Climber training for Nepal trip is missing on Mount Hood
By Jolie Wolfe (KPTV)
TIMBERLINE, Ore. -- Search crews looking for a missing climber on Mount Hood ran into hazardous weather on the mountain, preventing them from going past the 9,000 foot level Monday.
Family members said 59-year-old Kinley Adams, a dentist in the Salem area, is an experienced hiker who was training for a trip to Nepal, but he hasn't been heard from in more than 36 hours.
The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office reports Adams' empty vehicle was found by family members in the parking lot at Timberline Lodge on Saturday night, six hours after he was due to be home.
Adams apparently checked in at Timberline Lodge and registered in the climbing log that he would be climbing the Leuthold Couloir route, a route that he has climbed before. He had a "throw away" cell phone with him, deputies said,
The Sheriff's Office says searchers were able to summit the mountain via the Leuthold Couloir route but did not locate any evidence of Adams.
The searchers were forced to return to the lodge Sunday night due to near white out weather conditions that appeared to be worsening.
They dealt with tough conditions again Monday morning with near whiteout conditions around 9,000 feet. New soft, wet snow created additional hazards, deputies said.
Search efforts will continue at lower elevations and officials will make plans for the coming days based on the weather conditions.
A helicopter is on standby for the search.
Among the searchers out Monday were volunteers from Portland Mountain Rescue, Mountain Wave Communications, American Medical Response Reach and Treat Team, and Hood River Crag Rats, as well as responders from around the state.