Full Transcript for Marine Matthew Kraft Vanishes on Solo Sierra Nevada Trek

rolling through town. This is ruining 76 00:04:07,246 --> 00:04:11,285 everyone's good time. Yeah. So anyway. One thing we didn't 77 00:04:11,306 --> 00:04:14,989 mention in the last episode, but we were posting on socials, we 78 00:04:15,067 --> 00:04:17,649 entered in a partnership with Farmhouse Soaps out of 79 00:04:17,650 --> 00:04:18,274 California. 80 00:04:19,212 --> 00:04:22,876 Longtime listener and fan of the show, Suzanne Moak, creates 81 00:04:22,938 --> 00:04:26,876 these, and she put together this package. It's a travel package 82 00:04:26,907 --> 00:04:29,876 with some lip balm and three different types of soaps with 83 00:04:29,923 --> 00:04:33,407 all-natural products. They're fantastic. I used them. They're 84 00:04:33,454 --> 00:04:36,407 great. And her branding was so awesome. 85 00:04:36,423 --> 00:04:40,826 She named, like, I think the... Lip stuff is off the deep end. 86 00:04:40,945 --> 00:04:43,547 Yeah. Like there's a bunch of our location profile. There's 87 00:04:43,590 --> 00:04:46,891 different names relative to the show. So you can go check that 88 00:04:46,953 --> 00:04:50,258 out at Farmhouse Soaps. We'll put the link in the bio. I'll 89 00:04:50,259 --> 00:04:51,836 repost it on socials too with a link. 90 00:04:51,837 --> 00:04:53,461 They're great and they're not very expensive. 91 00:04:53,516 --> 00:04:54,695 No, it's like 12 bucks for the whole kit. 92 00:04:54,696 --> 00:04:58,383 And you're supporting our show and you're supporting a small 93 00:04:58,430 --> 00:04:58,867 business. 94 00:04:59,242 --> 00:04:59,961 Yeah, it's like 12. 95 00:05:00,128 --> 00:05:04,212 For the whole kit so it's it's it's a good it's a good get yeah 96 00:05:04,213 --> 00:05:07,196 and then and then one last thing i didn't see what she did what 97 00:05:07,197 --> 00:05:09,997 she did about the moon us oh that'd be awesome that would 98 00:05:09,998 --> 00:05:13,122 have been that would have been fantastic that's what we need to 99 00:05:13,137 --> 00:05:17,122 make the show go 80 year old moon yeah oh that's the best 100 00:05:17,762 --> 00:05:20,403 anyway last one and i promise we're getting to it because i 101 00:05:20,404 --> 00:05:23,591 know the people that hate that we take long are really mad i 102 00:05:23,592 --> 00:05:26,278 just wanted to give a shout out to a small product. 103 00:05:26,832 --> 00:05:29,495 I met the owner in Colorado. I was out there with my kids 104 00:05:29,555 --> 00:05:35,401 hiking and it's called M N T N ready. And it's, it's mountain 105 00:05:35,463 --> 00:05:38,705 ready. And it's this, it's kind of like when you see like the 106 00:05:38,721 --> 00:05:41,448 flavor packets, he put in water. Yeah. It's basically that. 107 00:05:41,526 --> 00:05:44,104 However, it's a bunch of vitamins and minerals and things 108 00:05:44,213 --> 00:05:46,229 to help you with altitude sickness. 109 00:05:46,448 --> 00:05:46,745 Oh, cool. 110 00:05:47,073 --> 00:05:49,948 And I have two people in my family that were with me that 111 00:05:50,541 --> 00:05:53,854 normally get altitude sickness. And we climbed a mountain. We're 112 00:05:53,885 --> 00:05:57,009 up high. They're taking this. Zero issues. 113 00:05:57,149 --> 00:05:57,429 Nice. 114 00:05:57,529 --> 00:06:01,474 Like no effect at all. So I'll put some information about that 115 00:06:01,493 --> 00:06:03,556 in there as well. I'll post online because it's just a great 116 00:06:03,595 --> 00:06:06,060 product. You can only get it from the website. They're real 117 00:06:06,161 --> 00:06:08,942 small right now. I'm hoping they get huge and then they sponsor 118 00:06:08,943 --> 00:06:09,724 the show in a more formal way. 119 00:06:09,725 --> 00:06:12,302 Yeah, so they're not sponsored. This is just a personal 120 00:06:12,349 --> 00:06:13,458 recommendation by Joe. 121 00:06:13,459 --> 00:06:17,770 Yeah, it's a great product that works. So go give them some of 122 00:06:17,771 --> 00:06:19,583 your money. Get some of their product. And then hopefully 123 00:06:19,614 --> 00:06:20,911 they'll give us some of their money later. 124 00:06:21,130 --> 00:06:21,567 There you go. 125 00:06:21,568 --> 00:06:24,776 To talk about it again. All right, everybody, let's gear up 126 00:06:24,816 --> 00:06:48,048 and get out to explore Locations Unknown, February 23rd, 2019. 127 00:06:48,049 --> 00:06:51,798 After embarking on a solo 10-day trek through the Sierra Nevadas, 128 00:06:52,344 --> 00:06:55,470 A First Division Marine with mountaineering and survival 129 00:06:55,530 --> 00:06:59,456 training never returned. Thirteen agencies searched for 130 00:06:59,495 --> 00:07:03,003 more than a week with no clues. Join us this week as we 131 00:07:03,065 --> 00:07:06,432 investigate the disappearance of Matthew Kraft. 