10 of the Strangest National Park Disappearances - Episode #9

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Hello friends.

According to Namus,

over 600,000 individuals

go missing in the United States every year.

Think about that number.

600,000.

That's enough to fill several stadiums

and more than enough to empty the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Now, fortunately, many missing children as well as adults

are found quickly alive and well.

However, tens of thousands of individuals remain missing for more than one year.

What many agencies consider cold cases.

By some estimates,

perhaps as many as 1,600 of these disappearances

are within the U.S. National Park System.

Who has the National Park System encompasses more than 84 million acres

of forest, mountains, deserts, and other wilderness areas.

It's easy to see where these numbers come from.

What's really puzzling though

are the circumstances behind these disappearances,

which in many instances are beyond the bizarre.

In this video, the ninth in our ongoing series,

we'll discuss 10 more of the strangest disappearances

in not only our National Parks in the U.S.

but some from abroad as well,

which points to this being a global issue.

Now, let's begin.

Number 10, Tom Simonceth.

66-year-old Tom Simonceth was last seen on May 22nd, 2021

in North Cascades National Park.

Located in Cedro Woolly,

Scadget County, Washington.

According to friends and family,

Tom left on the morning of May 22nd,

telling his wife that he would be hiking up the head

and like Teril.

However, by 7 p.m.,

Tom still had to arrive home,

and Tom's wife rose,

holding the help of a friend, Mike Woodmancy,

to help look for him.

Tom had taken up hiking in the past 18 months,

and it had quickly become his new retirement hobby,

according to those closest to him,

and he often hiked with Mike Woodmancy

and another close friend, Mark Nelson.

Tom had been invited to hike with Mike and Mark

on the weekend that he disappeared,

but he had declined, opting to go alone.

When Tom hadn't returned home,

Rose contacted Mike to go up onto the trail

and see if he could spot him,

thinking he may have gotten lost or injured.

However, as the hours passed

and the darkness drew in,

Mike knew that Tom's chances

were survival or slim.

He told Fox 13,

he was absolutely not prepared to be out overnight.

He just had day hiking equipment,

so that's why we had to jump on it and get out there.

Between 10 p.m. and 12 midnight,

Mike and Mark scoured the hidden lake trail,

but found no sign of Tom.

They slept on the ground

and resumed their search at 4 a.m.

As the morning sunlight slowly crept through the trees,

he knew that they needed help,

and the Scadget County Sheriff's Office were called,

and Tom was officially reported missing.

The Scadget County Sheriff's Office,

accompanied by a Scadget County search and rescue,

searched for Tom until May 31, 2021,

when the search was officially called off due

to treacherous terrain and avalanche danger.

Despite this, Tom's family still haven't given up hope

and have set up a GoFundMe page

to help the search continue.

Number 9, Adrian Alonzo-Smith

49-year-old Adrian Alonzo-Smith

was last seen on January 9, 2021.

After a friend dropped him off

into Drift Creek Falls Trailhead

and see a small National Forest organ.

A friend who dropped him off

said that Adrian had a backpack at a hammock

and planned to hike to other locations

and stay overnight in the park.

On January 20, 2021,

Adrian did not show up for a Scadget pickup

and that's when his friends and family began to worry.

Adrian was reported missing

and search and rescue teams

were dispatched to the trail

but found no sign of him

during the initial investigation.

Two weeks later, authorities discovered

what they believed to be his campsite.

However, no other personal items

were recovered from the scene.

Despite the use of drones,

sniffer dogs, and cell phone tracking,

authorities have been unable

to find any trace of Adrian.

One disturbing tip came

into search and rescue teams

in the days following Adrian's disappearance.

One witness claimed

had seen Adrian shirtless

in the cold in the days

after he had gone missing,

creating a very worrying scenario

for friends and family.

The search was temporarily called off

at the end of January

due to heavy snowfall and bad weather.

