Found Safe NC - Joshua Clauson, 20, Croatan National Forest, 29 May 2021

[mlhenn]

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Carteret Sheriff Office

Update #2

 

[mlhenn]

Google Maps

So which Highway did the relative make it to by listening for cars?
(Map above for reference)

 

[annpats]

Google Maps

So which Highway did the relative make it to by listening for cars?
(Map above for reference)

He exited on Rams Horn Road, at the southern end of the woods.

I'm guessing he listened to the sounds of the cars on the main road to the west.

 

[mlhenn]

@annpats thank you!
I was trying to visualize where the relative ended up at, the distance he walked, etc.
I found the following article as well.

https://www.newsobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article251798383.html

Additional link

May 31, 2021
Crews are searching the Croatan National Forest for a North Carolina man who hasn’t returned from a walk.

Joshua Clauson and family member went into the coastal forest off Lake Road around 10 a.m. Saturday, relatives told the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office.

During the walk, the two got lost and separated, the sheriff’s office says.

The relative told deputies he found his way out of the forest by following the sounds of passing cars. He eventually escaped on Rams Horn Road — more than 4 miles from where he entered the forest.

 

[mlhenn]

https://www.newsobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article251798383.html

Crews resumed their search Monday for 20-year-old Joshua Clauson, who the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office says is missing in the Croatan National Forest. CARTERET COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE

Croatan National Forest is in Eastern North Carolina, near New Bern. Its 160,000 acres of land include pine forests, salt water estuaries, bogs and “raised swamps,” the U.S. Forest Service says.

 

[MimosaMornings]

So neither one had their cell phone?

Even my old iPhone came with the compass app and map app on it.

 

[annpats]

He eventually escaped on Rams Horn Road — more than 4 miles from where he entered the forest.

It's quite a way to travel and I wonder how his relative got out of the woods at the Rams Horn Road end so quickly as SAR states the woods "are very dense and hard to manoeuvre through...."

 

[NervousNellie]

So neither one had their cell phone?

Even my old iPhone came with the compass app and map app on it.

One thing I learned in the Army is that not everyone can use a compass. I admit it seems straightforward, but my experience is it is a skill not everyone has.

 

[EggSalad]

This is such a bizarre story that it’s hard to believe at face value.

That area is extremely remote, and has tons of water and swamp land.

I haven’t seen any MSM coverage that points towards service in the army or marines but there is a big marine base in the area and there have been a lot of strange stories that past 4-5 years in eastern NC related to drugs and murders (Cherry Point & Fort Bragg) tied to military bases.

 

[NervousNellie]

I was not implying anyone in this case is/was in the military - I replied to the poster that suggested the missing person's phone could have had a compass app. Based on my experience in the military (where we are trained to use a compass), some people can't use one. Meaning it wouldn't have been of any use to them if they couldn't use/read it properly.

 

[helpfulcharlie]

Maybe it's my SAR training, but it seems like common sense to me to have some way of knowing your way around in the woods, or at least a bail-out plan in case you get disoriented. And isn't the segment they got "lost" in surrounded by roads? Meaning if you pick ANY direction and stick with it, you will eventually hit a road again?

 

[EggSalad]

I was not implying anyone in this case is/was in the military - I replied to the poster that suggested the missing person's phone could have had a compass app. Based on my experience in the military (where we are trained to use a compass), some people can't use one. Meaning it wouldn't have been of any use to them if they couldn't use/read it properly.

Not sure if you’re responding to me or not.

My military comment was in regards to their being a marine base near by and a lot of strange drug/murder related issues at eastern NC military bases the past handful of years.

 

[MimosaMornings]

You’d need bug spray and watch for alligators.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5188168.pdf

 

[TootsieFootsie]

I feel dumb, I've been reading the place name as Croatia. I finally twigged that it wasn't today.

I hope he is ok, and is found soon.

 

[NervousNellie]

Not sure if you’re responding to me or not.

My military comment was in regards to their being a marine base near by and a lot of strange drug/murder related issues at eastern NC military bases the past handful of years.

I was. I thought it was a reply to me, which makes no sense since it made no sense. Sorry for misunderstanding and thanks for clarification.

 

[azure]

May 29th was 85 degrees in the Croatan National Forest. No way Joshua intended to hike far in jeans.

 

[EggSalad]

I was. I thought it was a reply to me, which makes no sense since it made no sense. Sorry for misunderstanding and thanks for clarification.

All good. I didn’t realize military was being discussed in another context before I posted. Then when I went back and read you discussing using a compass, I realized that our posts could easily be confused. Cheers.

 

[EggSalad]

Maybe it's my SAR training, but it seems like common sense to me to have some way of knowing your way around in the woods, or at least a bail-out plan in case you get disoriented. And isn't the segment they got "lost" in surrounded by roads? Meaning if you pick ANY direction and stick with it, you will eventually hit a road again?

Agreed. I also am very skeptical of the two relatives getting separated. That area is flat and I’d have to think sound would travel pretty far. And with a good amount of water, the area to feasibly get separated in, wouldn’t be extremely expansive.

 

[Shamrock1]

Something seems off here. Just going for a walk? And they got separated? I’m not doubting that they did go in and got separated - but there’s a lot more to this story, IMO. That said, I don’t know this particular area, but there are crocodiles there. Isn’t this the time of year when male crocodiles are particularly aggressive? I wonder what his state of mind was.

 

[Limecat]

Agreed. I also am very skeptical of the two relatives getting separated. That area is flat and I’d have to think sound would travel pretty far. And with a good amount of water, the area to feasibly get separated in, wouldn’t be extremely expansive.

And it was daytime, right? If the forest is so dense, how could you get separated? Wouldn’t you have to stay in the same general *path* to even be walking through it?