Missing Persons of the Pacific Northwest

Each year, on average, 1,100 people get lost in the Pacific Northwest. Of those 1,100 people that get lost, approximately 90% are found alive, 8% are located deceased, and the remaining 2% seemingly vanish without a trace.

In 2021 requests from friends and family members of the missing began to appear in our inbox. Requests were simple, to keep an eye out for their loved one or their loved one's personal belongings, while we followed-up on reports of sasquatch encounters.

We hope that through our efforts we can bring awareness to these cases, keep hope alive for families of the missing, and bring closure to those who remain without answers.

Missing Adults of the Pacific Northwest

State of Oregon

Shawn Higgins, age 41

Age: 41 (at time of disappearance) Last seen: October 14th, 2016 Hunting in the Shasta Costa drainage, along Burnt Ridge Road, in the Siskiyou National Forest, Oregon. Description of disappearance: Shawn, his son, Trevor, and Trevor's uncle Will, were out hunting in an area Shawn knew extremely well. Shawn and Trevor had dropped Will off about seven miles up the mountain from where they were hunting earlier in the morning while Trevor and Shawn returned to the Shasta Costa drainage to hunt. Trevor had killed a buck blacktail the day prior and was to wait with the truck while Shawn hiked two miles up to the next trailhead. Shawn was to be back by 2:30pm. Shawn didn't return. Will was supposed to be picked up by Shawn and Trevor, and instead had to walk the seven miles down the mountain to the truck. When Will reached the truck he found Trevor alone and realized something was very wrong. Trevor and Will split up and began to search for Shawn. During their search Trevor became lost and as nightfall came, Will contacted authorities and family members to let them know of the situation. Trevor was found by searchers four days later on October 18th, 2016. On Octobe 23rd, Shawn's 42nd birthday, search crews demobilized and on October 25th, the official search was terminated. Nothing of Shawn's belongings were ever recovered.

Jeromy Childress, age 31

Age: 31 th, Last seen: October 17th, 2006 Between Boundary Road and Tucca Road, in the Trask Hunt Unit, Tillamook State Forest, Oregon. Clothing description: - Dark brown Carhartt jacket - Stonewashed Levi's blue jeans size 32x34 - Blue Nike baseball cap with a lighter blue swoosh on the front - Brown Copeland hiking boots - Silver Citizen watch with an eco-drive - Gold wedding band with five diamonds set at a diagonal angle. Jeromy was carrying: - Rifle - Car keys - Half a pack of cigarettes - and possibly a pocket knife. Description of disappearance: On October 17th, 2006, while elk hunting with his friend Shane Luey and Shane's son Shane Jr. The trio became separated when they got lost and couldn't find their way back to camp. Jeromy believed he knew where camp was and went off on his own in search of their campsite. This was the last time anyone ever saw Jeromy or any of his belongings.

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Robert Winters, age 78

Age: 78 (at time of disappearance) Last seen: Sparks Lake, Oregon, south of Broken Top Mountain and north of Mount Bachelor Disappearance: Robert Winters was hunting with three others at the time of his disappearance. The hunting party made the annual trip to this area for the last 20 years. Robert was very familiar with the area, and when he left his family to go hunting on October 8th, 1969 there was no need to be concerned until he didn't return to camp that night. That night, more than 1.5 feet of snow fell in the area. Any possible tracks left by Robert were buried. More than 60 search and rescue volunteers scoured the area, using K9s and Helicopters. Tracks were spotted at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet but were later determined to be wildlife tracks. The following summer, a Doctor on a hike in the area of Soda Creek, just below the location that crews found tracks and deemed them wildlife tracks, located some of Robert's belongings including his rifle leaning against a tree, Robert's clothes were folded neatly at the bottom of a tree, along with his glasses, one boot, and one glove were also located. No bones or other remains of Robert were ever descovered. Robert's clothes were clean, with no blood on them, and no signs of predation taking place. Robert Winters remains have never been discovered, but due to his belongings being located, and the time that has passed since his disappearance Robert is no longer listed as "Missing".

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Daming Xu, age 63

Age: 63 Last seen: November 4th, 2007 on the French Pete trail on Olallie Mountain, in the Three Sisters Wilderness, Oregon. Last seen wearing: - White shirt - Light leather jacket - No backpack (planned on only a day hike) Daming Xu was last seen at the summit of Olallie Mountain by a couple who were also hiking. They witnessed Daming begin descending the mountain before they did. When the couple reached the trailhead parking lot they noticed another vehicle parked in the lot, they had only seen one other hiker, Daming Xu, and couldn't believe they beat him off the mountain. The next day, Damin Xu's Wife reported him missing to law enforcement and a search began. More than 60 search and rescue crews spanned the mountain. Helicopters equipped with FLIR technology were also used in the search. Searchers located tracks, believed to be Daming's near Bear Flat, but tracking dogs soon lost the trail. On November 8th, freezing temperatures and snow began to fall. On November 10th, a newspaper wrote that heavy fog and rain was hampering search efforts in the area. On November 12th, the search was terminated due to weather and conditions on the mountain. On November 15th, volunteer searchers located one half of Daming's trail book in the French Pete Creek drainage, the section of the hiking book included the hike Daming had been on. A year after his disappearnace 45 searchers scoured the area where his hiking book had been located but did not locate any of Daming's belongings or possible human remains. His disappearance remains a mystery.

