CA CA - Hantae Kim, 61, hiking, Fuller Ridge Trailhead, Riverside County, 06 July 2024

[mlhenn]

Search Underway for Missing PCT Hiker Amidst California Heat Wave - The Trek

earch and rescue efforts are currently underway for 61-year-old Hantae Kim, who was reported missing while section hiking the Pacific Crest Trail near Fuller Ridge Trailhead in the San Jacinto Mountains. The Chula Vista resident left home at 5 a.m. on Friday and was expected home by 2 a.m. on...

thetrek.co

left home at 5 a.m. on Friday and was expected home by 2 a.m. on Sunday. Family members reported him missing when he failed to return.

reportedly sent photos to his family from locations along the trail, and was last heard from on the morning of July 6.

Search and rescue efforts are currently underway for 61-year-old Hantae Kim, who was reported missing while section hiking the Pacific Crest Trail near Fuller Ridge Trailhead in the San Jacinto Mountains.

 

[mlhenn]

Search Underway for Missing PCT Hiker Amidst California Heat Wave - The Trek

earch and rescue efforts are currently underway for 61-year-old Hantae Kim, who was reported missing while section hiking the Pacific Crest Trail near Fuller Ridge Trailhead in the San Jacinto Mountains. The Chula Vista resident left home at 5 a.m. on Friday and was expected home by 2 a.m. on...

thetrek.co

Kim, whose car was discovered at the Fuller Ridge Trailhead, intended to hike to Snow Creek and back, a trail he had mapped on his AllTrails account.

Kim is described as five feet, eight inches tall, weighing 170 pounds. According to photos, he is wearing a gray Columbia jacket, hat, and is carrying a small orange Osprey backpack.

 

[mlhenn]

https://fox5sandiego.com/news/local-news/chula-vista-man-missing-while-hiking-in-riverside-county/

He was last seen in the area of Fuller Ridge Trailhead off Black Mountain Road in Whitewater, west of Palm Springs, authorities said. The Fuller Ridge Trail is part of the Pacific Crest Trail.

 

[dulcinea]

It has been scorching out here. Palm Springs just hit a record 124 degrees. Whitewater is only a few miles from Palm Springs.

 

[GraceG]

The report stated he had just a small backpack. With the temperatures in the area, a small backpack wouldn't hold enough water for a 3 day hike. Pine Wood was a close weather.com reporting station and they are showing 90's still in the day under a heat advisory. https://weather.com/weather/alerts/...ificance=Y&areaid=CAZ056&office=KSGX&etn=0005
Did he have a cache set up of water along the trail or is there water available? I couldn't see any creeks or bodies of water big enough to show up in the google map of the area. Fuller Ridge Trailhead · PCT Segment BF, Whitewater, CA 92282

 

[dulcinea]

None of the trails I've been on up there have water available (such as a fountain or bathrooms with running water). Some of the trails might follow a creek, but most of them are dry this time of year. All mountain snow has long since melted. I think I saw that the trail head is at 7600 feet. It's still hot, but at least it's not the scorching desert floor. If he is not accustomed to that altitude, that combined with the heat could make for a bad ending. Many of the trails climb the mountain, so he'd be exerting a lot of energy, too.

 

[slowpoke]

This appears to be his Alltrails activity maps page. I don’t have an account here, just came upon it while googling. He seems very active and therefore must be pretty experienced.

Anyone familiar with Alltrails and hiking to garner any insights?

https://www.alltrails.com/explore/members/hantae-kim-1/recordings?b_tl_lat=45.87941244407264&b_tl_lng=-122.87388320754687&b_br_lat=23.991331206946086&b_br_lng=-109.0128167924524