led his son into the death trap. What happened, for some reason all the others got across, but repeated ppl weakend the frozen snow and they (a handful of people, including the father and son well into this crevice. THe snow followed and covered them all up. Many were unconscious from the fall, or had serious life threatening injuries.
Somehow the father and son were able to find each other. The father kept hollering for his son. Finally out of all the silence he heard him. He was alive. SO the father started making escape plans or ways to let the other know they were indeed actually down that rabbit hole, and I believe the father was unable to move much. Broken leg(S) etc...his son was able to move despite any of his injuries. There was no room for movement, but they had luckily landed on a somewhat "edge" they landed on. Father instructed the son, that if he could, and don't take any changes that'll cost you your life. Find the other men, at one time were moaning and groaning, so you kinda knew their whereabouts under all that snow, ice and debris. Well the others I believe all perished, but the son was able to get much needed survival gear from the other ppl. They weren't needing it now.
Miraculously they both survived, was able to lead rescuers to the spot and retrieve the bodies of the men. Sad story, but at least they knew how to survive and able to send help for the other men still stuck frozen in that crevice. Seems like this was a known hike trail to the summit, but accidents still happened.
THe man and his son said you absolutely could not see the crevice, until right upon it. Even then, looking into it, you could not see people. They had been covered up with snow, and ice and debris. They were clinging to this little lip/edge inside the crevice. It was an amazing story of survival. They had to spend days down there. Until it was notice the party didn't return with everyone. Search insueded. Happy ending for that family, but not for the others who all perished in the crevice , but al least ere retrieved. You just never know, no matter how experienced at any of this you are. When it's time, it's time.
It never ceases to amaze me how fast a person can disappear...and people have done it practically in arms reach of others...wow!
When you dont know something is gonna happen how hard do you pay attention?
Peoples recollections suck, half of what makes these weird is when the person they were with gives a recollection that defies logic and people beleive it as fact and not a mistaken memory.
This is such a weird incident. Some things will remain a mystery. Thank you Bryan, take care, and stay safe!
Not weird at all.
@@dustinrogers5384 Well, I'm glad someone has all the answers.
It was STUPID to climb on a day like that and STUPID to unhook, but then hypothermia doesn’t just Wham! hit you it comes on slower, and that’s probably what happened to him as he couldn’t think straight. I didn’t realize it but what those other hikers said about being an hour or two with no sensory input and your brain starts playing games is no doubt true.. And his age also was a factor too. Mountaineers think they are invincible.
@@dustinrogers5384 So, you have all of the answers then? So,what happened?
@@zq9m3xh8 zz
Hypoxia and delirium; the wind filled in footprints
It does seem like a very strange case. The only reason I can think for him unclipping himself would be to stop to go to the bathroom, or something similar. Perhaps because he had summited it many times before he was getting complacent and thought he would be safe, but then couldn't find the rope and the others again afterwards. Which would be pretty difficult in 5ft visibility. Then maybe fell into a small crevasse that was then snowed over again before anyone else saw it. Or maybe made another snow cave which he never left. And in 5ft visibility conditions I think it would be quite easy for any footprints to disappear by the time the others came back to search around for him. Very sad.
I think you might be right about him falling in a crevasse and getting snowed over. Except for the weird shit about the footprints and the snow cave.
Thank for keeping his memory alive. Sending love and light to his friends and family. I have been up this route several times myself. For those of you attempting to climb Rainer, this is how I do it. Choose three weekends to go. And chose the best weather window. I know that’s easier for us locals, but it’s just a thought. Stay safe friends. Big love.
or see Rainer from the internet :)
someone ought to strap a camera on and video going up and down
Sorry to be that person but it is Rainier not Rainer. Us locals refer to it as Tahoma.
@@Kaitlin_Elyse oops spelling mistake
Hi Bryan.. new subscriber, longtime listener
Have you read the Missing 411 non fiction series, by David Paulades? The bizarre cases of missing people in state parks and hiking trails, mountains, etc? The author states that in most of these insane mysteries, the weather always turns for the worse and the searchers can't find a clue. The missing person seems to vanish in thin air. Very strange . . .
