Deceased/Not Found WV - Christopher Palmer, 39, missing with dog Zoey, last contact 1/9, headed to Monongahela Forest, truck found abandoned in Buxton NC 1/12 2026

[marloweclover]

JMO, either a kayak accident or someone opportunistically took the kayak after watching no one return to the truck. FWIW, I kayak with my large dog, but not in those water temperatures, and we both wear life jackets.

 

[swanniee11]

JMO, either a kayak accident or someone opportunistically took the kayak after watching no one return to the truck. FWIW, I kayak with my large dog, but not in those water temperatures, and we both wear life jackets.

There's another question, are any life jackets missing and did they use them?

 

[wvredhead]

I just feel like if he was down there for several days, he surely encountered someone. With so few visitors this time of year, I hope he stood out to someone - maybe in a gas station or grocery store. Per one of the N.C. DOT pages, there are 18 traffic cams (if I counted them correctly) on Hwy 12 from Point Harbor to Hatteras. Hopefully they can pinpoint exact times and locations from those and create a more accurate timeline. There are also cams on both the north and south docks for the Hatteras/Ocracoke ferry.

Since Virginia uses front and back license plates, I’m also wondering if maybe a better photo was captured at the toll plaza on the Chesapeake Expressway.

 

[Pseudonymph]

I agree the kayak looks small so I went and googled "do kayaks fold" Wouldn't you know they do have Kayaks that fold. ( not a Kayak person but own 2, go figure). I wonder if he owns one. I also saw images of them and one person was in the Kayak with a large dog as well. IMO

We have folding Oru kayaks. They are like origami almost and they fold into a little carrying case with a handle and weigh about 20 pounds. We love them but would NEVER take them into the ocean. Also they would not fit a big dog. I wonder if the dog went swimming and got carried out, and he grabbed the kayak to try to catch her.

 

[azure]

I was just wondering why he was tooling around staying at different campsites for an extended period of time in the middle of winter? Did he have a job?
I realize he was an experienced camper but it seems weird to me.

This is the sticking point for me too. It seems fairly likely this is an accident given the missing kayak. However, if his truck was stuck it doesn't seem like he planned to end up where it was found. Few people are going to be like, well, my truck is stuck but I'm going to go enjoy the day on my kayak and worry about it later-especially with the short days in the winter.

My theory is accident/misadventure with an element of scattered thinking contributing to his decision making.

 

[Lebowski]

I just feel like if he was down there for several days, he surely encountered someone. With so few visitors this time of year, I hope he stood out to someone - maybe in a gas station or grocery store. Per one of the N.C. DOT pages, there are 18 traffic cams (if I counted them correctly) on Hwy 12 from Point Harbor to Hatteras. Hopefully they can pinpoint exact times and locations from those and create a more accurate timeline. There are also cams on both the north and south docks for the Hatteras/Ocracoke ferry.

Since Virginia uses front and back license plates, I’m also wondering if maybe a better photo was captured at the toll plaza on the Chesapeake Expressway.

yeah, the outer banks are not big. well, they are long, but in most places they're less than 1/4 mile wide. and mostly undeveloped, with the developed area clustered on highway 12. even hatteras island, where his truck was found, is about 3 x 5 miles, and mostly woods. it's a small world.

in fact, given the size of the wooded area on the island, it's not impossible he's out there camping in the middle of it. though bringing his kayak and not his camping equipment doesn't really point to that.

but yeah, i actually find it hard to imagine none of the locals crossed paths with him. good chance he at least got gas somewhere. ... also, the outer banks have public showers in a few places. not sure if they're open this time of year, but after weeks of camping, he might have taken the opportunity for a shower. maybe worth talking to people who live or work near them.

 

[dms]

Here is the traffic camera photo of Chris's truck in Dare County NC, 1/9/26.
The kayak looks smaller than I envisioned.
Source: OuterBanksVoiceNewspaper N.

Do most car washes have cameras? That truck looked spotless in the photos on the beach at Buxton.