Adrian is described as a white male,

six-foot tall,

and 170 pounds,

with brown shoulder length hair

and multiple tattoos,

including a tattoo of wings

on his back.

Authorities are asking for anyone

with information to contact them

on 541-270-3400

or 541-265-0777.

Number 8, Josh Hall.

27-year-old Josh Hall,

along with his dog,

Happy, a Labrador Mix,

set off on February 3rd, 2021,

for an 11-mile hike

to the Devil's Thumb Lake area

in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Park.

Josh left his car at the

Hesley Trailhead,

set off between 10.30 a.m.

and 10.45 a.m.

on the morning of February 3rd.

The hike should have taken

Josh around 5.5 to 6 hours,

meaning that he would have

arrived back at his car

at around 4 p.m.,

according to his mother.

His mother also told authorities

that Josh had chosen

to hike early in the morning

as he had an online class

at 5 p.m.

and when he didn't return home,

she contacted the authorities.

According to his mother,

Josh's phone pinged

at 12.03 p.m.

and in the approximate

area of Devil's Thumb Lake.

From 12.30 p.m. to 1.15 p.m.,

hikers in the area

reported that a small

snowstorm blew through,

leaving engines

or snow on the trails

within a matter of minutes.

It's believed that Josh

was deep into the trail

when the snow rolled in.

Authorities were contacted

and a team of 70 people

made up of law enforcement

and experienced hikers

bravely cold to search for Josh,

battling their way

through 40 mile per hour winds.

For four days,

volunteers with law enforcement

searched high and low

for any sign of Josh,

but on the fourth day,

the search was called off

due to the worsening weather conditions.

Miraculously,

eight days later,

on February 11th, 2021,

Josh's dog happy

was spotted on the side

of a highway

close to where the two

had been hiking.

Happy was malnourished

and scared,

authorities were able

to rescue him

and take him home

to Josh's family.

Sadly,

nothing else has been

recovered,

but Josh's family

are not giving up hope.

Josh has described

as a white male

six foot four inches tall

and weighs 200 pounds.

He was last seen

wearing a green khaki jacket,

dark hat,

and a grey green backpack.

If you have any information,

you're asked to contact

the Boulder County

dispatch on 303-441-444.

Number seven,

Cassie Sheets.

On March 12th, 2021,

24-year-old Cassie Sheets

was reported missing

after last being seen

hiking in the

Mananga Hala

National Forest in West Virginia.

Cassie, along with two male

friends, had begun

their hike on Thursday

at March 11th,

with the two friends

claiming that they

were separated

along the Spruce Trail.

Sergeant Andrew Teter,

of the West Virginia

State Police,

told Metro NEWS,

they started down

the Huckleberry Trail

on the top of Spruce,

and that's where

they claimed they

got separated from each

other.

The trio set off

hiking on Thursday night,

and what is described

as a remote part

of the forest.

After the trio

became separated,

the two friends

made their way back to

safety and wait until

Friday morning to report

Cassie missing.

Search teams,

including volunteer

firefighters in the West

Virginia State Police,

use the helicopter

in attempts to locate

the missing 24-year-old

girl.

However,

nothing was found.

In June 2021,

the state police

made a statement

saying that they were

no longer actively

searching for Cassie,

but were following

lines of inquiry.

In their statement,

they also said that

they are not speaking

with the two male friends

who were with Cassie

on that hike,

as one of them

has obtained a lawyer.

They also stressed

that all leads

are based on speculation,

and they have no

concrete evidence

in Cassie's case.

Cassie did not

know the trail well,

and her family are

concerned about her

well-being.

If you have any

information,

you're asked to contact

the West Virginia

State Police.

Number six,

Cayman Welch.

The Maricopa County

Sheriff's Office is

appealing for any

information about the

disappearance of 25-year-old

Cayman Welch.

Cayman was last seen

near Weaver's

needle vista at mile

post-203 in state

route 88 in Maricopa

County, Arizona,

on August 12, 2020.