132 00:07:36,664 --> 00:07:40,909 So in this episode we are going to the Inyo National Forest, 133 00:07:41,448 --> 00:07:44,311 specifically Independence, California to Bridgeport, 134 00:07:44,350 --> 00:07:47,596 California of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. 135 00:07:48,112 --> 00:07:49,315 About 195 miles. 136 00:07:49,316 --> 00:07:52,620 195 miles. So it's the Sierra High Route that we're talking 137 00:07:52,635 --> 00:07:56,417 about. This route was created by Steve Roper in the 1980s. 138 00:07:57,479 --> 00:08:00,651 Described in his book, Sierra High Route Traversing Timberline 139 00:08:00,713 --> 00:08:05,047 County, published April 30th 1907 1997 and actually we found 140 00:08:05,048 --> 00:08:09,312 out it was i believe 1982 when it was published oh yeah so you 141 00:08:09,313 --> 00:08:15,555 didn't update it nope you just read about it yes okay okay the 142 00:08:15,578 --> 00:08:19,086 Sierra High Route is mostly a back country route beginning in 143 00:08:19,087 --> 00:08:21,664 the indio national forest and runs through Yosemite National 144 00:08:21,711 --> 00:08:25,320 Park concluding in Twin Lakes just southwest of Bridgeport 145 00:08:26,086 -->

00:08:30,711 California so the main search area was in the cursage pass 146 00:08:30,851 --> 00:08:34,904 trail beginning at the end of Onion Valley Road, traveling 147 00:08:34,963 --> 00:08:39,529 through the John Muir Wilderness Indian National Forest Cursage 148 00:08:39,627 --> 00:08:40,486 Pass Trail. 149 00:08:41,471 --> 00:08:46,853 It is four miles to the top of the 11,700-foot pass. It 150 00:08:46,877 --> 00:08:50,111 continues into Kings Canyon National Park to join the John 151 00:08:50,158 --> 00:08:54,049 Muir Trail at Bullfrog Lake. That is 6.5 miles from the 152 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:57,408 Cursage Pass Trailhead to John Muir Trail Junction. 153 00:08:58,189 --> 00:08:59,143 Get all that straight in your head. 154 00:08:59,330 --> 00:09:03,376 I know, right? So the It's Californians in that area that 155 00:09:03,417 --> 00:09:06,075 know it. So it'll be like, you were just talking about it, the 156 00:09:06,259 --> 00:09:08,778 SNL skit. The Californians. 157 00:09:08,817 --> 00:09:10,618 Take that to the John Muir Trail. 158 00:09:10,696 --> 00:09:13,579 Yeah, it just continues through Kings Canyon National Park to 159 00:09:13,595 --> 00:09:16,642 join the John Muir Trail at Bullfrog Lake. It's only 6.5 160 00:09:16,657 --> 00:09:18,907 miles from the Curset Patch Trailhead to John Muir Trail 161 00:09:18,985 --> 00:09:19,454 Junction. 162 00:09:21,204 --> 00:09:25,985 Devin, what are you doing here? There's going to be so many 163 00:09:26,017 --> 00:09:28,360 people that have no idea what that is. Yeah. Look up the 164 00:09:28,407 --> 00:09:31,017 Californians SNL skit. It's actually quite hilarious. 165 00:09:32,485 --> 00:09:37,730 All right, so anyway, it was established May 25th, 1907, and 166 00:09:37,890 --> 00:09:42,593 sees an annual of 4 million visitors per year. It is 167 00:09:42,836 --> 00:09:45,476 estimated that only about 10 people hike the entire 168 00:09:46,359 --> 00:09:50,046 195-mile-long trail each year, however, with more traffic 169 00:09:50,109 --> 00:09:52,703 coming from section hikers in the various national parks and 170 00:09:52,704 --> 00:09:55,750 trails that are along the route, as well as hikers doing 171 00:09:55,828 --> 00:09:59,968 parallel, more tame John Muir Trail, which is only 77 miles. 172 00:10:00,593 --> 00:10:03,665 So For those who don't know, on these long trails, you can do 173 00:10:03,784 --> 00:10:06,890 one of two things. You can be a through hiker, where you go from 174 00:10:06,891 --> 00:10:09,788 the start to the finish in one shot. So it can take days, 175 00:10:09,890 --> 00:10:13,054 months, however long it is. Or you can be a section hiker, 176 00:10:13,171 --> 00:10:15,413 where over the course of a long period of time, you hike 177 00:10:15,874 --> 00:10:18,319 different sections to then eventually complete the trail. 178 00:10:18,679 --> 00:10:25,210 Yeah. And I think this just shows how difficult this pass 179 00:10:25,241 --> 00:10:29,667 is, that only about 10 people do it. Like, you know. The full 180 00:10:29,707 --> 00:10:30,367 trail every year. 181 00:10:30,527 --> 00:10:32,528 Yeah, do more people do the PCT than that? 182 00:10:33,349 --> 00:10:33,849 Oh, yeah. 183 00:10:34,188 --> 00:10:35,130 Yeah, that's wild. 184 00:10:35,131 --> 00:10:38,130 Way more. Yeah. I think when we get into the timeline and 185 00:10:38,131 --> 00:10:40,872 everything, you'll realize how difficult, especially the time 186 00:10:40,873 --> 00:10:41,849 of year this guy was doing it. 187 00:10:42,247 --> 00:10:43,630 Oh, he's a Marine. That's why he 's doing it. 188 00:10:43,747 --> 00:10:44,653 Yeah, well, yeah. 189 00:10:44,794 --> 00:10:47,231 With the experience. All right, so we'll talk a little bit about 190 00:10:47,232 --> 00:10:51,528 the habitation of the area. The origin and meaning of Inyo is 191 00:10:51,591 --> 00:10:55,325 believed to be a point for the dwelling place of the Great 192 00:10:55,434 --> 00:10:59,024 Spirit. The Innu National Forest was named for Innu County, in 193 00:10:59,063 --> 00:11:01,223 which the greater part of the forest is located. 