Crater Lake Snowshoe Hiker Likely Plunged 1,000 Feet Off Cliff

A Crater Lake showshoe hiker missing for more than a week is now at the center of a massive search, but signs are pointing to tragedy.

Officials say they received a missing person report last Wednesday, two days after the snowshoe hiker arrived at Crater Lake National Park. Authorities started their search in the park’s Rim Village area, where they found a vehicle that belongs to the hiker.

But later they found clues that could point to a fatal accident. Rangers searching for the Crater Lake snowshoe hiker also found tracks leading from a trail onto a snow cornice that collapsed.

Cornices are formed when snow is blown over sharp terrain, creating an overhang that gives the illusion of land but in reality has no solid ground below it for support. Sometimes these cornices can be suspended over drops of hundreds of feet, but to hikers might only look like an uphill walk.

But the cornices are a known danger to visitors in the Oregon park. Staff at Crater Lake warn visitors to use extreme caution and stay away from the edge of the rim.

Crater Lake spokeswoman Marsha McCabe said a person is unlikely to survive a fall over Crater Lake’s rim, which is as much as 1,000 feet in many places.

The identity of the Crater Lake snowshoe hiker has not been released, but officials said they do not suspect suicide or foul play.

The search for the missing hiker has taken to both air and ground. Authorities said they plan to search along the lake shore for the missing Crater Lake snowshoe hiker, but that can only begin when the lake is accessible by boat. That could still be several weeks, McCabe said.