Your channel is excellent! Thank you for all you do!
Yeah. Its an awesome and bizarre show!!
I really enjoy David Palides
Finding mysteries fascinating, I used to be a big fan of Missing411 myself, until I started to double check the cases Paulides referred to and discovered how much vital information he actually repeatedly leaves out. Something which can only be deliberate in order to keep them mysterious so that he can keep selling his expensive books.
Bryan's channel is _way_ more reliable, as he actually bothers to include all available details, hence why I only follow his cases nowadays. :)
His buddies decided the best course of action was to go ahead and summit. After that very important task was complete they decided to see if they could find him. Nice.
Bryan said they went to the summit first, to see if he was there. The visibility was so bad, they thought he may have gotten around them, without them seeing him. When he wasn't there, they proceeded to work their way back down the mountain, looking for him.
Ps I hike with an inreach but I go solo a lot. If anything ever happens to me I hope you’ll make a video about me. I told my friends to bother you, I have SAR 50 on my inreach insurance so I’m hoping I don’t end up in one of your videos but I’ve tried to be safer after watching your channel and others. Thanks for keeping hope alive for families and friends. I hope the families get closure and find something one day too in these cases. There’s always hope for closure and answers, even when hikers aren’t found for years at times
carry an emergency beacon locator
Hey Bryan, I think the TH-cam algorithm now requires you to create short videos. That’s what my friend said, his engagement dropped fast until he started creating shorts and then they rose again.
Thanks, keep up the good work.
Arghh I've watched your channel for years, I get so worried when my daughter visits her friend outside Tacoma, they hike Mt. Ranier and I always caution her to be careful. She also visits a friend in Hawaii and hikes. Hello from Oregon.
Rainier is just dangerous cuz of the glaciers. As long as you use the right gear and self arrest quickly it’ll be fine. If you fail to self arrest and your whole group falls, that’s one of the biggest nightmares I think on glaciated peaks
Get her a Garmin and pay for the subscription so she has access to Call for help if needed.
Mt Rainier is not all that notably more dangerous to day hike in or backpack than anywhere else in the PNW, aside from a few locations where debris flows can be more common, like the Tahoma Creek Trail or in the river valleys where debris flows can flow down. Particularly on the SW side of the mountain because that side is a lot less stable. But risk wise, it is not that bad really. And as far as actual eruption hazards, there should be ample warning. Mt St Helens is far more likely to erupt again next in the near future and yet there are tons of hiking trails around it. Mountaineering on Rainier is considerably more risky though, but hiking is completely fine and no real need to be concerned over it more than other places in the PNW. It may even be relatively safer because the trails are typically better marked, which means you are less likely to get lost. Your biggest risks in the backcountry won't be volcanic or debris flow related, but more common risks like getting lost or hypothermia, which is about the same for Mt Rainier, Mt Hood, etc.
Hiking is not as dangerous as climbing. Hiking trails around Paradise are very well marked, and there are always lots of people there. Not like climbing to the summit. Big difference between hiking and climbing.
@JoAnne Butzerin thank you, realize the difference now.
I enjoy so much when you cover stories in the northwest. Thank you for all you do. I look forward to many more you cover
Like your stuff and happy to like and comment, you're always thoughtful. So for a little lighter subject I remember hearing about these hikers in Colombia where about a group of 30 tourists were ambushed by kidnappers. The 7 Australians were sent back by the kidnappers because of inappropriate footwear. They were all hiking in thongs (or flip flops if you're from other countries). Sometimes it pays to be a relaxed Australian!
That's so odd! No footprints?
Prayers for his family
Naybe something filled in the footprints? Like snow maybe?
Thanks Bryan for these videos!
It looks so scary! Watching the guy in the red jacket so close to very long falls freaks me out. Very dangerous place to be on your own for sure and it could be the simplest of things that made him disappear as you said. Thanks Brian and take care.
I wonder if it was possibly suicide?
Jan : Oh so very true. watching him makes me dizzy on my comfortable couch.
