Keep your fingers crossed for the missing ranger

**Foggy_Goggles** · 08-01-2005, 09:25 AM

Jeff is an aquiantance of mine. Others may know him as he is a Winter Park ski patroller. I hope everything turns out for the best.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_2904318

Worried searchers comb park for ranger
By George Merritt
Denver Post Staff Writer

Jeff Christensen, 31, has been missing since Friday. He carried a radio and possibly a cellphone, but nothing has been heard from him. (Special)

Rocky Mountain National Park - Park rangers searched for one of their own Sunday, two days after a fit and experienced member of their team went into the backcountry and did not return.

Jeff Christensen, 31, was last seen when he left alone for a patrol of the rugged and remote Mummy Range about 11 a.m. Friday.

"We are very positive," spokeswoman Kyle Patterson said of the attitude of the rescue teams. "Jeff is young, he's fit. ... This is his fourth year as a seasonal ranger."

Still, with no word from Christensen for a third consecutive day, Patterson said time "is of the essence."

She said rescuers are conducting the same kind of search they would for any healthy individual missing in the park. But she said there is an obvious personal concern.

"The only thing that is different is that in the back of their minds, they know this is a co-worker," she said.

No one can remember a ranger going missing for more than an afternoon.

Christensen is a "kindred spirit" who worked on search and rescue. If it had been one of them missing, searchers know, Christensen would have been out looking for them.

About 50 people from the park staff, area sheriffs' offices and the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, as well as Front Range Rescue dogs, took part Sunday in the second day of the massive search.

Two helicopters - one equipped with a device to look for body heat - also patrolled the steep, high-altitude area.

But the going is tough. Mount Chapin at 12,454 feet and Mount Chiquita at 13,069 feet mark the terrain.

Patterson said the area is popular with cross-country
skiers, but when the snow melts there are few, if any, foot trails.
"This is not a flat meadow," she said.

Christensen left from the Chapin Pass Trailhead off Old Fall River Road on Friday with plans to return to the Lawn Lake Trailhead by that evening.

Patterson said friends report they knew of no personal issues Christensen was dealing with recently.

It's certain that he carried a radio Friday. And officials said his pack probably contained camping essentials: food, water, a headlamp, matches and rain gear. He probably had his Park Service commissioned pistol and may have had a cellphone.

That they have not heard from Christensen over his radio "does give us some concern," Patterson said, but not too much. It is possible his batteries are dead, or he could be in one of the many drainages or gullies where radio reception is spotty at best, she said.

Christensen, who lives in Fraser, has worked for the ski patrol in Winter Park during the winters. Some of his friends from the area helped search for him Sunday.

**Buzzworthy** · 08-01-2005, 09:32 AM

Sorry to hear about your friend Foggy. Fingers crossed for Jeff.

**lemon boy** · 08-01-2005, 09:56 AM

+++++vibes+++++

Sucks, best wishes.

**Below Zero** · 08-01-2005, 10:13 AM

Hope he is OK. Postive vibes in full effect.

**Powder Seeker** · 08-01-2005, 10:18 AM

Hoping for the best and fingers crossed.

13 · 08-01-2005, 10:19 AM

Keep us updated, bro. Prayers sent.

**DJMingus** · 08-01-2005, 10:30 AM

Hoping everything turns out OK here for Jeff... my boss is up there looking for him right now with the Front Range Rescue Dogs.

I'll post up if I hear anything.

**snowfun** · 08-02-2005, 08:15 AM

No sign of JC, many WP and Grand County friends were up yesterday. I don't have the whole story but seems like the S&R groups don't take on volunteers due to liability issues, man that is seriously messed up

Keeping Jeff in our thoughts.

**Blurred** · 08-02-2005, 09:28 AM

SheRa, and Iskibc are up there today. Maybe they'll find him.

**Tippster** · 08-02-2005, 09:33 AM

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

C'mon, Jeff. Walk out....

**summit** · 08-02-2005, 09:47 AM

Originally Posted by snowfun

I don't have the whole story but seems like the S&R groups don't take on volunteers due to liability issues, man that is seriously messed up

S&R groups are all volunteer... except the park service teams which are paid.
In this instance the paid professionals put out a statewide request to all volunteer SAR teams for help: come to Estes Park at 0500 on Monday morning for a park service breifing and field team assigment.

I'm certain the Park Service turned away good samaratin searchers who just showed with no SAR training and affiliation. How do they know who you are, what you can do, etc? For all they know you are a do-gooder tourist from Texas. They cannot worry about having to run pack checks on everyone, pairing up good samaratins with SAR personell, or about babysitting or rescuing good samaratins who jumped in over their heads.

Properly running a large scale search operation in that kind of terrain isn't a cake walk and requires participants to have some training and experience in search theory and tactics, incident command, wilderness navigation, survival, and communications.

Your friends could certainly join the local volunteer SAR team. I'm certain they would be welcomed. Their local team will train them for free.

---

I hope they find the guy. After five days chances are pretty low. Then again, the guy is a ranger and in the past some Joe Schmoes have has dragged themselves out of the woods in winter after eight days with a broken leg.

**Hacksaw** · 08-02-2005, 11:41 AM

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Jeff also.

This hits close to home, because I often work alone in the field.

**freshie247** · 08-02-2005, 11:48 AM

best wishes!

**snowfun** · 08-02-2005, 01:28 PM

Summit, I know it is not a simple thing to do a search and you are right, there are alot of volunteers that could make things harder than necessary. Anyway when you have a group of patrollers who are probably well qualified and organized to search and to not use them due to liability issues seems to me a case of the litigious society we live in putting up barriers to not doing the right thing. I do appreciate the volunteers who do S&R and hope they find Jeff.

**Pinner** · 08-05-2005, 07:21 AM

Optimisitic news today.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_2914820
Keep up those positive vibes.

**Blurred** · 08-05-2005, 07:41 AM

They will find him today.

**Mountain Junkie** · 08-05-2005, 08:16 AM

Originally Posted by Pinner

Optimisitic news today.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_2914820
Keep up those positive vibes.

Ah, why are the SAR guys wearing helmets on a class 1 trail?

Here's to hoping they pull the guy out of the brush today.

**Pinner** · 08-05-2005, 08:18 AM

Originally Posted by Mountain Junkie

Ah, why are the SAR guys wearing helmets on a class 1 trail?

"Protocol"

**Tippster** · 08-05-2005, 08:26 AM

C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon ....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C 'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon....C'mon. ...C'mon....