Found Deceased MT - Meghan Rouns, 27, horseback riding, horse found, phone found in saddlebag, McMaster Hills Rec Area, NE of Helena, 4 Oct 2024 *Active Search*

[Tower]

I use AllTrails too and that data is extremely concerning. A question for AllTrail users that are in a less populated area (I'm in the NE) - how accurate is your "history?" Is it sometimes "off" in really remote areas? Because mine has always been very accurate which, along with the picture of the steep incline to the lake, make it look like the horse somehow wound up in the lake moving/swimming and then bolted up out of the lake and up one of the hills. Very concerning if as accurate as my history has been. Also, I need to check my settings!

Yes, please check your settings! I have used these types of apps for years and the default used to be open and public for all to see. I hope the default is private now? But the apps wish to share the info and that may not benefit us as individuals. Jmo!

Please, tech people correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe AllTrails uses your phone’s own GPS, so in remote areas this could be off. I use a GPS-equipped watch that is usually quite accurate everywhere, but in canyons, it can misreport data. The detail on these AllTrails maps seems quite precise to me, so maybe GPS was dependable in that area. Speculation only. My experience only.

 

[flashy09]

It really throws me off that she uploaded her trail ride after the chaos in the lake. Do you absolutely have to post that yourself? I know Life360 will call a drive complete when the phone stops moving so fast....you don't have to end your drive manually. Is it possible that the horse stopped and the app marked her trail ride as finished? Because it really seems like something happened in the lake...I've been to the ER with a horse accident in a creek and can think of so many possibilities that would lead to a tragic accident.

As a wildcard, is it possible she met someone on the trail and rode into the lake to try and escape him? Then was forced to the parking lot and off her horse into someone's car?

 

[Tower]

It really throws me off that she uploaded her trail ride after the chaos in the lake. Do you absolutely have to post that yourself? I know Life360 will call a drive complete when the phone stops moving so fast....you don't have to end your drive manually. Is it possible that the horse stopped and the app marked her trail ride as finished? Because it really seems like something happened in the lake...I've been to the ER with a horse accident in a creek and can think of so many possibilities that would lead to a tragic accident.

As a wildcard, is it possible she met someone on the trail and went into the lake to try and escape him? Then was forced to the parking lot and off her horse into someone's car?

I am not sure of this, I would have to test it. But I think when they opened the app on her phone, it may have completed the track. Or if she had the app tracking her location live, it would be tracking as she went. It depends on how she was using the app. I’ve always opened these types of apps myself at the end of a trip and it’s just there. AllTrails also has a function that a specific family or friend can track you from home if they log in to watch you, with your permission and log in details.

In answer, I am fairly sure she did not have to purposefully post the end of her track.

Jmo, I would love to get input if someone else has tried the different scenarios.

 

[Snoopster]

It really throws me off that she uploaded her trail ride after the chaos in the lake. Do you absolutely have to post that yourself? I know Life360 will call a drive complete when the phone stops moving so fast....you don't have to end your drive manually. Is it possible that the horse stopped and the app marked her trail ride as finished? Because it really seems like something happened in the lake...I've been to the ER with a horse accident in a creek and can think of so many possibilities that would lead to a tragic accident.

As a wildcard, is it possible she met someone on the trail and rode into the lake to try and escape him? Then was forced to the parking lot and off her horse into someone's car?

The tracking uses a fair amount of battery. I'm wondering if detailed tracking 'paused' to save battery power? And then perhaps when the horse, and phone, was found the battery was dying, the app ended that particular track?

I know that I sometimes had tracking issues with AllTrails while navigating and using another app (e.g. camera). Sometimes my tracking would stop for a while.

From AllTrails:
"Power Saving mode or Battery Optimization mode may reduce the GPS accuracy when using Navigate to track your activity.

 

[Missing Susan]

The husband might have found and walked the horse back up to the East parking lot. I assume he drove to the area and parked as close as he could before searching. Found the phone and turned off the app? Not sure the time lines up. More analysis needed.

 

[bestill]

I zoomed in closer on her activity track on AllTrails from a couple of days ago (thanks for finding that) and this doesn't look good.