194 00:11:02,086 --> 00:11:04,906 At the time of the earliest contact with Europeans and the 195 00:11:04,907 --> 00:11:08,149 beginning of written record roughly 200 years ago, the 196 00:11:08,227 --> 00:11:12,383 forest was home to the Owens Valley and Mono Lake plot in the 197 00:11:12,446 --> 00:11:24,477 north, the Shoshone, Kawusu, and Tabatulabal in the south. 198 00:11:25,047 --> 00:11:29,232 And the Muic in Mano to the west and northwest. I know you were 199 00:11:29,251 --> 00:11:31,493 grinning the whole time you were writing this and looking through 200 00:11:31,494 --> 00:11:31,896 it, weren't you? 201 00:11:32,615 --> 00:11:35,716 Much is unknown about the first peoples who utilized and shaped 202 00:11:35,717 --> 00:11:39,419 the forest beginning 12,000 to 13,000 years ago, though it is 203 00:11:39,482 --> 00:11:42,677 known that the Owens Valley Poit and their Shoshone neighbors to 204 00:11:42,678 --> 00:11:46,630 the south and east practice similar ways of life, following 205 00:11:46,693 --> 00:11:49,974 seasonal rounds to harvest plants, animals, and insects at 206 00:11:49,990 --> 00:11:52,771 different elevations and locales as they become available. 207 00:11:54,019 --> 00:11:57,122 This land where their desert meets mountains was first 208 00:11:57,203 --> 00:12:00,665 reserved for its timber, water, and forage. The forest today 209 00:12:00,724 --> 00:12:03,771 remains home to many Pot, Mano, and Shoshone tribes along the 210 00:12:03,786 --> 00:12:06,849 Sierra Front and a destination for about 4 million visitors 211 00:12:06,896 --> 00:12:08,396 from around the world each year. 212 00:12:09,474 --> 00:12:12,083 So we'll talk a little bit about the climate. And according to 213 00:12:12,099 --> 00:12:15,474 our friends at the Copen Climate Classification System, the 214 00:12:15,505 --> 00:12:19,099 Kearsearch

Pass and Peak have an alpine climate with weather 215 00:12:19,161 --> 00:12:21,865 fronts originating in the Pacific Ocean traveling 216 00:12:21,990 --> 00:12:22,333 eastward. 217 00:12:22,695 --> 00:12:25,919 Toward the Sierra Nevada mountains as French as the 218 00:12:25,979 --> 00:12:29,401 fronts approach they are forced upward by the peaks causing them 219 00:12:29,421 --> 00:12:32,803 to drop their moisture in the form of rain and snowfall onto 220 00:12:32,827 --> 00:12:36,249 the range think of it like wringing out a towel yes that's 221 00:12:36,250 --> 00:12:38,553 a great way to think about it as the weather is going up the 222 00:12:38,554 --> 00:12:44,061 mountain temps can vary 20 to 30 degrees fahrenheit as you change 223 00:12:44,155 --> 00:12:47,936 elevation so in the foothills you can expect to have mild wet 224 00:12:48,061 --> 00:12:51,577 winters hot dry summers and the precipitation from January to 225 00:12:51,624 --> 00:12:51,749 me. 226 00:12:52,363 --> 00:12:55,868 Summer rain is rare. Average rainfall is about 26 inches or 227 00:12:56,285 --> 00:13:00,192 66 centimeters for our European listeners. Low hanging clouds 228 00:13:00,254 --> 00:13:03,075 obscured the countryside for days at a time in the winter. 229 00:13:04,692 --> 00:13:07,215 We'll get... Why is that in millimeters? 230 00:13:10,379 --> 00:13:11,145 We'll just skip that. 231 00:13:11,146 --> 00:13:15,723 Yeah, I don't know. 1,246 millimeters of snow on average 232 00:13:15,724 --> 00:13:17,910 in the February in Sequoia National Park. 233 00:13:19,785 --> 00:13:23,822 Okay. Sequoia Groves. Deep blankets of snow in the winter 234 00:13:23,902 --> 00:13:27,424 from December to May. Summers offer warm days and cool 235 00:13:27,545 --> 00:13:30,607 evenings, 40 to 45 inches of precipitation annually. 236 00:13:32,006 --> 00:13:34,529 Winters tend to be harsh at these high elevations with 237 00:13:34,670 --> 00:13:37,256 avalanches and snowstorms regularly reported and 238 00:13:37,272 --> 00:13:41,022 anticipated. Many of the motor accessible roads are closed off 239 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:44,600 from December to March due to the harsh weather conditions. So 240 00:13:44,601 --> 00:13:47,443 the best time to visit? May to October. Worst time to visit? 241 00:13:47,584 --> 00:13:48,365 December to March. 