 

[StarryStarryNight]

There's another question, are any life jackets missing and did they use them?

A question from me would be, why would anybody be hauling around a kayak in the middle of winter unless they were in warm weather states?

 

[Lebowski]

I just feel like if he was down there for several days, he surely encountered someone. With so few visitors this time of year, I hope he stood out to someone - maybe in a gas station or grocery store. Per one of the N.C. DOT pages, there are 18 traffic cams (if I counted them correctly) on Hwy 12 from Point Harbor to Hatteras. Hopefully they can pinpoint exact times and locations from those and create a more accurate timeline. There are also cams on both the north and south docks for the Hatteras/Ocracoke ferry.

Since Virginia uses front and back license plates, I’m also wondering if maybe a better photo was captured at the toll plaza on the Chesapeake Expressway.

btw, it looks like he has an arkansas plate.

....or did you just mean VA toll booths might take pictures of fronts and backs because that's how their plates are?

 

[wvredhead]

btw, it looks like he has an arkansas plate.

....or did you just mean VA toll booths might take pictures of fronts and backs because that's how their plates are?

That’s what I meant. Sorry, should have worded that better. He or whoever was driving would have gone through a toll on the Virginia side of the state line when heading south from Hampton Roads.

 

[Jessicaleanne1992]

His truck was seen on traffic cameras entering the outer banks area on January 9th. That’s also the day he told his parents he was headed to Monongahela National Forest. And the day he sent the video but said service was too spotty to talk. What would make him be untruthful to them? It seems like he was always open about his locations and kept in touch. He had also told them on the 7th he was going to stay there another week. He didn’t though. Police say his phone last pinged beside his truck on the beach.

So many questions.

Did he decide to go to the outer banks and his parents just didn’t get a text about it? Could he have met someone? Did he have a mental break and decide to kayak into the ocean? Fugue state? Leaving the keys in the truck would suggest he didn’t plan on coming back. Also his phones last ping was by his truck? Does that mean he shut it off?

There are some locals on fb who have spoken about seeing him. But I’m not sure if it’s ok to post screenshots here because they are unverified.

 

[MarcieM]

His truck was seen on traffic cameras entering the outer banks area on January 9th. That’s also the day he told his parents he was headed to Monongahela National Forest. And the day he sent the video but said service was too spotty to talk. What would make him be untruthful to them? It seems like he was always open about his locations and kept in touch. He had also told them on the 7th he was going to stay there another week. He didn’t though. Police say his phone last pinged beside his truck on the beach.

So many questions.

Did he decide to go to the outer banks and his parents just didn’t get a text about it? Could he have met someone? Did he have a mental break and decide to kayak into the ocean? Fugue state? Leaving the keys in the truck would suggest he didn’t plan on coming back. Also his phones last ping was by his truck? Does that mean he shut it off?

There are some locals on fb who have spoken about seeing him. But I’m not sure if it’s ok to post screenshots here because they are unverified.

Christopher's brother said he always put his keys in the gas flap while he was either kayaking or camping and he did the same thing this time.

 

[RedHaus]

Fugue state?

I appreciate an OP who considers Dissociative Fugue state to explain unexplained behavior by an MP. I'll never forget Hannah Upp's life and mystery.

I'd sure like to know CP's mental health background, current status, and his intention for camping alone in the middle of winter for so long.

Had CP had a recent traumatic event? By chance did Zoey suddenly die on 1/9? Could CP have dissociated after that or did he simply bury Zoey and her bowls and changed plans to grieve? And did his deep grief cause suicidal ideation and CP headed for the ocean?

Or could CP, in a dissociated state, have left Zoey behind with her bowls? Is anyone looking for Zoey where Chris had been before NC? Unless we have an image of Zoey in Chris' truck, how do we know Zoey was with Chris in NC?

Or does CP have any active duty history? Is he suffering from PTSD for instance?

IMO

 

[RedHaus]

Christopher's brother said he always put his keys in the gas flap while he was either kayaking or camping and he did the same thing this time.

Well, this feels like a mic drop. May I ask where you found that out, to be sure?