@@fredajordan5704 I'm from Southern Louisiana and I hate heights! On a trip to the Rockies I could barely look out the window cause it freaked me out!
@@marypapak5759 Yeah, your mind goes there because of him unsnapping the line.
@@janmarchand7294 yes, it was the first thing I thought of! Unless he was so cold, became disoriented, etc.:(
I just shared your video for the first time. 💜
thanks for another great video!
So mysterious and sad.. extremely strange.. I can't even think of one logical explanation to this. I hope one day his loved ones find out ❤
The fact his remains were never found makes me think he either died in a crevice or ice cave. So many reason he could have unhooked from rope. I hope someday is remains are found. This is a very sad story.
With very low visibility and 40mph winds this doesn't seem like an impossible occurrence. He unclipped his carabiner, yes but people aren't always rational or make good decisions. Him being very experienced I don't necessarily agree with. When I hike in an alpine environment or at elevation or in a remote area, I always bring a Mylar blanket and a puffy besides my regular gear. It's a combined 10oz and insurance one has a chance to make it through an unexpected night.
Sad in any case.
Shout out from Sumner, Washington. I live roughly 30 minutes from Mt Rainier.
Anytime a person vanishes off a mountain that people hike daily, weekly, yearly, it means they fell into a crevasse on a glacier. Then the crevasse is covered up again. Opens and closes.
They Chinook isn't used because of its altitude capability, for example even a UH-60 has an altitude capability of 5.8km, not much lower than the 6.1km of the Chinook.
The reason they use Chinook for operations like this, is because the Chinook is far more stable, it also can carry far more equipment etc. It's rare to lose control of a Chinook, but standard helicopters are far less stable and can lose control more easily, especially in high and windy places. You want stability and endurance for these operations, and the ability to have all the required equipment needed inside.
No foot prints.....what a weird one! The only thing I can think of is the cave. However, the foot print thing is a puzzle. Good vid!
I live East of Mt Rainer. I can see it on a clear day. Yrs ago a man in his 50’s hiked to the Summit with his son. The father backed up for a Photo opp and fell in. The news said they couldn’t rescue him because helicopters can’t fly that high.
Oh no
Fell in where?
@@wendycrawford1792 fell off a cliff near the Crater. Hikers go up and camp in the Crater.
I lived in Olympia, WA for 11 years and went to Paradise quiet often and have hiked to camp Muir a few times. I’ve never heard of someone summiting Mount Rainier without winter apparel. That just doesn’t make sense. Him having so much experience would be unwise not to have safety gear to include sleeping bag, extra food etc…
I climbed Mt. Rainier 3 times getting ready for my Denali expedition in 2008. Very strange to vanish in thin air. Maybe he wanted to disappear. Took his backpack off, and retracted his own foot steps.
As to why he may have unhooked himself; I've seen utterly bizarre behaviour from hikers above 14k feet in Nepal due to AMS. At 18k on the Thorung La, I've seen extreme tourettes-like symptoms from someone without a history of such. He came right at 13k. AMS can hit anyone at any time but being older doesn't help.
As to the disappearance, that's odd.
I'm from Tacoma WA, and I miss seeing that mountain every day 😢
No footprints? How quickly would footprints be covered by snow with the high winds? We are also told visibility was 5ft, if true then the footprints could possibly be missed in the immediate hours after he disappeared.
His initial footprints would've disappeared as well and they didn't....
This case is baffling. I wonder what could have happened to him. I can’t even imagine.
My ex-Marine father would not climb Rainier, he loved the mountain but he would not climb it. He called it a death wish.
This is sad 😭 rip Mr Lewis ....I hope they find his body some day or In the near future!!
Interesting
Guy unclips for no apparent reason, backpack a few hundred feet from rest spot with footprint stopping there. Something mysterious definitely happened in my opinion. I think the only way to find him will be to think outside the box.
