Hiker vanishes over edge in Alpine Lakes Wilderness; Chelan County suspends search

LEAVENWORTH, Wash. (AP) — The Chelan County Sheriff's Office says it has suspended the search for a hiker who vanished over the edge of a waterfall hole while sliding down Aasgard Pass in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.


Sheriff Brian Burnett says several people were glissading down the snow Sunday night when a 24-year-old man who was in front plunged over the edge and into the rushing water below. The water flows back underneath the snow, and there was no sign of the man.

A Navy crew responded by air and searched with thermographic imaging, without success. On Monday the sheriff's office said it sent ground crews, but after searching the waterfall hole where he disappeared, they stopped due to hazardous conditions. Crews believe he was swept downstream.

The hikers had met the previous day, and the others did not know the missing man's full name.