LKP: PCT Mile 127 (Near Warner Springs, California)
Chris Sylvia was hiking southbound from Anza to Campo. He left on February 12, 2015. On February 16, he called a friend and asked to be picked up the next day at the Buddhist Temple on Chihuahua Valley Road. Sylvia did not make it to his rendezvous point. On February 20, another hiker found Sylvia’s gear laid out alongside the PCT near mm 127, not far from Mike’s Place. Despite a large search effort, Sylvia is still missing.
Members of the Fowler-O’Sullivan Foundation tracked down a physical clue left behind by Sylvia, proving he had visited a hostel prior to his disappearance.
The actual book Chris Sylvia was reading when he disappeared (found by Andrea Lankford).
CIRCUMSTANCES: Still Missing
On October 19th, 2020, 62-year-old Fern Baird signed the Prarie Creek trailhead register at 1:17 in the Sawtooth National Forest near Ketchum Idaho, but she never returned. Her Subaru Crosstrek was later located in the parking area.
Fern, from Park City, Utah had been visiting the area when she decided to go on a hike. She asked the hotel personnel if they had any suggestions and Prarie Creek was suggested as a nice hike on a fall day. Fern was an experienced hiker, fit and dressed appropriately for the cool seasonal weather. She was known by her friends to stick to the trails and not take any chances such as taking shortcuts. Prairie Creek Trail is a 10-mile loop that runs along Prairie Creek and crosses small waterfalls.
Baird was last seen in a hotel CCTV footage wearing a grey jacket, black pants, and carrying a black fanny pack. She is 5’5 and approximately 115 pounds.
It was on October 22, 2020, that Fern was reported missing after hotel staff saw she had failed to check out. It was on this day that Blaine County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue began their search efforts. A group of 40 personnel scoured Prairie Lake and other nearby lakes in the area using three K9 units, two drones, several Idaho National Guard helicopters, and officers on foot and horseback. The Sheriff’s Office searched for nine days without a clue before calling off their search on October 30th. It was not the outcome they had hoped for.
Back in Park City, Utah, Fern worked at Powder Beach Realty where she sold residential homes and managed Vacation rentals. She also founded the company YopaBag; she designed bags for carrying yoga equipment to class. She was very well-liked and had many friends that would gather together to go on hikes. Fern has one son Breck, that lives in California.
Circumstances: Still missing
More about Roy Prifogle
On March 4th, 2020, 52-year-old Roy Prifogle was seen around the small mountain town of Idyllwild-Pinecove, California, going about his usual business at a convenience store and dropping off firewood to his neighbor. Later, in the early evening, Roy decided to go for a hike on the Webster trail, a hidden and not-so-popular trail compared to other nearby trails, but Roy knew this area extremely well, as he grew up nearby and would hike down into this area as a young boy.
Very late that evening he texted a roommate that he was going for water and would be back in 2-3 hours. Roy never returned home. Many SAR units joined in the search efforts to locate Roy, which led to Roy’s red backpack being discovered, inside was his phone, but no other clues have surfaced and Roy remains missing.
CIRCUMSTANCES: Still Missing
Age: 69. Last Seen: September 24, 2022
LKP: Golar Wash (Truck was found abandoned on a rugged 4×4 road just outside Death Valley National Park on September 30, 2022)
Circumstances indicate that Dennis ran out of gas while driving his truck into an extremely remote area near Death Valley National Park. He appeared to have attempted to call his wife Donna on the morning of September 25 and it is uncertain if this call occurred before or after he ran out of gas. The area was experiencing triple digit heat during the time Dennis went missing and the location is so remote that there is no cell service for many miles.
Dennis is a former engineer from Ramona, CA. He had section-hiked parts of the PCT, but this was his first trip to Death Valley.
Members of the Fowler-O’Sullivan Foundation made two trips to where Dennis’s truck was found to conduct drone image grid searches of the area. The FOF Image Review Team searched thousands of images but no signs of Dennis were found. A volunteer with FOF who is a licensed pilot hopes to conduct a fly over search of a large salt-pan near Dennis’s LKP once the weather cools.
