ID ID - Connie Johnson (still missing), 76, & dog, Ace (found safe), Fog Mountain, 2 Oct 2018

[Steelslady]

Idaho County authorities are also searching for Connie Johnson, 76, of Nezperce, who was the cook at a hunting camp. The last communication with her was on Tuesday, Oct. 2. When other members of her party arrived Friday, Oct. 5, they were unable to locate her or her dog, Ace. The area was searched by Richey Outfitters and no tracks were found.

Search for missing man in Idaho County stops after no leads found in search effort | East Idaho News

Stupid question, but how do they know she was even there? I know she did this yearly, but do they have some kind of proof that she actually made it to the camp?

 

[Steelslady]

rsbm

I've been reading WS long enough that the bare bones info and lack of clarity in articles like this make me a bit crazed.

What was the communication--in person? phone call? text? email?

Where was CJ when the communication took place--at the hunting camp? on her way to the hunting camp? in town before going to the hunting camp? nowhere near the hunting camp?

If CJ was at the hunting camp, was anyone else at camp prior to the other members of her party arriving? Or was she setting up camp by herself?

Also, kudos to CJ for being a hunting camp cook at her age! That's some hard work.

I just asked above this post- how do they know she was even there at the camp?

If she was there, could someone familiar to her have come along early, too, and they went for a ride with the dog? This is mind boggling, to say the least. I know this is gross (sorry!) but I wonder if they found any, er, dog poo or something to indicate that the dog was actually there with her?

 

[GraceG]

Stupid question, but how do they know she was even there? I know she did this yearly, but do they have some kind of proof that she actually made it to the camp?

If you go to the webpage of the outfitters she was working for they had an early statement on the right sidebar that one of their people spoke to her via camp radio not to long before she went missing and prior to a storm moving in that would have washed out any footprints. They have new updates on the right side of their webpage. Looks like the search is wrapping up and they seem to be of the conclusion she is deceased. Richie Outfitters – Idaho Hunting

 

[GraceG]

I just asked above this post- how do they know she was even there at the camp?

If she was there, could someone familiar to her have come along early, too, and they went for a ride with the dog? This is mind boggling, to say the least. I know this is gross (sorry!) but I wonder if they found any, er, dog poo or something to indicate that the dog was actually there with her?

If you look at the outfitter's website which I just posted in an earlier comment today, there is no driving in, it's that remote. You either come in on their bush plane (they have a full time pilot) or come in on horseback.

 

[whatsnext]

Connie Johnson’s colleague: disappearance makes no sense

 

[iulia]

Search for missing woman called off

GRANGEVILLE — The search for Connie Johnson, a 76-year-old Nezperce woman who was last seen at her hunting camp Oct. 2, effectively is over, Idaho County Sheriff Doug Giddings said Tuesday.

“There’s not been one iota trace of her,” Giddings said. “We’ve done everything we can do. We don’t have anybody in there now, and the probability of finding her is zero.”

 

[silverjug]

Ace looks just like our old English Springer Spanial. They are very loyal and loving. While we don't hunt, these dogs are great for hunting and are curious of their surroundings. The more woods to explore, they happier they are. Some even love the water. So, I can picture a scenario of the dog seeing something that caught it's eye- a rabbit, bird, cat, etc, and it might have bolted and she went looking for him. I was hoping she would be found by now along with her dog. Too much time has passed for her to be ok.

Ace looks just like my Border Collie Belle, they are known to be very loyal and very protective but Ace seems elderly. I hope both will be found OK, but think I am clutching at straws. If Ace is used to that environment I would not have expected him to take off after an animal.

 

[doodles1211]

If you look at the outfitter's website which I just posted in an earlier comment today, there is no driving in, it's that remote. You either come in on their bush plane (they have a full time pilot) or come in on horseback.

So did they say how she got there... horse or plane?

 

[Tip and Mitten]

Connie Johnson’s colleague: disappearance makes no sense

"This isn't some pilgrim in their first rodeo,” Chris Adkins, Connie’s colleague said. “This is a woman who spent literally the last 25 years of her life on foot, in the wilderness, alone doing her wilderness ranger work."​

 

[Cherry]

I cannot help but wonder who she was last with, and if someone has taken her.

 

[Yokota-Red]

I'm surprised that they would leave the radios behind at camp, I would expect every camp person would have one... My gut tells me she may be hurt but still alive, this woman would not give up easily, I wish her family or friends would keep searching! I've always listened to my gut feeling, it's never been wrong my entire life and has kept me safe and alive. Do they really know Connie was at the camp? Could she have been still on her way in? How was she getting there, mule, horse, backpacking, or by some other means? If a helicopter or plane brought her to camp has anyone spoke to the pilots? I know in a lot of mountains you have a narrow trail and a huge drop off usually covered in scree, if a storm happens and a horse or mule panicks you could end up at the bottom of the scree field, sometimes not to much of a drop, other times a huge drop. I wonder if anyone followed the path Connie would have taken and checked the bottom of those fields closely, also are there any cabins or cabins built specificly for rangers in the area and have they been searched??? So many questions, this one is really bugging me...

