12-06-2006 The three experienced back-country enthusiasts, 48-year-old Kelly James, of Dallas, Tex., Brian Hall, 37, also of Dallas, and Jerry "Nikko" Cooke, 36, of New York City, set out last Wednesday to climb the treacherous North Face of Mt. Hood, using a technique known as a "rapid ascent". They were carrying a minimum amount of gear and planned to climb to the 11,239-foot summit and descend to their base camp in just a couple of days. The Tilly Jane Trailhead is at 3900'.
Searchers think Cooke and Hall, based on a note they left on their blue Suburban at the Tilly Jane trailhead, are descending the Cooper Spur route. In the note, written on the back of a grocery bag and left inside the front window of the car, one of the men wrote that the climbers planned to make the difficult and dangerous ascent up the Cooper Spur route near Eliot Glacier on Thursday, summit and then descend to Timberline Lodge on the well-used south climbing route Friday. In case of emergency or if they failed to reach the summit, they would return the way they came. Because the south-side route is much easier, their decision to descend the Cooper Spur route has complicated the search, rescue officials said.
12-07-2006 The three spent the night in the Tilly Jane warming shelter, located at 7000'. The cabin is left open for skiers and climbers to use. It is maintained and stocked with firewood by volunteers. A note was found in the log book that was left by the three men. The note read 12/7/06, Thanks for your hard work on this great Shelter. We did not plan on staying, but the warmth of the fire changed our minds. We climb as a group of 3 and we left a $20 bill. We will leave tomorrow for the north face! Wish us luck! Nikko, B Hall, Krazy Kelly
12-08-2006 James, Hall, and Cooke were to meet other friends at the Timberline Lodge on Friday afternoon. They failed to show up.
12-09-2006 Friends reported the climbers missing. Hall, and Cooke, dug a snow cave for the injured climber Kelly James, just below the summit, and left him to go and seek help. The climbers had a minimal amount of food but could subsist for some time on the water in snow, and they were at least dressed adequately for the subzero temperatures that can rake the summit.
12-10-2006 On Sunday, Hood River County officials found the hikers' vehicle parked at the Tilly Jane ski trailhead, located at 3900', of the Cooper Spur ski area, with a note saying they would return on the north side of the Copper Spur area in case of an emergency or dangerous weather conditions.
Kelly James, called his son Jason Sunday afternoon, injured from a snow cave almost 11,000 feet up on the North side of Mt. Hood; Kelly sounded disoriented and said he had run into trouble, but did not specify a physical injury, although the probability is high that he is physically unable to make it down the mountain, without a great deal of help
12-11-2006 Monday, 7:20AM 911 call attempt from high on the North side of the mountain. Call did not get through.
12-12-2006 Tuesday, According to T-Mobile, the cell phone stopped responding to the signals, or pings."
The following has been retracted: The cell phone of one of three climbers lost on Mount Hood received a signal from the cell phone company late Tuesday night (at 10:55PM), "indicating it was back on," authorities said Thursday. Hood River Sheriff's office confirmed that Kelly James' cell phone sent out a signal late Tuesday night. The Hood River Sheriff's office now say this was a misinterpretation of data, and there was ano cell phone acvtivation on Tuesday evening. The last known cell phone contact is now at 1:51AM on Tuesday.
12-13-2006 Wednesday, Search confined to below 7000' due to weather. A Nevada Air National Guard C-130 with heat-sensing devices flew over the mountain Wednesday but had to turn back because of the turbulence. The C-130 was expected back Thursday.
As of Wednesday, the nonprofit ARACAR company provided Nighthawk drones equipped with streaming video and a thermal imaging system that might be able to spot body heat, said Chris Nagelvoort, the company's director of operations. Blinding snow and powerful winds hampered the rescue effort Wednesday. But Nagelvoort said the hand-launched unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, will join the search as soon as weather allows it. "We have it all set up and ready to go. We're just waiting for the wind to subside," Nagelvoort said Wednesday night from a base camp on Mount Hood. The company had three Nighthawks on-site Wednesday, and two more UAVs were expected today. Nighthawks were developed for the Defense Department and have been used in Afghanistan and Iraq, said Michael Pierce, the company's assistant director of support.
IOMAX is providing equipment that will enable searchers to pinpoint the exact location of the cellphone ping. FBI officials arrived Wednesday to lend their expertise in cell phone tracking, and Iomax of Denver, a wireless and data network security company, hoped to better pinpoint James' location. However, without a cellphone signal, they won't find the phone.
12-14-2006 Thursday, Plans call for two staging camps on the north and south sides of the mountain so teams could head to the summit quickly if the weather breaks. Snow levels will rise rapidly ahead of the storm today, likely nearing 7000 feet or more in the Oregon Cascades, but they'll plunge precipitously behind the storm. By Friday morning, snow levels are forecast to be down to around 1000-2000 feet in the Washington and northern Oregon Cascades. Winds near the summit are likely to surpass 100 mph Thursday before easing, then daytime temperatures above 10,000 feet are to go below zero.
http://www.weather.com/newscenter/stormwatch/?from=wxcenter_news