Age: 54
Last Seen: September 29, 2022 Last Known Place: First Water Trailhead, Tonto National Forest
Circumstances: Still missing
What we know:
Phillip Wilson, from Seattle, Washington, borrowed a friend’s truck to go hiking at on First Water Trail within the Tonto National Forest, east of Phoenix, Arizona.
When Mr. Wilson did not return, his friend went to the trailhead and found the vehicle. Mr. Wilson wrote an entry in the logbook indicating he started his hike at 09:30 am. Mr. Wilson had no known destination listed, and there was no indication he had returned. His friend believed Mr. Wilson was only going to be hiking for a few hours and would be home by midday.
Mr. Wilson suffers from anxiety and may not have had his medications with him.
If you have any information about this case, please reach out to info@fofound.org.
Circumstances: Still missing
Age: 63 Last Seen: September 29, 2022 Last Known Place: Yavapai Campground in Prescott, Arizona
What we know: Jeffrey Stambaugh, an experienced hiker and resident of Tucson for almost three decades, was reported missing after failing to return to his Granite Basin campground in Prescott National Forest. According to the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office, Jeffrey gave his mobile phone to the camp host to charge on September 29, but never came back to get it.
Stambaugh’s car, a Subaru, was later discovered outside the Metate Trailhead. Stambaugh has gray hair, hazel eyes, weighs 180 pounds and stands 5 feet, 9 inches tall.
If you have any information about this case, please reach out to info@fofound.org.
Missing hiker Laura Macke, 35, an experienced hiker with survival training, planned to hike to the Enchanted Campground in Olympic National Park, Washington in late October 2022. Her goal was to hike the Enchanted Valley and she had been planning for her hike for months. Based on her permit, she was going to camp for two nights and then hike back on her third day. A significant rainstorm started on October 30th and Laura never returned to her family and was reported missing on November 2. Her rental car was found at the Graves Creek Trailhead. Fifteen State and Government agencies participated in the official search that ended after 7 days due to weather. Her family has been searching for Laura ever since she went missing.
If you have any information about this case please reach out to info@fofound.org
Still Missing since April 7, 2017
CIRCUMSTANCES: Still Missing
DAVID O’SULLIVAN
Age: 25. Last Seen: April 07, 2017. LKP: Idyllwild Inn, Idyllwild, California
David was thru-hiking NOBO on the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada. On April 6, 2017 he sent an email to his family from an Idyllwild library. O’Sullivan, who is from Ireland, intended to hike north into the San Jacinto Mountains the next day. He has not been seen since. There are several trails he could have taken to access the PCT from Idyllwild. We do not know which trail David took.
Cathy Tarr met with Con and Carmel O’Sullivan in November 2017. Since then Tarr has become the family advocate in the U.S. She pursues answers for the O’Sullivans using advanced aerial photography and drone image searching. She has organized many volunteer on-the-ground search efforts as well. We continue to look for David.
More about David by Carmel O’Sullivan
David was born on August 29, 1991 in Cork, Ireland. He was the second grandchild born to our family, preceded by his brother, Niall, nearly four years earlier. He and his brother were doted on by his grandparents and by their many Aunts and Uncles. It would be many years before more grandchildren arrived in Ireland to join them. They had one cousin born in London (in 1992) called Jeremy who became very close to David and who remained a constant in his life until David’s disappearance in 2017.
David on trail.
David attended Saleen National School where many years ago my sister, brother, and I also attended. It was a small school (roll call 90) where he made friends for life. Some of these went on to become his best friends and who called regularly to our house over the years. While at national school he developed an interest in amateur drama and graced the stage on many occasions often bringing the house down with his acting. David went onto Secondary school in our local town attending Christian Brothers School. He was a good student excelling in English and Geography. He also did stand up comedy every year for the Christmas party and a few times he gave performances for local charity fund raisers. While at this school he did a sponsored head shave for Mary Mount, our local Hospice
David had a great interest in Media and did a one-year degree course in Media Studies. He then went to University College Cork to study where he received his Honors Degree in English and Philosophy. While attending UCC he did a weekly radio program and was interested in pursuing this line of work after gaining more life experience and seeing something of the world. He was an avid reader and his bedroom is lined with hundreds of books. He never came home from a shopping trip without some new author under his arm. His reading interests were varied and he could talk at length about his chosen subject.