242 00:13:49,006 --> 00:13:49,459 Shocking. 243 00:13:51,901 --> 00:13:55,546 The terrain it's forest alpine tundra and lakes as we said 244 00:13:55,547 --> 00:13:58,827 there's avalanches snow bridges high winds and glaciers there 245 00:13:58,889 --> 00:14:03,233 are 33 passes and in those you'll boulder fields talus 246 00:14:03,311 --> 00:14:07,397 slopes granite slabs occasional meadows and lake basin basins 247 00:14:08,413 --> 00:14:14,303 elevations range anywhere from 9600 feet to 11 700 feet and 248 00:14:14,397 --> 00:14:16,725 we'll talk about a little bit of the animals in the area outside 249 00:14:16,726 --> 00:14:17,663 of the harsh conditions. 250 00:14:19,075 --> 00:14:23,780 In the low elevation, you have gray fox, bobcat, skunks, black 251 00:14:23,839 --> 00:14:29,803 bear, wood rats, gophers, mouse, snakes, California kingsnake, 252 00:14:29,905 --> 00:14:34,936 and California newts. In the mid areas, we have mule deer, black 253 00:14:34,999 --> 00:14:38,108 bears, mountain lions, a variety of birds, and reptiles are not 254 00:14:38,139 --> 00:14:41,233 that common, but occasionally a mountain kingsnake or boa, 255 00:14:42,030 --> 00:14:45,061 rubber boa, or western fenced lizard and alligator lizard will 256 00:14:45,062 --> 00:14:47,327 be seen. When we get up to the high country. 257 00:14:47,607 --> 00:14:51,171 Obviously less mammals as food is scarce so we have marmots i 258 00:14:51,210 --> 00:14:53,734 love marmots so much they are pretty funny they're so oafy 259 00:14:53,735 --> 00:14:57,601 yeah you're i always post videos of them when i see them like 260 00:14:57,602 --> 00:14:59,460 when they're getting baths and stuff they look like they're 261 00:14:59,461 --> 00:15:05,070 just appalled and confused all the time love marmots let's see 262 00:15:05,085 --> 00:15:07,007 we have a bunch of different birds i'm not going to read all 263 00:15:07,023 --> 00:15:10,570 these we might occasionally see a mountain yellow-legged frog 264 00:15:10,663 --> 00:15:13,976 though or Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep those are both endangered 265 00:15:14,007 --> 00:15:18,076 species All in all, there are 14 amphibians, 11 types of fish, 266 00:15:18,237 --> 00:15:22,358 200 types of birds, 72 mammals, 21 reptile species that all live 267 00:15:22,377 --> 00:15:22,815 in the park. 268 00:15:23,494 --> 00:15:27,057 So, difficulty in general. You definitely need a permit to do 269 00:15:27,096 --> 00:15:30,197 this, which you can get in advance via the Sequoia Kings 270 00:15:30,237 --> 00:15:34,697 National Park or Yosemite National Park. Trail less, it's 271 00:15:34,776 --> 00:15:39,136 so good, route finding and map compass skills are essential. So 272 00:15:39,857 --> 00:15:43,162 if you don't know how to navigate without a trail, don't 273 00:15:43,163 --> 00:15:43,541 do this. 274 00:15:43,720 --> 00:15:43,841 No. 275 00:15:45,564 --> 00:15:49,427 The search area that was for this case was larger than the 276 00:15:49,443 --> 00:15:53,568 state of Rhode Island, which is like crazy because we say like 277 00:15:53,630 --> 00:15:56,380 these, when we're doing these parks, we talk about their sizes 278 00:15:56,412 --> 00:15:59,130 so much and compare them to states. But think about trying 279 00:15:59,131 --> 00:16:01,021 to find a single person in Rhode Island. 280 00:16:01,162 --> 00:16:01,333 Yeah. 281 00:16:02,005 --> 00:16:02,787 And it's all wooded. 282 00:16:03,162 --> 00:16:05,755 And alpine. Yeah, and alpine. It 's not just flat ground. 283 00:16:05,802 --> 00:16:09,205 Yeah, and you only have like. A few hundred people, maybe. I 284 00:16:09,206 --> 00:16:10,567

don't know how many people are in this search. We didn't get 285 00:16:10,586 --> 00:16:15,676 there yet. But difficult snow year with rough conditions. 200% 286 00:16:15,677 --> 00:16:17,856 of the average snowfall was in 2019. 287 00:16:17,857 --> 00:16:22,160 Yeah, so this year, the time you went missing, a lot of snowfall. 288 00:16:22,356 --> 00:16:25,707 Yeah, so the avalanches were up. Snow bridges were an issue. 289 00:16:25,785 --> 00:16:30,973 Cornices were an issue. Multiple points of potential issues. And 290 00:16:31,051 --> 00:16:33,848 dizzying altitudes will all play a role. So, Mike, let's learn 291 00:16:33,863 --> 00:16:34,817 about Matthew Craft. 292 00:16:35,324 --> 00:16:40,450 Yeah, so the subject of our case today is Matthew Kraft. He was 293 00:16:40,551 --> 00:16:48,817 born 8-23-1994. He went missing February 23, 2019. His remains 294 00:16:48,856 --> 00:16:55,606 have not been found. He was a male, age 24. He was 6'1", 185 295 00:16:55,607 --> 00:17:00,715 pounds, blonde hair, a short cut, obviously a Marine with 296 00:17:00,746 --> 00:17:04,606 that, you know, low entire, what 's the Marine haircut called? 