Personal note:
I think it takes a strong, humble and big person to ask for help when they need it. I was watching a psychology video the other day where they said that a trait of lesser-degree narcissism is unwillingness to ask for help when you need it. I agree with that... it's important to know when your ego is holding you back from success. ❤ That being said, i'll make sure to share your videos when applicable ❤
Have you ever thought of starting a online store promoting and selling the hiking gear you use? It's just an idea... maybe it could help you fund more trips where you help on recovery missions.
You kind of have to wonder if he realized something terrible was suddenly happening and unhooked himself in order to save his friends from the same fate
Or the carabiner broke.
:25 thanks for the conversion on feet to meters. Wish more people on TH-cam would do it. With the wind & snow it would've been almost impossible for his tracks not to be covered. So many things could've happened.
Very similar to the case of Christopher Carlton Thomkins the surveyor who was last in-line of a group of 4 and was out of sight of his co workers when a Thunderbird grabbed him, his boot getting stuck on the fence as the bird struggled to gain height ! These huge Crows never fail to fascinate me...
Eric Lewis was last man inline of a group of 3 and he was out of sight of his companions when the giant Thunderbird grabbed him, its beak slicing through the rope... typical of these majestic birds striking when they can’t be seen !
All Right then1 Thunderbirds.. not a bad idea. Or more liikely a giant Pterodactyl. no kidding . One night in the 80’s I was listening to Art Bell radio talk show. A caller at Greenlake , a lake in Seattle city limits, called in and he and a co-worker taking a cigarette break, just outside a restauraunt along the Lake shore,..saw 2 huge black flying Lizards gliding silently over head, One of the lizards spotted the glowing tips of their cigarettes, turned its head and let out a croak. .. the caller and his friiend were totally scared out of their wits. That thing saw them.. but the pair of flying lizards kept going and disappeared over the waterfront of Lake Union which was a short distance south of Greenlake park.. I used to l ive in Seattle and know the area around te Lake. it is dark there at night. So if these things can live unnoticed in a big city, no problem in the wilderness i figure. maybe the climber on Mt Rainier fell into a crevasse, but other hikers have disappeared almost inito thin air elsewhere in our parks. Does anyone recall the wave of animal mutilations in the 80’s? livestock stock mostly, and elk and deer, found dropped out the sky onto a farmer’s field, cetrtain parts having been surgically removed and the wounds cauterized as if by a laser. all the blood was taken also. People reported seeing a “door” in the dark sky at night open and the animals dropped out. Whatevver the craft that dropped them was it was totally invsible and silent. Who was doing that?- snatching up livestock into a craft and dumping them off later. You don’t hear of mutilated aimals anymore. Now it seems to be people disappearing.. nobody sees or hears anything..even if the person is just a few feet away. and of course,hikers off alone..no witnesses..just gone. Does this all sound crazy? OK yeah, but there sure is a lot of disppearing people who are never found. The 411 Paulides stories are even crazier and scarier.. i stopped reading about them long time ago…
I like Bryan!
I like to think he became one with the mountain. Rainer embraced him. 😊 Some people are just happiest in the wilderness.
Creepy comment
It’s Rainier! Two ‘i’s’ dude
@@breadandcircus1 😂
I honestly feel like there is a paranormal aspect to many of these cases. Something we don't fully understand at this time
I agree! Over 15 years ago I was hiking up to Spray Park (Mt Rainier) to photograph the wild flowers. A well travelled trail with many others hiking up with their families. I was alone. My eyes were on all the little things on the forest floor. At one point I realized that I could no longer hear the voices and looked up and around and was not even on a trail, but was on a hillside of granite boulders. Somehow I was in some type of trance, for lack of a better word. I snapped to my senses and was amazed at how far I traversed without knowing this. I had crossed a running cascade over boulders and did not even realize this. It took me about a half hour to backtrack to where I could hear voices of the other hikers, and then another 10 minutes or so to find the trail. Being spooked by what happened I headed straight down and back to the parking lot.
@@rebeccawesteren9851 holy crap that's scary!!! That's the same area where the professor just went missing from recently. I've never experienced that in the wild, just while driving which is also scary.
Or possibly medical event or falling into a crevasse
@@rebeccawesteren9851 I could see that happening. I would always carry a emergency beacon locator.
