Search dog finds missing hiker

23-year-old Loveland man spent three frigid nights in mountains

Julie Poppen, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 6, 2006 at midnight

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When rescuers found him Sunday morning in Big Elk Meadows, a hypothermic Shaun Green was slumped over a rock and unresponsive.

The 23-year-old Loveland man had spent three nights in the elements between Lyons and Estes Park and searchers had feared the worst. It was cold and mountain lions had been spotted in the area.

Justin McLean, 26, a member of Front Range Search Dogs, put out a call on his radio about a "potential fatality" after his yellow lab Chamonix gave him a sign that she had found Green.

McLean first saw Green's limp body from about 100 yards away. He yelled and got no answer. He called out again. He saw a leg twitch. McLean wondered if the wind could be that strong. He called out again and saw more movement.

"All of a sudden my heart jumped 100 feet," McLean said. "Everyone stepped it up a bunch of levels. . . . It was not expected."

Rescue personnel swarmed Green, working to warm his frigid body. By Sunday afternoon, he had been evacuated by helicopter to Longmont United Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.

"We're definitely relieved and grateful to have him back," said Green's brother, Bret Green, 36, of West Jordan, Utah. "It's a tough time of year to get lost in the mountains. Living in Utah, I know that happens a lot and (people) don't survive."

A female friend dropped off Green on National Forest Service land Thursday, authorities said. Green had planned to camp for one night. He had a backpack full of clothes, some food and a sleeping bag, authorities said.

But when the friend returned to the drop-off point at the end of County Road 47, just off U.S. 36, en route to Estes Park at noon Friday - their planned meeting time - Green wasn't there, Boulder County Sheriff's Deputy Dave Booton said.

Green's friend waited two hours before returning to Lyons and calling her mother. The woman and her mother returned to the area and looked for Green again. By 4 p.m., they reported him as an overdue camper to Estes Park police.

A search with dogs and all-terrain vehicles was launched along the bumpy dirt road where Green had been dropped off, but was called off about 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

About 50 search-and-rescue personnel again broke into teams and scoured specific areas from morning until night Saturday but again found no trace of Green.

A pair of sunglasses found by searchers briefly raised hopes, but turned out not to be Green's. Meanwhile, temperatures dropped into the teens each night, Booton said.

But at midmorning Sunday, Chamonix found Green in an area that searchers had not been able to get to the previous day. He was 300 yards off the four-wheel-drive road, more than a mile from the drop-off point.

Family members watched as a helicopter carried Green to Longmont United Hospital. Hospital spokesman Matt Hartzler said Green would be kept overnight for observation.

"The family is extremely appreciative of the rescue teams' efforts," Hartzler said. "They requested that the dog get a big hug for finding him."

Green's parents, who own several shopping mall pretzel franchises, declined to comment at the hospital.

But Bret Green said that his brother had been living in Colorado for the past six or eight years. Green said he and his seven siblings were adopted. Six of the siblings were born in or near Juarez, Mexico, including Shaun. Most of the family now lives in the Berthoud-Loveland area, Green said.

"They just wanted to have a big family and couldn't have one of their own," Green said of his parents. "I think it makes us a little closer, too."

Green said Shaun loves working on cars and had worked recently for a moving company. Authorities said Shaun Green is a fan of riding ATVs and had frequently ridden in the area where he got into trouble.

Green said he is relieved that his brother had been found and is going to be OK.

"I'm glad it's over," he said.

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