Hiker Missing For Months Found Dead With His Dog Still Alive By His Side

Crossing mountains is like a mail envelope. Trail in the mountains. A sign of where to go in the mountains is a cairn.

Photo: Anna Fedoseeva / Moment / Getty Images

The body of a 71-year-old hiker who has been missing since August was found in a remote area of Blackhead Peak in Colorado by a hunter. Miraculously, the man's dog was still alive and waiting by his side.

Rich Moore went hiking with his Jack Russell terrier, Finney, on August 19 but never returned. Rescue teams searched the area but were unable to locate Moore on the steep, rugged terrain. After spending 2,000 hours searching for Moore and Finney, authorities called off the searchUSA Today reported.

On October 30, a hunter found Moore's body about 2.5 miles east of the peak. Due to the remote and rugged location, rescue crews had to wait until the next day to dispatch a helicopter so they could reach Moore's body.

Archuleta County Coroner Brad Hunt told the Washington Post that Moore died from hypothermia. They did not conduct an autopsy due to the state of Moore's body.

"Basically, he got up into the area hiking and looked as though he had gotten disoriented," Hunt said. "Even though the weather in Pagosa Springs was fairly nice, it was fairly cold up in those mountains."

Finney was taken to a veterinarian and given a clean bill of health before he was reunited with his family. They did not say how Finney managed to survive on the mountain.


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