@@rebeccawesteren9851 Woa….. what a trip!
Extremely sad for his family, and hopefully he will be found and brought back to his loved ones, even though it’s been many years. 🙏🏼
Bryan, have you thought about doing shorts on yt? You could do a brief story of your cases and mention your giveaways. Take care, buddy. 🙂
I’m surprised that if Eric had so much experience he set off on a difficult hike without food or proper warm clothing?
being prepared is usually the mark of experience. he wasn't an just got careless and had a bad day.
No footprints? Wow
I imagine he fell and slid down the mountain and than froze to death, sadly enough. Or he step aside to use the bathroom and fell into some sort of hole or crevice that was covered with snow. RIP Eric.
Very unusual and unfortunate case. Possibilities might include: Foul play. Or, he wasn't really ever there. Or, he unlatched and fell off, or into a crevasse. To not be prepared for weather was a bad thing. Maybe there was a disagreement, the other two wanted to continue on and he didn't due to weather or whatever, he unlatched and made a snow cave, they went on, he decided to try to get back down and something happened. Very mysterious.
People really need to start carrying locater beacons. Such a sad story. RIP.
At time stamp 8:52, where you state there were no crevasses anywhere nearby, the news article shown on screen, quoting National Park Service spokeswoman Lee Taylor, states "he probably fell into a crevasse."
There are crevasses all over there..I just meant where his footprints ended. In that particular spot they didn't find any.. meaning they looked and dug around to see if he possibly fell but didn't find any evidence of that. Thank you for your comment and for watching!
Wow, amazing story. In the west, we pronounce crevasses as crevus.
It`s my convinction that if you do a dangerous hke like this together you stay together, no matter what.
So as soon as the two friends notoced Eric is no loger there, they should have turned around immediately looking for him. I believe he had an accident bc of the bad weather conditions.
Mr Dave Paulidas knows all about disappearing hikers
To many strange disappearances to call them "just a coincidences"
Glaciated peaks doing what they do regularly is a far more likely explanation I think vs portals, aliens, any other explanations etc
the exact definition of coincidence by the way
What do you call it then?
@Supersonic I think there are to many hikers who are experienced and equipped who wanish in thin air. I live in Canada and never heard someone is missing like that. I am from Europe and I was in mountain climbing club, no one was missing. So that's why in US maybe is mother nature, ground or something still unknown?
@John Greydanus Those are young, fit people with experience and well equipped and on the end most of them just wanished on known places. If they are found, no one knows cause of their death. You don't see anything strange in that?
Aliens man!
Yeah, this whole thing is totally bazaar and my only thought is that he must have been taken! 👽
Just trying to imagine his lost moments is horrifying. His poor family will never have closure. Doesn't seem possible especially since there were no footprints.
Your 'free use' notifications are awesome. More content creators should do the same.
I don’t know….just so weird..bizarre..
Could it have been a simple case of Hypothermia? Sympathetic Undressing and Burrowing are two common results of Advanced Hypothermia. This would explain the unclipping, the backpack and shovel, and the snow cave.
Mysterious
Why would he unclip without any warning, that question alone is hard enough to answer. And why then, so close to the summit? Something highly unusual must have occurred and very suddenly too. That's not much of an answer but just like Carl Landers and Tom Messick, it's difficult to come up with any rational explanation . Not finding the body makes for an even sadder story,I know there is an opinion on social media that Eric's two friends murdered him. I don't buy that for a second. Another unsolved mystery it appears.
People are always dying up there. Either from climbing accidents or getting lost or falling off trail or whatever.
Watch Dave paulides Missing 411 "the UFO connection" . Thanks Bryan 👍 thumbs up
Wow! Have no clue perhaps UFOs? It is a bizarre situation.
Right!?! Or a time portal or slightly different vibrational frequency/plane?
The creepy thing about this for me is that I share his name; Eric Lewis(well, first and middle names).
A lot of these missing hiker cases seem like they were literally airlifted out of there - extremely quickly - like a big bird just swooped them up. So strange.