If its true LE found the truck's car keys in the gas flap, that to me, indicates Chris drove his truck to where it was found and left it, presumably taking the kayak seen in the truck bed and Zoey with him. [Unless Zoey was not with CP in NC, per my post ^]

And if CP followed his normal parking routine to kayak or hike, then wouldn't that mean CP planned to return to his truck? IOW, perhaps this is not a suicide case.

Maybe CP was not aware the truck was stuck because he had yet to try and move it? Or if it was stuck, maybe CP thought, rather incoherently, that he could kayak along the shoreline [with Zoey] to find help. Perhaps he thought that would be better than walking a long distance for help?

But why take "clothes" as was reported? That seems like one of many oddities.

IMO.

 

[bdawk20]

I can’t let go of the idea that Chris is not who brought the truck there. Only because if it were a suicide, why would he need to go 7 hours to Buxton and hope to capsize a kayak when he had a rifle in the truck? And if not a suicide, but an accident, then why would he lie to his family about where he was going? I have to imagine they know if it got caught on any plate readers headed to NC, and hopefully they can find whoever it is stopping for gas or something along the way on camera.

 

[Lebowski]

I can’t let go of the idea that Chris is not who brought the truck there. Only because if it were a suicide, why would he need to go 7 hours to Buxton and hope to capsize a kayak when he had a rifle in the truck? And if not a suicide, but an accident, then why would he lie to his family about where he was going? I have to imagine they know if it got caught on any plate readers headed to NC, and hopefully they can find whoever it is stopping for gas or something along the way on camera.

very speculative here, but under the self-harm possibility two things have occurred to me. one is that cape point and/or the cape hatteras lighthouse might be a symbolic or sentimental place for him. it's beautiful, iconic, and sort of at the end of the earth. the other has to do with the question of why the truck was stuck in the sand. it feels silly to say "out loud" but a suicide plan could have been to drive into the ocean (???) and drown, and if that failed when he got stuck in the sand, he might have used the kayak instead. don't know what happens with the dog under this scenario, but if he spared her, they might find her running loose and whimpering at the water.

 

[Curiousobserver]

https://islandfreepress.org/outer-banks-news/united-cajun-navy-organizing-friday-search-in-buxton-for-missing-arkansas-man/

This feels like an accident in the water to me...

 

[shetalksinstereo]

It's really unfortunate that the weather forecast is dire as well. It will hinder search efforts and could also eliminate potential evidence in the case.

 

[acutename]

The location of the truck being found in Buxton is very odd. If, let’s just say, someone stole the truck from a location in the national forest at the trailhead where he’d parked it and took it on a joyride before abandoning it. Why the hell would they take it 6 hours and 45 minutes away? That’s a lot of gas to buy and a lot of cameras to be caught on.

And Buxton is not an easy place to get to! I have family who live in Hatteras. It’s a real pain. And if they took the truck and dumped it there (not at all inconspicuously), how the heck did they get back where they came from? There is no public transport.

I’m actually quite worried about a mental health crisis more than foul play for this one.

wouldn't most truck thieves take his gun (unless they were fugitives switching vehicles a lot to flee and avoid detection...even then, I would think a gun would be something they would take. IMO

 

[Curiousobserver]

wouldn't most truck thieves take his gun (unless they were fugitives switching vehicles a lot to flee and avoid detection...even then, I would think a gun would be something they would take. IMO

Robbery doesn't make sense here to me either

The only evidence that this wasn't him driving the truck is that he didn't update his family. LE may have much better forward facing images they have not released.

The reason I am leaning toward accident is: The truck was seen in different areas of the OBX over the course of at least 3 days prior to the day the park service recovered it stuck in the sand. Trucks and cars stuck in the sand is incredibly common in OBX. Eyewitnesses report seeing a man and dog that match his description near the truck. If he was contemplating self-harm, he had a gun. If he was the victim of a robbery, what did they rob? Nothing it appears. What is missing, the Kayak, some clothes, and stuff to take care of a dog.