Search for hiker to be scaled down

Search and rescue teams working tough terrain in Glacier National Park reported Sunday that no new clues have been found in the search for missing hiker Jakson Kreiser.

Search efforts will now be scaling down. But limited search efforts “will continue until the probability of finding new information or clues leading to his location are exhausted,” the National Park Service said.

Kreiser failed to return from a hike Saturday, July 28. The 19-year-old from Michigan is a seasonal employee with Glacier Park, Inc. at Lake McDonald Lodge.

Search efforts started the following day and have included the Hidden Lake, Logan Pass, Floral Park and Avalanche Lake areas. These areas include treacherous terrain with rock cliffs, waterfalls, wet rocks and dense vegetation.

Saturday’s search operations included the investigation of additional boot tracks that were found Friday.

The track evidence led searchers into a hazardous cliff band terrain. Four teams searched ledges and waterfalls in the Floral Park and Avalanche Basin areas, including a helicopter working in tandem with technical climbing teams. No signs of Kreiser were found.

“The clues we’ve found have been investigated and our available resources depleted with aerial and ground crews covering an expansive and rugged area,” Incident Commander Scott Emmerich said in a press statement. “We remain hopeful that, in time, additional clues will come forward renewing an active search effort.”

A park management team has overseen the incident, with up to 50 people dedicated to the search over the last eight days.

North Valley Search and Rescue, Flathead Search and Rescue, Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Border Patrol have assisted the National Park Service with search operations. Human tracker expertise, canine search teams, aerial observations and ground search efforts all have been used in the search.

This is Kreiser’s first year working in the area. He is 6 feet 2 inches tall with black, short and curly hair and a black beard. It is believed he is wearing a yellow-gold sweatshirt and gray khaki pants and carrying a gray and yellow backpack.

A picture and description of Kreiser has been posted on trailhead signs in the search area. Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is encouraged to call park dispatch at 406-888-7800.