Volunteer Searchers with the Irish Outreach in San Diego
David’s interests included cycling, running, hiking, films, reading, drama and board games. Politics became an interest in his late teens. As a younger child, he did horse riding and obtained his black belt in Karate at the age of sixteen. He was a happy little boy, full of fun, and he had a great laugh.
“David liked to hike and he and his friends often went off on day trips to our local mountain hiking.”
— Carmel O’Sullivan
While he was attending University he got a weekend job in a local garage, and after finishing College, he stayed on in a full-time capacity to save some money for travelling and to buy a car. He had always liked to hike and he and his friends often went off on day trips to our local mountain hiking. On a few occasions he went with his dad and some friends.
Volunteer drone and ground searchers
David had travelled on family holidays to England, Scotland, Spain, Portugal, Tunisia, Canary Islands and New York. When he got older, he went on sightseeing trips with Con to Scotland, London and Washington. He travelled to South Korea to visit Niall, and went to Thailand to visit Jeremy before embarking on his journey to hike the PCT.
Like I said, he was an avid reader, and some years ago he read the book by Cheryl Strayed about her journey on the PCT, and he decided to attempt it in 2017. He prepared as much as possible in our locality and set off full of enthusiasm, and the rest you know.
David is a much loved member of our family and is greatly missed every day. Our world turned upside down in 2017 and will never again be the same. We have a new normal now and we would give anything to find David and know what happened to him on that fateful day in April 2017. We miss and love him.
Last known picture taken of Kris
CIRCUMSTANCES: Still Missing
Kris Fowler was completing his NOBO thru-hike in Washington. On October 12, 2016, he was dropped off near the trailhead at White Pass. His last cell phone ping was in that area around 5 p.m. Considerable amounts of snow and rain were expected over the next few days. The authorities and volunteers have diligently searched much of the trail between White Pass and the Canadian Border. Yet Kris Fowler is still missing.
KRISTOPHER FOWLER
Age: 34. Last Seen: October 12, 2016. LKP: Mile 2294 (White Pass/Packwood, Washington)
Sally Fowler at White Pass Trailhead PCT Washington
Kris Fowler was born in 1982 in Norfolk, Virginia to Sue (Sattem) and Mike Fowler. Mike was stationed there in the Navy. They moved back to the Dayton, Ohio, area when Kris was about two. Kris was a happy young man that made friends easily, even from an early age. His parents later divorced but still raised him together. Kris’s Mom sadly passed away when Kris was 12. His Dad married Sally Guyton the following year, and they moved to Beavercreek, Ohio, where Kris went to school starting in the 7th Grade. Although Mike and Sally were no longer married, they stayed friends and both had a close relationship with Kris. Kris stayed close with his Mom’s family, his Dad’s family and Sally’s family, too. He was loved by many.
Kris was a natural athlete. Just about anything he set out to do, he did it well. Kris never played on a football team, but one day when he was 12, he came home and wanted to go compete in the local Punt Pass and Kick competition. He did and won in his age group two years in a row, and even went as far as the semifinals at the Cincinnati Bengals stadium. This was incredible because he never played football! He was just a natural athlete!
Kris loved the outdoors. He and his family camped and hiked whenever possible. Kris also loved photography, so the two went hand in hand. Kris’s love for camping and hiking continued as an adult, where he frequently would seek out new places to hike and photograph. He would travel outside of Ohio to find more challenging places to hike as well. In 2000, he graduated from Beavercreek High School where he played baseball all through school and was a very skilled pitcher. He played ball with the same group of guys all through school and ended up going to Wright State College with several of them. In College, along with some high school friends, he joined and was active in the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity. He often had full-time jobs all through college and graduated in 2006 with a B.S. in Marketing. He made many friends along the way and stayed in touch with many of them after college.