I think he fell down a crevasse. When the visibility is shit on the mountain and you are in white out conditions it is very disorienting. I was hiking in snow shoes towards Pam face one day and the weather was shit with shit visibility. I turned around. The mountain will be there tomorrow.
Smart move
Sounds like he put himself in harm’s way in regards to a number of issues. Whether it was intentional or he was over-confident is yet to be determined.
Medical emergency including hypoxia which makes the brain barely function, if we assume he untethered himself. If someone or something unclipped him, we have a Yeti-type encounter or similar. Poor chap. God rest his soul.
With partners on a glacier why not vocalize altitude issues or wouldn’t your partners realize it? I can see when someone’s not doing well on 14ers
Question … when two or more people are tethered together & one person needs to stop (for whatever reason) can’t they just pull on the rope a couple times to alert the person(s) they are tethered to? Vs unclipping.
When you look at the details, him being abducted by aliens makes the most sense, if your brain goes off the rails like mine does.
Thx Bryan
When people deliberately put themselves into dangerous and deadly situations, I don't think any other people should be expected to also put themselves into danger in order to try to rescue them or recover their body
I'm sure when people are hired on a search and rescue team, they know what it entitles.
Would anyone remove his backpack and go hide in a cave away from his backpack. Really strange disappearance.
Mountain climbing is such a frightening and arduous activity.
I can barely look at the footage.
When he unhooked himself, the other climbers didn't feel that apparently.
A few feet? But was the visibility clear?
He passed on Mount Rainier. God bless him🙏
he back tracked down and went off grid..........
I think the same thing
🙏🏼
No footprints? 😮
It is quite clear he unclipped himself for unknown reason then i would say he fell which very easily happens.
Bob Gregory's body was found yesterday near Mt. Islip. 😔 He went missing the same day actor Julian Sands disappeared.
MT rainier is not for the weak that's all I can say
What were the weather conditions at the time of the disappearance? I ask because it almost sounds like he was blown off the mountain during the brief window he unhooked himself.
Dedication to discipline in extreme circumstances is your survival key he had done this 10 times sometimes because of familiarity we get lax mistakes begin to happen because of extreme conditions everything is. Magnified what we think is minimal can turn to a crux as you go gear wise mental physical. The wild is a crusher to the weak
It's sounds like an abduction from another dimension. There are a lot of strange things happening.
Or a port hole
back down the mountain to never be seen again.
I think he was 'taken'! Taken "up"! ??? 😢❤ 😮
Only one explanation here….a vortex got him😂
I’m sorry, been listening to a lot of Steve Stocktons videos lately.
The fact they didn't find any footprints is just highly weird...
Well with Winds as high as they were I'm pretty dang sure most of his foot prints were covered over by blowing and drifting snow...he probably unhooked to take a leak, slipped and just kept going...Something along those lines...May he Rest in peace...woods
My guess is he had a sudden medical event and realized he could not summit and was then a liability to the rest of the party and so immediately un-clipped himself .Seeking shelter in a small snow cave until his companions returned to assist his descent he at some point stepped out and fell to his death.
Very weird, maybe wind covered up his foot prints with drifts? A crevasse makes a lot of sense given the areas history. He could of unclipped for a bathroom break or altitude sickness maybe but no idea how they wouldn’t find him in a crevasse
The first thing that came to my mind was that he intentionally chose the rear position, waited for an opportune time and location, unclipped from the group and followed their same footsteps back down the mountain. He stashed his gear in a cave to travel easier and to make it look like he was there and now missing all his gear so he must be dead...right? Maybe he made his way back down and drove off in a preplanned escape off the grid.
That seems like alot of trouble to just go off grid.
True, but it’s a believable way to make people think you died.
Too risky to do that on a glacier in a white out. You’d likely disappear for real down a crevasse
that would be the trek of a lifetime without gear. Good luck with that one.
Did he have life insurance & did they payout? Do climbers remove their bags and un clip? If I were to remove my bag on such a serious winter climbI I would be clipping it on a belay line before taking it off! It’s your life line makes zero sense. Any proof he actually climbed any portion of the mtn on that day?