UPDATE 5/2/09 4:07 PM:
KEN KNIGHT WAS FOUND TODAY AND WALKED OUT UNDER HIS OWN STEAM. HE IS AT THE HOSPITAL AND MORE DETAILS WILL LIKELY FOLLOW ONCE WE HAVE THEM. -Addie Bedford
Name: Ken Knight
Height: 5’4"
Weight: 180-200 lb
Point Last Seen: Punchbowl Mountain on the Appalachian Trail in VA
Time Last Seen: Sunday, April 26, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
Unique Characteristics: wearing a dry-bag style backpack with a bright orange packbag, hiker is vision-impaired.
If you have info, please contact us: publisher@backpackinglight.com.
Photo above taken Wednesday, April 22 on the Appalachian Trail.
Discussion
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*** URGENT ***
Backpacking Light editor KEN KNIGHT is missing after a hike on the Applachian Trail in Virginia.
If you saw Ken or otherwise know of his whereabouts after Sunday morning, please contact us at the following email address:
PUBLISHER@BACKPACKINGLIGHT.COM
About Ken
Ken is 5’4″ tall and approx. 180-200 lb. He is vision impaired, has dark hair, and is probably using a dry bag-style pack with an orange packbag.
Ken is an experienced AT hiker but his vision impairment may have caused him to lose the trail.
Point Last Seen
He was last seen on the AT on Sunday morning, around 9-10am, at Punchbowl Mountain, Blue Ridge Parkway, mile 51.7, in the area of Buchanan and Bedford, Virginia.
He’d been trailing behind a group and meeting up with them at their camp sites. On Sunday, he reported not feeling well and suggested he
might go off the trail. The group did not see him since leaving Punchbowl Mountain on Sunday.
He was anticipated to reach mile 76.3 on Tuesday, which the rest of the group did. To date, he has not arrived, and he has missed his flight back home to Michigan Wednesday night.
Ken regularly blogs via iPhone when he has cellular coverage. His last known blog entry was Sunday morning, April 26, at 6:36 AM Eastern:
http://twitter.com/kenknight
Search in Progress
Ken’s family has been notified, and a search is currently in progress by NPS and VA State SAR.
Non-agency SAR and other volunteers interested in assisting with this search should contact us at publisher@backpackinglight.com, who is coordinating the efforts of outside volunteers with the SAR Coordinator on location. Please send your name, cellular phone number, and distance from SNP in your message, and then wait for further instructions.
Please Distribute This Info
Please distribute a link to this post as wide as possible via this tinyurl link via Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking avenues. Please copy and paste this exact text to retweet this info on Twitter etc.:
EMERGENCY @KENKNIGHT (KEN KNIGHT) MISSING ON A.T. IN VA: http://tinyurl.com/ded5tt INFO? EMAIL PUBLISHER@BACKPACKINGLIGHT.COM RT @BIGSKYRY
I am in contact with the NPS Ranger and the VA State SAR, the agencies responsible for the search and will relay info promptly them.
Best Regards,
Ryan Jordan
CEO Backpacking Light
I wish I could do more, but my thoughts and prayers are with Ken and his family.
Ryan, have you posted this on White Blaze? Ali
N/M
Someone did Ali, I added the last known location info to the post.
Ryan, I just found the posting on white blaze. If he doesnt show up today you should consider contacting Tom Brown Jr at http://www.trackerschool.com he is in New Jersey and one of the best trackers in the world. Ali
Ali: feel free to post a link to this thread at Whiteblaze, or anywhere else. I'll be the point person to manage communications from BPL's channels including backpackinglight.com, twitter.com/backpacking and twitter.com/bigskyry, and FB. Thanks.
Done.
James, may I use your photo to add to an event distribution post on Facebook, to show who Ken Knight is? It might help people look for him. Thanks.
Facebook Event Post for Ken Knight Search
Miguel, use the photo here:
It's a photo from the trek showing his pack and clothing that he's wearing. He'll probably be a little scruffier, but his beard doesn't grow too fast.
N/A
i work with MD DNR and will send a message to the South Mountain Recreation Area (they handle the AT in MD) to be on the look out for his gear if i can get a description beyond what has been posted here. i hope he is ok and holed up off trail somewhere.
UPDATE:
i have emailed the info and picture to our AT folks and it should be up to the Ridge Runner at Annapolis Rocks today.
-Steve
I just posted the original message to WomenHikers@yahoogroups.com. We have several members in VA.
If my school/work E-mail blocks the message, I will resend it tonight from home.
Good Luck, Ken!
Rosaleen
Ken comes into our Ann Arbor shop somewhat regularly; I've printed pertinent info from this thread and posted his pic on our community message board. All in all, I realize that probably won't help… It would be great if outfitters along the AT could do the same, though.
Fingers crossed-
Brad
Thoughts and prayers coming from Oregon here.
I'm looking for Ken's hiking partners.
I'm most interested in folks who have been hiking with Ken on multiple trips, over the span of many months/years.
If you meet these criteria, please drop us a note at publisher@backpackinglight.com with your phone number, email address, and a brief description of your experience with Ken, so we can put VA SAR in touch with you for an interview.
Thanks,
Ryan
copied this to the Whiteblaze thread also.
This may be of use:
Rather than rangers, try contacting a county police department for help. They should be able to track his cell phone signal (no matter if it is on or off) despite the strength of it. We've had many people tracked this way.
Yes, I hope someone is working on this possibility. They were able to track the climbers' on Mt. Hood a few years back even in a snow storm…..
If he has his iphone on, this could be a big help in locating him. (If he has a new iphone, the GPS will work regardless of whether he has a signal.)
Hikers,
I am a member of a Virginia SAR tracking team, and am currently on standby to respond to the search effort for Ken. One thing that would help significantly is to know what brand of boot he is wearing. Does anyone know what type of boots he wears and/or have a picture of him showing his boots, the outsole would be ideal.
We are thinking of Ken and sending lots of positive vibes for his safe return home.
Hang in there everyone.
Bryan and I have posted this on the front page of our outdoor adventure site. Although it is Canadian we do have several American hikers there. I will also post the information, as promised, on my blogs and other sites throughout the course of the evening.
If anyone can think of anything else we can do to help please let me know.
Emailed Rob.
I didn't see a post on Sgt Rock's Hiking HQ, so I posted there. http://hikinghq.net/forum/showthread.php?t=4360
Not much use posting on our Pacific NW forums, so I didn't.
I am Ken's brother, Greg. As has been said, Ken is a very capable and experienced hiker.
Because he has been missing and not heard from in so many days, at this point we are quite concerned that something bad has happened.
I wanted to let you all know how much we appreciate anything you do to help find Ken.
with appreciation,
Greg
My prayers and thoughts. Let's hope this ends well.
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