AZ AZ - William Ott, 65, Hualapai Res., Grand Canyon National Park, 5 Apr 2012

[Gardener1850]

Missing Person / NamUs #MP35453
William Anthony Ott

Male, White / Caucasian
Height 5' 10" (70 Inches)
Weight 180 lbs

Brown hair
Blue Eyes

Missing Age 65 Years

Accessories
He was carrying a gray backpack with a black top and blue trim.

Circumstances
Date of Last Contact April 5, 2012
NamUs Case Created September 27, 2016
Last Known Location Map
Location Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
Coconino County

Circumstances of Disappearance
Bill Ott set out on a three-week, solo through-hike of a remote area of the Hualapai Indian reservation on April 5, according to Search and Rescue officials. The Oregon man was due back on April 28, but he hasn’t been seen since dropped off in the area. He was reported missing when he was 12 days overdue, and he has not been seen or heard from since.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

 

[Kyle Eastland]

Is there any info anywhere regarding direction of travel, planned camp locations, etc.? From the VERY little I can find on this, it appears he was hiking, but pretty much all the searching focused on the water (CO river). At his age, I believe it's much more likely that he got injured, either minor or severe, and couldn't make it out. For some reason, all I can think of when I read about him is a girl I saw a video about who wasn't located for years. When she was finally found, she climbed up a hill (maybe just to see the view) where she apparently sustained a massive injury to her lower leg (fracture of tib/fib) and just couldn't move to get out... and she was just barely out of the area where they were looking for her. I have nothing to support this. It's just a feeling, but I'd love to get some info for his proposed route and then try to figure out different egress points he may have used along the way for an early exit.

 

[Pennysmom1]

March 1, 2022

Unsolved murders, missing persons in the Grand Canyon

ABC15 is looking at some of the missing person cases and homicides that have gone cold out of the popular national park.

www.abc15.com

<<William Anthony Ott, a hiker from Oregon, set out for a solo hike in the area of the Hualapai Indian Reservation on April 5, 2012.

The 65-year-old man was set to return on April 28, but hasn’t been seen since he was dropped off for his trip.
According to a missing person flyer from Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, he did not have a cell phone with him, but he did have a GPS.>>


Very good article about William, talks about what he was looking for and where
Sept 22, 2017

Canyon Commentary: A Canyon Disappearance

Five years ago, commentator Scott Thybony joined the search for a friend who went missing in the Grand Canyon. He’d been looking for thousand-year-old…

www.knau.org