Missouri Deputy Attorney General Shaun Mackelprang was recovering in a Wyoming hospital Thursday after search crews found him alive following nearly six days of having gone missing in the remote Wind River Range,
according to the Sublette County Sheriff’s Office.
Mackelprang, 55, was dehydrated and disoriented when rescuers located him Wednesday near Scott Lake. His brother, Romel Mackelprang, said Thursday that he had made “tremendous physical improvement” and was awake, talking and in good spirits. He remained extremely sore and was recovering from exhaustion, bruises and numerous scrapes, according to interviews and a hospital letter
reported by Cowboy State Daily.
Mackelprang thanked the people involved in the search in the letter. “I cannot say enough about the dedicated men and women who worked to save my life,” he wrote. “Their selfless desire to serve those who might otherwise be lost for good stands as witness to the greatness of the human heart.”
He had begun hiking alone from the Green River Lakes Trailhead on Aug. 20 and planned to reach Gannett Peak by way of Tourist Creek,
according to the sheriff’s office’s missing-person notice.
His rental vehicle was later found at the trailhead. Ground teams, drones, and a search-and-rescue helicopter were used to look for him, according to the sheriff’s office’s rescue announcement.
Mackelprang reached the summit on Aug. 21 and signed its register, his brother said. Another hiker photographed the entry, helping searchers confirm that Mackelprang had reached the summit and concentrate on the area between the peak and his tent.
At 13,804 feet, Gannett Peak is Wyoming’s tallest mountain. It stands along the Continental Divide in the rugged northern Wind River Range,
according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
A ground team encountered Mackelprang while clearing a search area near Scott Lake, the sheriff’s office said.
Mackelprang was able to walk slowly with assistance. Search personnel prepared him for a helicopter flight out of the backcountry at about 9:45 a.m., the sheriff’s office said.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway
said in a statement: "We are thrilled to hear that Deputy Attorney General Shaun Mackelprang has been located." She said her office was beyond grateful for the public’s prayers and the work of the sheriff’s office, its drone team, Tip Top Search and Rescue, and Wyoming officials.
The sheriff’s office thanked members of the public and backcountry users who shared information, reviewed photographs and GPS data, circulated the missing-person notice and helped spread the word during the search.
Mackelprang has been attempting to reach the highest point in every state, his brother said. Gannett Peak was No. 45.