297 00:17:05,076 --> 00:17:08,961 High and tight or something? I don't know. I got that, Butcher. 298 00:17:09,101 --> 00:17:09,839 I'm going to look it up. 299 00:17:11,101 --> 00:17:14,910 So clothing and gear he was last seen in. So he was known to wear 300 00:17:14,988 --> 00:17:19,769 dark, earth-tone colors. He had a large Osprey backpack, rain 301 00:17:19,832 --> 00:17:26,379 cover, shadow gray. He had a mustard-colored tent. 302 00:17:29,144 --> 00:17:33,566 Let's see here. He had black and blue ski boots, white, red, 303 00:17:33,629 --> 00:17:39,747 black, diamond. Skis he had orange crampons he had a 304 00:17:39,809 --> 00:17:44,177 headlamp he had he had a sleeping system called a quick 305 00:17:44,231 --> 00:17:48,317 point developed for extreme weather down to minus 20 degrees 306 00:17:49,958 --> 00:17:55,302 he had an iphone in a case and he had oakley sunglasses and he 307 00:17:55,303 --> 00:18:00,130 did have a walter water filtration system with him so 308 00:18:01,145 --> 00:18:04,213 obviously being a Marine And we'll get into a little bit of 309 00:18:04,234 --> 00:18:04,854 his training. 310 00:18:04,895 --> 00:18:09,981 He was very prepared for surviving in the cold. And I 311 00:18:09,982 --> 00:18:12,645 don't know if Joe's got, Joe will have some pictures here if 312 00:18:12,684 --> 00:18:17,910 you're watching the video of this. Personality of Matthew, 313 00:18:17,949 --> 00:18:20,793 friends and family described him as a sweet and honest young boy, 314 00:18:20,934 --> 00:18:24,293 responsible and driven as a teen, and incredibly fit and 315 00:18:24,715 --> 00:18:30,559 conscientious, conscientious, I can't say that tonight, in his 316 00:18:30,621 --> 00:18:31,574 military tenure. 317 00:18:32,592 --> 00:18:36,698 And his Marine colleagues described him as an exceptional 318 00:18:36,776 --> 00:18:40,604 officer, unlike any they'd previously met. So all around 319 00:18:40,682 --> 00:18:44,604 sounded like a really great guy. He was very passionate about the 320 00:18:44,605 --> 00:18:48,104 Marine service. And you just really got to salute anyone 321 00:18:48,127 --> 00:18:52,213 that, you know, joins the military to serve the country. 322 00:18:54,557 --> 00:18:58,104 So here's some quote. Here's a quote from someone in the 323 00:18:58,105 --> 00:19:01,548 Marines. Many Marines say they love the Marine Corps. Wrote 324 00:19:01,588 --> 00:19:05,791 First Lieutenant Isaiah Eduardo, a platoon leader in the same 325 00:19:05,831 --> 00:19:08,776 company with Kraft. They get tattoos of the eagle, the globe, 326 00:19:08,777 --> 00:19:11,659 and the anchor on their chests and put stickers on their cars 327 00:19:11,660 --> 00:19:12,338 to let everyone know. 328 00:19:13,120 --> 00:19:16,706 But a special kind of Marine needs no words, symbols, or 329 00:19:17,182 --> 00:19:20,346 proclamations to describe their love for the Corps. Their love 330 00:19:20,409 --> 00:19:23,706 is found in late nights at the office, their stoicism in harsh 331 00:19:23,752 --> 00:19:28,605 conditions, genuine concern for subordinates, and an adherence 332 00:19:28,625 --> 00:19:31,066 to what is right regardless of the situation. 333 00:19:32,187 --> 00:19:35,312 These Marines live on through their influence and deeds, 334 00:19:35,492 --> 00:19:38,796 setting the example for the rest to come. Matt was one of these 335 00:19:38,836 --> 00:19:43,062 Marines. So that's really high praise for someone. 336 00:19:43,796 --> 00:19:44,796 Yeah, it's really nice. 337 00:19:45,234 --> 00:19:50,125 It sounds like he probably was one of the best human beings 338 00:19:50,203 --> 00:19:55,156 that you could possibly meet, a real nice guy outside of work 339 00:19:55,375 --> 00:19:57,437 and very passionate about what he did. 340 00:20:03,524 --> 00:20:07,868 So occupation. He was a platoon leader with the 1St Battalion, 341 00:20:08,266 --> 00:20:11,798 7Th Marines At 29 Palms, which is part of the 1St Marine 342 00:20:11,813 --> 00:20:16,438 Division at Camp Pendleton. He absolutely loved skiing and 343 00:20:16,439 --> 00:20:19,423 mountaineering, hiking, fishing, and just the outdoors in 344 00:20:19,438 --> 00:20:25,704 general. According to 1st Marine Captain Paul Ganey, he has the 345 00:20:25,751 --> 00:20:26,985 skills to survive in... 346 00:20:27,468 --> 00:20:32,717 Harsh environments and we're hoping for the best here. So he 347 00:20:32,877 --> 00:20:39,791 had done some hiking in, he did a 14 day hike from New Hampshire 348 00:20:39,792 --> 00:20:46,874 to Canada. And he's hiked the 40 peaks of the White Mountains in 349 00:20:46,875 --> 00:20:49,815 New Hampshire, and he had plans to do the Appalachian Trail. 350 00:20:52,182 --> 00:20:54,542 So experience in the wilderness, obviously we said he was an 351 00:20:54,565 --> 00:20:58,886