View attachment 536132

To me the left side of the trail ride down to the water looks controlled and right before entering the water it looks like the horse balked, stepped back and then went in. The right side near the Spring Gulch Lower looks like it could be the horse without a rider, pacing, backtracking and trying to find their way. The path in the water could be a horse stumbling around. I wonder how deep the water is in that area?
All JMO.

 

[rhino]

AllTrails has frequently shown my horse and I ending up in rivers, lochs and the sea. We haven’t got wet feet yet!

IME from riding in other very rural areas it is not very accurate.

 

[Megnut]

That tracking is unsettling.

I don't know what would provoke a horse to enter the water. Do serious riders "swim" with their horses? Long ride, maybe it was intended as a cool down before heading back?

Could she have, once in the water, gotten tangled in a stirrup or that spooked the horse and it was the two of them in a desperate struggle causing that frenzy?

I don't know how these apps work or the accuracy of the GPS but I hazard the guess that they entered the water in a controlled way but it quickly became out of control. Only her phone and the horse finished the trail.

JMO

 

[acutename]

That tracking is unsettling.

I don't know what would provoke a horse to enter the water. Do serious riders "swim" with their horses? Long ride, maybe it was intended as a cool down before heading back?

Could she have, once in the water, gotten tangled in a stirrup or that spooked the horse and it was the two of them in a desperate struggle causing that frenzy?

I don't know how these apps work or the accuracy of the GPS but I hazard the guess that they entered the water in a controlled way but it quickly became out of control. Only her phone and the horse finished the trail.

JMO

horses wade in water and drink or cross shallow streams.... in hot weather, I have seen people let a horse swim, but they unsaddled and let the horse go for awhile... (personal observations)

 

[Chimera]

This article says the horse was found Saturday morning.

Search underway for woman in the McMaster Hills Recreation Area

The Lewis & Clark County Sheriff's Office is searching for an adult female horseback rider in the McMaster Hills Recreation Area.

www.kxlh.com

Sheriff Dutton says the last known contact anyone had with Meghan was at about 4:20 pm on Friday when she took a picture on SnapChat. She was last known to be wearing blue jeans, a black shirt, possibly a grey hoodie and a ball cap.

Her horse was found early on Saturday morning, and her phone was located in a saddle bag; investigators are utilizing data on that phone to locate areas of interest.

It looks like we don't know yet, who found the horse ?
Was it wet or looking like it'd been in the water ?
Was her saddle and tack wet ?
Omo.

 

[whitelilac]

That part of the lake, is it accessible as in with a little beach area? I had in mind that the lake edge was rocky and rugged and cannot imagine a rider and a horse would go into the water. The tracking is really alarming, certainly not normal if the intent was too cool off. I don't see a horse managing rocks it cannot even see under water, if the bottom wasn't smooth. Could an event have caused that frenzy, a bear, a mountain lion that put the horse and rider into a panic, and they ended up in the lake? Do we know if the horse was injured at all?

 

[whitelilac]

Also, would Meghan's rides in the past still be accessible on All Trails? She might have done this same trail in the past and if so, did she and the horse go into the water previously? If so, could they compare the tracking? Other riders could also have done so, where nothing untoward happened.

 

[bestill]

It looks like we don't know yet, who found the horse ?
Was it wet or looking like it'd been in the water ?
Was her saddle and tack wet ?
Omo.

Perhaps it is behind a paywall. I know when I tried to read this article I was able to read that the horses name is Betty but then it locked me out - Search continues in McMaster Hills Recreation Area for missing Helena woman. Does anyone have access to this and can tell us what is says?

 

[flashy09]

That tracking is unsettling.

I don't know what would provoke a horse to enter the water. Do serious riders "swim" with their horses? Long ride, maybe it was intended as a cool down before heading back?

Could she have, once in the water, gotten tangled in a stirrup or that spooked the horse and it was the two of them in a desperate struggle causing that frenzy?

I don't know how these apps work or the accuracy of the GPS but I hazard the guess that they entered the water in a controlled way but it quickly became out of control. Only her phone and the horse finished the trail.