Stephen "Steve" Litsey, age 71

Age: 71 Last seen: October 29th, 2011 - Twin Lakes, Umpqua National Forest, Oregon. Description of events: Steve Litsey and a friend were on a week long hunting trip in the Twin Lakes area of the Umpqua National Forest. The week hadn't gone well and they decided to make October 29th their last day of hunting. The two friends woke up early, grabbed their hunting gear (Steve grabbed his rifle and a day backpack with water and energy bars) and started toward the trailhead. Both men went their separate ways to hunt with a plan to meet back at their vehicle later in the day. Steve never made it back to the truck. On October 31st, eight bloodhounds were brought in an attempt to track Steve's scent. None of the dogs were able to locate Steve's scent. Helicopters and ATVs were used in the search efforts. None of Steve's belongings were ever located. After a week of searching, the attempt to locate Steve was called off.

Martin Owensby, age 50

Age: 50 Last seen: September 16th, 1925 - Squaw Flat near Huckleberry Mountain, Prospect, Oregon. Martin left his family cabin to pick huckleberries and hunt for deer. While Martin was in the woods, his horse became spooked and strayed away from Martin. Martin returned to the cabin on foot and was worried about his horse. Martin believing his horse would have headed in the direction of an area known as "Squaw Flats", Martin decided to go look for his horse. Martin grabbed his rifle and set out early the morning of September 16th, 1925 to search. Martin was never seen again. Three days after Martin searched for his horse, searchers located his horse in Squaw Flats, with Martin's rifle secured in the saddle. Nothing else of Martin's was ever located. His whereabouts remain unknown. Martin is no longer considered "missing" but his body has never been located.

State of Washington

Kristopher Zitzewitz, age 31

Age: 31 Last seen: September 28th, 2013 Last location: Big Lava Beds, Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Washington State. Description of events: Kristopher, an experienced spelunker from Beaverton, Oregon, was with a friend looking for caves in the Big Lava Bed just south of the Goose Lake area of Gifford Pinchot National Forest, when they became separated around 2pm. Kristopher phsyical description: Height: 6'1 Weight: 230lbs Race: White Hair: Blond/Brown Eyes: Brown Clothing description: - Black raincoat - Khaki pants - Tan and black hiking boots - Racing style helmet (black) - Orange paracord bracelet - Black backpack

Maureen "Anu" Kelly, age 19

Age: 19 Last seen: June 9th, 2013, at 5pm, at the Canyon Creek Campground, Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Washington State. Maureen told her friends she was going on a "spiritual quest", removed her clothing, and walked into the tree line with only a fanny pack containing: - Knives - Matches - Compass Search and Rescue crews began a search the next morning. Searchers discovered bare footprints, about the same size as Marureen's. K9 units were brought to the area to assist in the search but were unable to locate a scent. Nothing of Maureen's belongings or remains have been located. There's no indication that Maureen was on drugs at the time of her disappearance.

Missing Children of the Pacific Northwest

State of Oregon

Derrick Engebretson, age 8

Sammy Boehlke, age 8

Age: 8 years old (at time of disappearance) Height: 4 foot 6 inches tall. Weight: Last seen wearing: - Snow suit (unknown color) - carrying a small hatchet. Derrick was last seen near Pelican Butte, in the Winema National Forest, near the town of Rocky Point, Oregon, about 30 miles north of Klamath Falls, Oregon and directly south of Crater Lake, Oregon. Derrick separated from his Father and Grandfather while searching for a Christmas Tree in the area. Search and Rescue crews spent more than 10,000 hours in the months after his disappearance but were unable to find any sign of Derrick. K-9 units were unable to track his scent as well. Foul play has been suspected, but not confirmed.

Age: 8 years old (at time of disappearance) Height: 4 foot 11 inches Weight: 85lbs Wearing: Long sleeved black & green T-shirt Cargo Pants Blue winter coat Red suede slip-on shoes with rubber soles. Description of events: Sammy was last seen by his Father at about 4pm near the Cleetwood Cove area of Crater Lake National Park. Sammy had been looking at the lake when he suddenly darted across the road and up a cinder slope into the woods looking back at his Father before stepping into the tree line and vanishing without a trace. Sammy had a mild form of autism, which manifested itself in a fear of loud noises and bright lights. More than 200 searchers scoured over six square miles of wilderness using K-9s, helicopters, and heat seeking cameras. No sign of Sammy was ever located.