infantry officer course and winter mountain leader course 352 00:20:59,323 --> 00:21:01,714 graduate from the Winter Mountain Warfare Training 353 00:21:01,776 --> 00:21:08,198 Center. And after his death, he was promoted from first 354 00:21:08,214 --> 00:21:09,417 lieutenant to the rank of captain. 355 00:21:11,863 --> 00:21:15,187 Obviously this gentleman was very well trained in winter 356 00:21:15,266 --> 00:21:21,371 survival and just, you know, based on his experience, outside 357 00:21:21,394 --> 00:21:23,715 of the Marines, just all the hiking he did in New Hampshire. 358 00:21:23,777 --> 00:21:29,223 And, probably one of the more experienced people we've talked 359 00:21:29,254 --> 00:21:30,660 about on the show. 360 00:21:30,988 --> 00:21:35,348 Yeah. There's, the other one was also, he wasn't a Marine, was 361 00:21:35,349 --> 00:21:37,848 he? He was, or was he like an Army Ranger or something? 362 00:21:37,849 --> 00:21:41,259 Him Crumbo, I believe. Yeah. Yeah. He was, I. I may get the 363 00:21:41,279 --> 00:21:43,922 facts wrong, but he was in the military, maybe Army Ranger in 364 00:21:44,083 --> 00:21:46,684 Vietnam. Okay. And he survived a helicopter crash. 365 00:21:46,786 --> 00:21:49,930 Yeah, that's like our two military guys are also like 366 00:21:50,149 --> 00:21:51,485 survival experts and everything. 367 00:21:51,946 --> 00:21:59,938 So experience at this location, he had hiked this same exact 368 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:03,063 route in the summer of 2018 to get an idea of what the trail 369 00:22:03,064 --> 00:22:06,610 would be like. And he also went through mountaineering training 370 00:22:06,657 --> 00:22:09,110 twice with the Marine Corps at Bridgeport, preparing for high 371 00:22:09,172 --> 00:22:14,965 altitudes and... Harsh conditions. So very, experienced 372 00:22:15,148 --> 00:22:15,926 in the outdoors. 373 00:22:16,648 --> 00:22:19,414 It actually had hiked this trail in the past. Obviously summer 374 00:22:19,492 --> 00:22:23,476 hiking is different than hiking it in February, but all around, 375 00:22:23,515 --> 00:22:26,914 I would say out of anyone we've talked to, like I said, he's 376 00:22:26,976 --> 00:22:29,586 probably been the most prepared for what he was actually going 377 00:22:29,587 --> 00:22:34,445 to do. So that's what makes his disappearance, that much more 378 00:22:34,820 --> 00:22:35,273 troubling. 379 00:22:35,679 --> 00:22:39,633 So just a couple of people involved in this case. So Greg 380 00:22:39,664 --> 00:22:43,277 Craft, That is his father, and this was the main point of 381 00:22:43,296 --> 00:22:46,820 contact for the media. And Roxanne Craft, obviously his 382 00:22:46,921 --> 00:22:51,367 mother, and she mainly handled a lot of the updates on social 383 00:22:51,406 --> 00:22:54,148 media, which mainly was Facebook at the time. 384 00:22:54,507 --> 00:22:58,328 So getting right into the timeline, we're going to start 385 00:22:58,329 --> 00:23:04,703 it on February 23rd of

2019. So with private approval from the 386 00:23:04,704 --> 00:23:07,656 Marine Corps, Craft sets out with his plan to ski and hike 387 00:23:07,828 --> 00:23:11,487 through the Inyo National Forest into Kings Canyon National Park 388 00:23:12,407 --> 00:23:17,909 on a 195-mile northbound 10-day trek. Joe already did a great 389 00:23:17,971 --> 00:23:22,166 job explaining this trail in his location profile. 390 00:23:23,385 --> 00:23:25,190 Thank you, Mike. That's very nice of you to say. 391 00:23:25,307 --> 00:23:25,713 You're welcome. 392 00:23:28,409 --> 00:23:32,205 So he parked his Jeep Wrangler near the Kearsarge Trailhead 393 00:23:32,330 --> 00:23:36,893 beginning his planned trek. His plan was to hike northwest out 394 00:23:36,894 --> 00:23:42,358 of Kearsarge Pass February 24th and hike. Out near the Twin 395 00:23:42,397 --> 00:23:45,018 Lakes area by Bridgeport on March 4th or 5th. 396 00:23:46,619 --> 00:23:52,908 He had meticulously left plans, brought extirpations, and built 397 00:23:52,986 --> 00:23:55,369 in several days in case of changes he might encounter. 