JMO

You can swim with a horse, but she wouldn't take her phone unless maybe she had a waterproof cover. You take the saddle off as well.

 

[Snoopster]

Perhaps it is behind a paywall. I know when I tried to read this article I was able to read that the horses name is Betty but then it locked me out - Search continues in McMaster Hills Recreation Area for missing Helena woman. Does anyone have access to this and can tell us what is says?

Nothing much new here. It's from late yesterday. A couple of small tidbits...

The Sheriff said that it's possible that she is in the river....not necessarily, but possible.

Her snapchat image was of her with the river in the background.

Her family, including her husband and father, and friends were gathered in the parking lot near the command center. Her father was the family spokesperson.

There was no comment about who found the horse or specifically where. It was just stated that it was found "early Saturday".

 

[flashy09]

I looked at the weather history and it was a scorching day for Helena..88 degrees. Helena, MT Weather History | Weather Underground
Also very windy.
If the lake wasn't very deep by the shores it would make sense that she waded around with the horse to cool off, even if not full on swimming. That would keep her phone with her as opposed to swimming. I am thinking the horse did something in the water that caused her to fall and maybe get a hoof to the head...horses kind of leap forward when they try to get out of water fast. That would keep the phone in the saddle for tracking and then the horse was found near the second parking lot and loaded up there rather than walked all the way back to the original parking lot.

 

[bestill]

I looked at the weather history and it was a scorching day for Helena..88 degrees. Helena, MT Weather History | Weather Underground
Also very windy.
If the lake wasn't very deep by the shores it would make sense that she waded around with the horse to cool off, even if not full on swimming. That would keep her phone with her as opposed to swimming. I am thinking the horse did something in the water that caused her to fall and maybe get a hoof to the head...horses kind of leap forward when they try to get out of water fast. That would keep the phone in the saddle for tracking and then the horse was found near the second parking lot and loaded up there rather than walked all the way back to the original parking lot.

I am thinking something like your scenario happened, perhaps knocked unconscious when she fell into the water. This would also explain nothing found on the thermal imaging. JMO

 

[KentuckyFilly79]

There was an article that was posted here a few pages back stating they were searching in the lake based on GPS data found on the phone. I'm betting they found this AllTrails info as well. Horse person here also and I would be very interested to know the condition of horse and tack when they horse was found like otheres have stated. Also was the location the horse was found in consistent with where the data tracking stopped on the AllTrails app? I think that would answer the question of did it keep tracking and upload on its or own until the horse was found or did she have to upload what we can see and the horse was found at a different location then where the tracking stops.

 

[marloweclover]

Around here -- adjacent state -- our lakes and rivers aren't at the same size all year, pretty dramatically. Snowmelt season vs. end of summer. Right now, I could be roaming the shoreline of the river, perfectly dry, and on All Trails I'd look like I was so far out I had to be kayaking or swimming. Same spot in May, I'd be in over my head. I don't know if that's the case there, but it's possible on the app. I'm sure the locals there can tell the difference from the map though.

 

[Missing Susan]

To me the left side of the trail ride down to the water looks controlled and right before entering the water it looks like the horse balked, stepped back and then went in. The right side near the Spring Gulch Lower looks like it could be the horse without a rider, pacing, backtracking and trying to find their way. The path in the water could be a horse stumbling around. I wonder how deep the water is in that area?
All JMO.

On the aerial image you can sort of see visible bottom extending a bit out away from the bank. The spot is where a gully has been dumping soil into a miniature alluvial fan along the bank. Its possible that the track is accurate and they are walking in a shallow spot of the reservoir. I tried a fishing app to see a depth chart of the water there. Failed

In addition to the track, the app is recording time elapsed and elevation. The phone was wandering around at the same elevation for quite some time and distance. The track shows .3 miles walking around in the lake, then .4 miles wandering on the bank before jumping up to the parking lot location

The app isnt showing me timestamps, which would be helpful

MRs other ride was in April (colder) and the track doesnt extend into the water. Hers were the only horseback riding tracks. Perhaps some of the hikers that posted tracks could be seen if they were wading into the reservoir during their visits down there