Cayman has spent

the date working

with his uncle and

tortilla flats,

and on the drive home

they decided to pull in.

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The weaver's

needle vista to watch the

sunset together.

According to

Cayman's uncle, he

told him he wanted to

watch the sunset from

the needle.

He proceeded to get out

of the car, walk

into the Tonto

National Forest, and

promptly disappeared.

Tonto National Forest

spans a whopping two

million eight hundred

and seventy three

thousand two hundred

acres, and is the

fifth largest

national forest in the

United States.

The forest offers a wide

variety of scenery

from desert flats to

pine forests, making

it the perfect

destination no

matter what you're

looking for.

Cayman walked into the

Tonto National

Forest, wearing

nothing but a black

Ghostbusters t-shirt,

black jeans,

black prescription

glasses, and army

boots.

He didn't take any

food or water with him,

and he was in no way

equipped to deal with

the sweltering

temperatures.

It reached

approximately 110

degrees in the area

that day.

When Cayman did

return home, his

family reported

him missing, and

an investigation was

quickly launched.

Despite

searchers using

sniffer dogs, horses,

drones, helicopters,

and countless

volunteers, no sign

of Cayman was found.

Cayman's family were

also worried for his

well-being, as he

suffered from depression

and was in the

process of seeking help.

Cayman has

a white male with

brown hair and

hazel eyes.

He is 6-foot tall,

200 pounds, and has

full-sleeved tattoos

on his arms, and

also has

gauged out earlobes.

Cayman's family

haven't given up hope,

and if you have any

information, you're

asked to contact the

Maricopa County

Sheriff's Office on

602-876-8477.

Number 5, Samuel

Martinez.

23-year-old Samuel

Martinez left his

home in Nebraska on

May 12, 2021, and

it for Kauai,

Hawaii.

We know that Samuel

safely boarded his

flight from Nebraska

to Kauai, and landed

that day.

Samuel had embarked on

the trip with the

intention of hiking

and camping around the

island, with his

return flight booked

for May 25, 2021.

May 25 came, and

when Samuel didn't

board his flight to go

home, his family

became concerned.

After contacting

authorities in Kauai,

their

investigation uncovered

that the last confirmed

sighting of the

23-year-old had been

on May 14, 2021, and

since that date, there

was no activity on his

phone or on his

bank cards.

Authorities began their

search after Samuel was

reported missing, using

helicopters to

navigate their way

around the island.

However, by June

3, this search was

suspended.

According to one

source, searches

with dogs and

drones are due to

continuing in the

near future.

Samuel's family

made an official

statement to Omaha

reporters saying,

please keep Samuel

in your prayers, and

with these kind people

as they search.

Samuel is 23 years

old and is described

as a white male,

6-foot tall, 180

pounds. He has

brown hair and

brown eyes.

Anyone with any

information is

urged to contact the

Kauai police on 808-241-1711.

Number 4, Stanley

Shushenov.

68-year-old Stanley

Shushenov was

last seen by his wife

Dolores on May 19, 2021.

Dolores told news

stations that on that

morning, Stanley was

leaving to take a hike

near the Sandemic

Nav Camping Area in

Sheep River

Provincial Park, Alberta,

Canada.

The Sheep River

Provincial Park spends

60.2 kilometers,

and according to the

website, AlbertaParks.ca,

visitors can hike,

ski, and ice skate

during their stay.

Dolores told global

news.ca,

I went to the door with

him and I gave him a

kiss and I said,

stay extremely safe.

I said, I'll be

worried about you the

entire time you're

going.

Stanley was only going

on a short hike and

it promised his wife

that he would be

back by dinner time.

However, when he

never returned home,

Dolores called the

police.

The RCMP and

Calgary police

service have both

performed extensive

searches for the

missing 68-year-old.

And so far, the only

evidence they have

found is his abandoned

car parked at the trail

head.