398 00:23:56,986 --> 00:24:02,361 And if you go back to the show notes, Joe, we have a link for a 399 00:24:02,455 --> 00:24:07,908 likely route that he might have taken, and you can check it on 400 00:24:07,955 --> 00:24:09,299 AllTrails just to get an idea of... 401 00:24:10,534 --> 00:24:13,974 The terrain oh it's in the show notes show notes yeah here i'll 402 00:24:13,975 --> 00:24:18,255 click to it yeah just keep keep going i'll pull it up all right 403 00:24:18,279 --> 00:24:23,818 well i clicked on it so find that yep so now it's March 4th 404 00:24:23,819 --> 00:24:30,099 of 2019 so this was when Matthew was reported missing to the Mono 405 00:24:30,177 --> 00:24:33,865 County Sheriff's Office by his father Greg Craft and he did 406 00:24:33,896 --> 00:24:36,021 this when he didn't hear from him as Matthew should have 407 00:24:36,022 --> 00:24:42,480 finished his trek by the fourth or fifth so and he had last 408 00:24:42,500 --> 00:24:47,906 spoken to his father two days before setting out so okay there 409 00:24:47,907 --> 00:24:53,008 we go Joe if you're just listening we have one of the 410 00:24:53,110 --> 00:24:56,156 likely routes that Matthew might have taken pulled up here on all 411 00:24:56,195 --> 00:25:01,961 trails and just to give you the idea of looking at the elevation 412 00:25:02,039 --> 00:25:07,508 changes 64 000 feet of elevation going over 213 miles that is 413 00:25:08,117 --> 00:25:09,149 that is wild laughs. 414 00:25:10,094 --> 00:25:13,598 That's insane. That's climbing up Everest twice. 415 00:25:14,080 --> 00:25:14,599 Yeah, that's... 416 00:25:14,658 --> 00:25:18,260 Like from zero, from sea level. 417 00:25:18,924 --> 00:25:19,064 Yeah. 418 00:25:19,065 --> 00:25:22,228 Because when you do Everest, you're starting up some... Like, 419 00:25:22,267 --> 00:25:23,408 hi, you're not starting at zero. 420 00:25:23,666 --> 00:25:24,752 Yeah, you start at pace camp. 421 00:25:24,753 --> 00:25:26,385 But it's, what, 30-some thousand feet? 422 00:25:26,510 --> 00:25:28,025 29,000, I think. 423 00:25:28,494 --> 00:25:29,228 Oh, it's over 30. 424 00:25:29,494 --> 00:25:30,541 No, I'm pretty sure it's not. 425 00:25:31,322 --> 00:25:35,119 Oh, can we do money? Can we do money? I think it's 31,000 feet. 426 00:25:35,431 --> 00:25:37,478 I think it's like 29,500. 427 00:25:37,479 --> 00:25:38,306 All right, how much money? 428 00:25:40,218 --> 00:25:45,665 Let's see who's right oh i hope i'm right 29 oh good thing i 429 00:25:45,666 --> 00:25:48,743 didn't figure out how to make money i thought it was over 30 430 00:25:48,805 --> 00:25:51,891 000 feet no that's even crazier than because then it's like 431 00:25:52,071 --> 00:25:56,274 almost three everests yeah it's not it's 30 it's almost 30 so 432 00:25:56,275 --> 00:26:02,821 Joe's good at math i'm terrible so yeah that is that is insane 433 00:26:02,868 --> 00:26:06,698 elevation gain obviously That takes you many weeks to do. 434 00:26:08,098 --> 00:26:09,221 213 miles. 435 00:26:10,221 --> 00:26:10,940 That's insane. 436 00:26:12,542 --> 00:26:15,850 And he was doing this in February, which guarantee, we 437 00:26:15,889 --> 00:26:17,132 know for a fact there was... 438 00:26:17,569 --> 00:26:18,186 Now hold on. 439 00:26:19,108 --> 00:26:19,350 Okay. 440 00:26:20,452 --> 00:26:23,897 If he's skiing, the downs will go real fast. 441 00:26:24,147 --> 00:26:24,319 Yeah. 442 00:26:24,772 --> 00:26:27,085 So there's probably a benefit to, if you know what you're 443 00:26:27,116 --> 00:26:30,366 doing, doing it in the winter so you don't have to like really do 444 00:26:31,382 --> 00:26:33,257 too much on foot, you're sliding the most. 445 00:26:33,568 --> 00:26:35,870 There's a motorcycle brigade coming through here that's 446 00:26:35,931 --> 00:26:44,179 insane all right keep going it'll get mostly blocked out the 447 00:26:44,296 --> 00:26:47,601 South Park where they're all just like remember that episode 448 00:26:47,602 --> 00:26:50,562 and just ruining everything i mean i i love milwaukee in the 449 00:26:50,577 --> 00:26:53,312 summer but one of the things i can't stand sorry to anyone 450 00:26:53,343 --> 00:26:56,687 listening if you're harley rider but i just can't stand harley's 451 00:26:57,468 --> 00:27:00,812 they're so loud yeah well they they make them unnecessarily 452 00:27:00,890 --> 00:27:04,040 loud around here so Gosh, where was I? 453 00:27:04,641 --> 00:27:06,261 Oh, we were talking about how long this is. 454 00:27:06,300 --> 00:27:09,360 How insane. Now, this is a likely route. We don't know if 455 00:27:09,403 --> 00:27:11,181 this is the exact route he took. 456 00:27:12,899 --> 00:27:17,165 But this just gives you an idea of the terrain, what it would 457 00:27:17,204 --> 00:27:18,040 take to do this. 458 00:27:20,024 --> 00:27:20,681 I'm just in shock. 459 00:27:22,399 --> 00:27:25,884