 

[Yokota-Red]

I just found some info. on Connie from the Idaho County Free Press dated as of Oct. 16th that answers a few questions... Connie was at camp, they found her gun under her jacket on a table and they assume she left the camp meaning to be gone only for a short duration. I would never leave my gun or bear spray behind, you never know what is just beyond a tree or a boulder, they also don't state whether it was a handgun or a rifle and where is the phone, under the coat with the gun or with Connie??? I know a lot of people don't believe in Bigfoot, I do, many different native American Indian tribes also believe and it is generational, some believe that Bigfoot is just another tribe, in some cases, they have spoken in their native language to a bigfoot. The paper also mentions Terrance Woods, he had been talking to a fellow worker for 20 to 30 minutes before he simply dropped his phone to the ground and took off running downhill, the person he was talking to ran after him and then lost sight when he entered the bushes... What did Terrance see that made him suddenly drop his phone and take off running, was it Bigfoot??? I've witnessed a person who was frightened, they also dropped what was in hand and took off running even though the people who set up the prank were yelling and telling the person it was a joke and to stop. This joke wasn't so funny afterward when this person finally stopped they were terrified and all those involved felt terrible that they had put their friend through this, I think Terrance saw something and it terrified him!

 

[Steelslady]

I'd like to know how she got there, too. Although, if her stuff was at the camp, we can deduce that she was at the camp. Was she alone? I know they said that others were coming on Friday, but did someone else go with her earlier or did they go by horse? How can there be no trace of her at all, or the dog? Even a piece of clothing on a trail, dog fur from fighting with another animal, something. How far would she go alone out there just to walk her dog? Or did she let the dog go out on it's own, and when it didn't come back at a decent time, did she go looking for the dog?

 

[whatsnext]

It disappoints me that they called the search off already, with Connie's experience there would still be a chance she's alive. But that also makes me wonder why she left her gun behind...I am of the opinion that human's are always the most likely reasons for 'strange' disappearances

 

[GraceG]

So did they say how she got there... horse or plane?

No, probably flew in with supplies for cooking. But hunters in the camp saw her on the 2nd, and on the 3rd they spoke to her by camp radio but could not understand what she was saying. I'm leaning towards a medical event (mini stroke perhaps) and she just took off disoriented and kept walking. Since she was the sole human around the camp and you can't just travel to it easily foul play is seriously unlikely, that camp is VERY remote. No roads. Search for missing woman in Fog Mountain area called off

 

[zecats]

No, probably flew in with supplies for cooking. But hunters in the camp saw her on the 2nd, and on the 3rd they spoke to her by camp radio but could not understand what she was saying. I'm leaning towards a medical event (mini stroke perhaps) and she just took off disoriented and kept walking. Since she was the sole human around the camp and you can't just travel to it easily foul play is seriously unlikely, that camp is VERY remote. No roads. Search for missing woman in Fog Mountain area called off

Then where is her dog Ace? If she had a stroke she and died, the dog would probably stay by her. Would he bark? But I'd like to think he at least would be able to be found when the search was on.

 

[Steelslady]

Then where is her dog Ace? If she had a stroke she and died, the dog would probably stay by her. Would he bark? But I'd like to think he at least would be able to be found when the search was on.

That is a mystery. Yet, it is possible that if something happened to Connie, the dog may have laid next to her and is either still with her if she is alive, or deceased as well. Some dogs won't leave their owners for even food and water. I do hope if that is the case, that she had a medical emergency, that the dog was by her side and she wasn't alone. I don't know why, but I am hyper sensitive to people dying alone and afraid- it just breaks my heart. She is 76 years old, and even though she appeared in great shape for her age, it is very possible, as Grace mentioned, that she had a medical emergency and is probably no longer with us. I'd rather have that I suppose than to have anything sinister happen to her, but it's such a lonely way to leave this world.

 

[zecats]

That is a mystery. Yet, it is possible that if something happened to Connie, the dog may have laid next to her and is either still with her if she is alive, or deceased as well. Some dogs won't leave their owners for even food and water. I do hope if that is the case, that she had a medical emergency, that the dog was by her side and she wasn't alone. I don't know why, but I am hyper sensitive to people dying alone and afraid- it just breaks my heart. She is 76 years old, and even though she appeared in great shape for her age, it is very possible, as Grace mentioned, that she had a medical emergency and is probably no longer with us. I'd rather have that I suppose than to have anything sinister happen to her, but it's such a lonely way to leave this world.

I agree with you 100%. I only meant that if she were deceased and the dog was alive and still with her, it might have help her be found. Sad for her and I also hope they were/are together.

 

[Steelslady]

I agree with you 100%. I only meant that if she were deceased and the dog was alive and still with her, it might have help her be found. Sad for her and I also hope they were/are together.

Agree. Plus most dogs would bark frantically if something was wrong, to draw attention to the both of them. This really is puzzling. If this isn't a medical emergency, I am thinking that possibly she let the dog out to run or go to the bathroom, and when he didn't come back, she may have gone looking for him. Strange thing, as she's been there for years at this camp as a cook, you would think she would have at least taken her jacket and gun, just in case. I wonder if there found a flashlight in the cabin with her jacket and gun?

 

[zecats]

Agree. Plus most dogs would bark frantically if something was wrong, to draw attention to the both of them. This really is puzzling. If this isn't a medical emergency, I am thinking that possibly she let the dog out to run or go to the bathroom, and when he didn't come back, she may have gone looking for him. Strange thing, as she's been there for years at this camp as a cook, you would think she would have at least taken her jacket and gun, just in case. I wonder if there found a flashlight in the cabin with her jacket and gun?

I felt the same when I heard she left her gun behind, that she took off running after the dog. I was hoping this dog would be trained enough not to run off however. One never knows.
It's similar to the case in California were the dog had run off and was found, but took rescuers quite a while to find the missing man, deceased sadly.

Mike Herdman..he was a firefighter.