Stanley was last seen

at around 11 a.m.

on May 19th, 2021,

wearing jeans,

a plaid long-sleeved

shirt, shoes or hiking

boots, and carrying a

camo backpack.

If you have any

information, you're

asked to please contact

the Calgary police

service on 403-266-1234.

For three, Robert

Cooksai.

42-year-old part-time

Butler County Public

Defender, Robert Cooksai,

was last seen entering

Cummins Falls State

Park at 11.30 p.m.

on February 3rd, 2021.

Cummins Falls State

Park is located in Tennessee

and spans 282 acres,

and the terrain is

described as idyllic

but rugged.

The details in

Robert's case are

sparse, but what we do

know is that his car was

discovered in the car

park after he failed to

move it, garnering the

attention of park

employees.

On February 5th, 2021, the

park was temporarily

closed while the TBI, or

Tennessee Bureau of

Investigations, performed

an extensive search.

However, they came out

empty handed.

The park was then

reopened to the public on

Sunday, 7th of February

2021.

According to one article,

Robert's ability to practice

law was suspended by the

Ohio Supreme Court on

January 8th, 2021, after

he failed to respond to

a formal complaint.

There have been few

updates in Robert's

case.

Having the TBI is

appealing for anyone with

information to please come

forward.

Robert is described as a

white male with brown hair

and brown eyes.

He weighs 160 pounds.

It was last seen wearing

dark pants and a grey

hoodie.

If you believe you have

some information, you are

asked to please contact the

TBI on 1-800-TBI-FINED-FIN-D.

2.

Damon Ness

30-year-old Damon Ness

was last seen on October

20th, 2020, while

visiting the Nip Malik

National Park in the

Northern Territory, Australia.

On that day, Damon went

for a walk alone in the

National Park and was

never seen again.

Rompting 28 police

officers, parkraisers,

and countless volunteers

to begin the search

for him.

Damon set off on his walk

with nothing but his

phone and his car keys,

with superintendent

Shane, who was

the first person to

take a look at the

car keys, with

superintendent Shane

telling the Daily

Mail, he doesn't have

his wallet.

We have that.

We know he doesn't have

his hotel key.

We've got that as

well.

That was left in the

car.

The alarmist raised

after Damon fell to show

up for a canoe tour he

had booked for October

21st, 2020.

Authorities searched

for five days with

drones and with the help

of volunteers.

However, no signs

of the 30-year-old

were found.

Damon's family wanted

to fly up from Melbourne

to assist with the

search, but they

expressed their

concerns about breaking

lockdown and potentially

putting Aboriginal

communities at risk.

Damon's social

media has not been

updated since October

of 2020, and Australian

authorities are

appealing to anyone

with information to

contact.

Number one, Rob

Martin.

59-year-old Rob

Martin was last seen on

Edwin O'Rode on

Johns Island in Charleston

County, South

Carolina.

Johns Island is the

largest island in

South Carolina, and is

known for its

agriculture and angel

oak.

A tree that is

estimated to be

possibly 1,500 years

old.

The details in Rob's

case are extremely

limited, but it's

important that we spread

awareness about this

case and help bring him

home.

According to the

Charleston County

Sheriff's Office, Rob

was last seen on foot

on January 10th, 2021,

wearing a burgundy jacket

with an orange lining.

He has described his

white male 6-foot tall

200 pounds.

He has grey hair

hazel eyes, and is well

known in the Johns

Island area.

According to an

article written on

January 10th, 2021,

foul play is not

suspected at this time,

and the Charleston

County Sheriff's Office

needs your help in

locating Rob.

If you have any

information, you have

to please contact them

on 843-743-720-0.

Well, there you

have it, friends.

What do you make of

these strange

disappearances from

within these national

parks?

I look forward to

your thoughts in the

comments section.

Meanwhile, until we

meet again, be

good to yourselves and

each other.

I'm Steve Stockton,

and I'll talk to you

next time.

It is Ryan

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