Kris was very easy to be around and people liked him. He was laid back and intense at the same time! He had a great sense of humor, he loved to travel, loved the outdoors and loved to have fun. Kris got married in 2008 and moved to Cincinnati. He had a good marriage for many years, but sadly they divorced in 2015. Kris had a job with a logistics company and they moved his job to Florida, but the company was not stable. He left the company in 2015 and moved in with his Dad in Beavercreek, Ohio, where he was trying to decide what he wanted to do for work. An opportunity came up for him to do some hotel construction in Wyoming and make good money with no expenses, so he moved to Wyoming in February 2016.
Kris loved the outdoors and thought of this as a way to see a different part of the country and do more hiking. Over the years Kris had become an avid Disc golf player where he traveled to different states to play in tournaments. Once again, he made many friends and once again, he was very good at this sport, too. He made friends with a man named Colin Hurley who lived in Colorado. Even when Kris was married, he would visit Colin and they would go on hiking trips. Colin and Kris talked about doing the Pacific Crest Trail one day.
In 2016 Colin was preparing for the PCT. Kris decided that he had very few bills, a little money in the bank, and no permanent job to disrupt, so that was the time to do it. Kris left Wyoming at the end of March, moved to Colorado to stay with Colin, and started training and preparing for the PCT. I didn’t even know what that was! Kris told both his Dad and I about his plans, and once we saw how prepared he was, we supported him on his new adventure although we were nervous.
“He made a deal with his parents to check in every two weeks and he kept to that plan the entire trip.”
Kris and Colin set out on their journey on May 8, 2016. It was Mother’s Day. He sent me a text and picture saying, ” Happy Mother’s Day from the PCT. I love you,” and the journey began. Kris had mailed himself over 20 packages of food and supplies to locations along the trail. He sent his Dad and me a list of all of the locations in case we also wanted to send him packages and so that we could see his journey.
Soon into the hike Colin and Kris started hiking alone, which is normal, as each one had their own pace. They stayed in touch along the way. Kris had a little slower pace, and as an amateur photographer, he was spending a little longer in some areas, hiking off trail to take pictures of things he thought no one had seen or photographed before. As in all stages of his life, he was making friends and leaving lasting impressions along the way. Kris was taking longer on his journey than he planned because of these side trips and “stopping to smell the roses” along the way.
He made a deal with his parents to check in every two weeks and he kept to that plan the entire trip. Kris was also frequently in touch with some of his friends and cousins. Kris last spoke to his Stepmom on the phone on September 30, 2016, where he said he was doing good other than being tired. He told her he still planned on making it to Canada.
Two weeks later we had not heard from Kris and his dad grew a little worried. I reached out to a lady friend Kris had been hiking with, and although she had left the trail the first of October, she was still in touch with Kris. She said he had texted her on Oct 12. Kris told his friend that he was having phone trouble and was trying to get a new charger. Once we learned that we felt better since he had spoken to someone. After another week went by, we started worrying more.
Mike and I started contacting the authorities and all of the places where Kris had mailed his packages. By Oct 23, it was becoming clear Kris was missing, and now we had to convince authorities of that as well. Not easy to do from Ohio to Washington State. By Oct 31, after much self detective work, authorities agreed to list Kris as missing and began searching. After a five county, two-week long search, the official search ended due to inclement weather. I even traveled to Washington with my boyfriend, John, and my brother, Rick, and spent 11 days following leads and tracing Kris’s last footsteps. Still no Kris. Sadly, Mike passed away in 2017, due to cancer, without ever knowing what happened to Kris. There have been many searches over the past 3 1/2 years, and so many amazing people volunteering to help find any sign of Kris, but nothing has been found yet.
Many of the 2016 PCT hikers that hiked with Kris said he was a strong hiker. He often liked to take his time and maybe not cover as many miles in one day as some hikers do, but if he wanted to, he could do 25 miles a day. One hiker even stated that they had never seen anyone plow through the snow as fast as Kris did and they could not keep up with him. By the time any hiker gets to Washington State, they are skilled at hiking. Kris was having the time of his life. He was already making plans to get a job to save money so that he could do another through hike the following year. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be.
Sally Fowler
Sally with two PCT thru-hikers who volunteered to help find Kris