We've never done a trail that had 64,000 feet of elevation 460 00:27:25,962 --> 00:27:26,212 gain. 461 00:27:26,213 --> 00:27:26,931 Yeah, I know, right? 462 00:27:28,712 --> 00:27:31,962 Yeah, so he planned to ski a lot of this. 463 00:27:32,656 --> 00:27:36,941 So, yeah, I wonder if he snowshoed up and skied down. 464 00:27:36,942 --> 00:27:40,742 It still doesn't diminish the accomplishment. 465 00:27:41,343 --> 00:27:44,210 No, no, not at all. I'm not saying that to diminish. I'm 466 00:27:44,211 --> 00:27:46,531 just saying, oh, okay, like he could have done it a little, 467 00:27:46,570 --> 00:27:48,273 maybe a little bit faster. I don't know. 468 00:27:49,476 --> 00:27:52,773 I'm sure like if anyone could have done this, you know, over 469 00:27:52,788 --> 00:27:55,538 the average, it would have been him. Yes. Based on just his 470 00:27:55,726 --> 00:28:00,476 character profile. Absolutely. So, like we said, he had left 471 00:28:00,585 --> 00:28:03,521 back to the timeline. Like we'd said, he'd last spoken to his 472 00:28:03,562 --> 00:28:06,144 father two days before setting out, so that would have been the 473 00:28:06,824 --> 00:28:10,410 21st. And he was reported missing on the 4th or 5th of 474 00:28:10,464 --> 00:28:10,793 March. 475 00:28:12,472 --> 00:28:17,332 Or not, the 4th of March. So, Motto County Sheriff's Office 476 00:28:17,355 --> 00:28:20,652 began searching near Trailheads in the Bridgeport area, hoping 477 00:28:20,683 --> 00:28:22,964 that he'd made it to his northern destination. 478 00:28:24,543 --> 00:28:27,449 Utilizing cell phone forensics, they discovered that his last 479 00:28:27,480 --> 00:28:31,368 phone activity was in the Independence area, near... An 480 00:28:31,468 --> 00:28:35,228 Onion Valley trailhead parking lot approximately 195 miles 481 00:28:35,330 --> 00:28:37,888 south of Bridgeport, closer to a starting point. 482 00:28:39,767 --> 00:28:45,494 So March, it's March 5th now of 2019. So now other agencies are 483 00:28:45,510 --> 00:28:49,767 starting to get involved in the search. So Inyo County Sheriff's 484 00:28:49,877 --> 00:28:54,220 Office, Search And Rescue, joined the search. Crafts friend 485 00:28:54,408 --> 00:28:57,314 Isaiah Gerardo decides to head to the trailhead near 486 00:28:57,377 --> 00:28:57,830 Bridgeport. 487 00:28:58,412 --> 00:29:00,834 Where he was supposed to pick up Matthew after not hearing from 488 00:29:00,835 --> 00:29:05,578 him. He received a call from Matthew's dad, Greg Kraft, that 489 00:29:05,621 --> 00:29:08,285 alarmed him after having spent most of the day at the trailhead 490 00:29:08,965 --> 00:29:09,684 waiting on Matthew. 491 00:29:12,348 --> 00:29:17,220 Fast forwarding now to March 8th of 2019, it's around 9pm, Kraft 492 00:29:17,220 --> 00:29:18,379 's rented two-door... 493 00:29:22,973 --> 00:29:24,379 It's crazy night tonight. 494 00:29:24,519 --> 00:29:26,535 Holy cow. It's wild out there. 495 00:29:28,484 --> 00:29:30,884 All right. Just keep going. They'll, it will block most of 496 00:29:30,885 --> 00:29:31,925 it out. Even if we can hear it. 497 00:29:32,005 --> 00:29:33,846 Yeah, no, you don't, you don't have to keep telling me to keep 498 00:29:33,866 --> 00:29:35,866 going. All right, I'll go. We're professionals here. 499 00:29:36,124 --> 00:29:36,386 All right. 500 00:29:37,909 --> 00:29:43,464 So like I said, it's March 8th of 2019, 9 PM. Crafts rented two 501 00:29:43,487 --> 00:29:47,034 door grade. Jeep Wrangler is found in lower gray's meadow, 502 00:29:48,612 --> 00:29:52,096 which is the onion value parking area above Independence, 503 00:29:52,112 --> 00:29:54,628 California, approximately two miles from the Kearsarge 504 00:29:54,846 --> 00:29:55,237 Trailhead. 505 00:29:57,810 --> 00:30:01,433 Let's see here and we got a picture of the jeep so it's 506 00:30:01,472 --> 00:30:05,754 still March 9th so it's the day six of the search Onion Valley 507 00:30:06,097 --> 00:30:10,683 Onion Valley Road is closed due to heavy snow and rock fall so 508 00:30:11,183 --> 00:30:15,222 they had to use snow cats to transport the search teams and 509 00:30:15,223 --> 00:30:18,175 we may have pictures of that oh there's one i got it pulled up 510 00:30:18,425 --> 00:30:24,081 yeah so At 8,000 feet, two miles from the trailhead, debris of a 511 00:30:24,101 --> 00:30:27,001 recent avalanche was found with evidence of smaller avalanches 512 00:30:27,181 --> 00:30:29,759 as well in chutes across the road. 513 00:30:30,681 --> 00:30:36,517 Fresno County Sheriff provided aerial reconnaissance, CHPH80, 514 00:30:37,298 --> 00:30:41,001 H40, and Air National Guard, reporting several significant 515 00:30:41,111 --> 00:30:43,783 avalanches throughout the Sierra backcountry and along the Sierra 516 00:30:43,829 --> 00:30:44,283 High Route. 517 00:30:48,648 --> 00:30:52,520 So now it is March 10th. Ground searches at this time were 518 00:30:52,539 --> 00:30:55,324 canceled due to bad weather and danger of avalanches. It sounds 519 00:30:55,363 --> 00:30:59,860 like we said earlier that they had gotten over 200% snowfall 520 00:30:59,899 --> 00:31:04,858 this year. So that obviously leads to a higher avalanche 521 00:31:04,899 --> 00:31:07,478 danger. And it sounds like they're happening just all over 522 00:31:07,479 --> 00:31:08,099 the backcountry. 523 00:31:09,841 --> 00:31:12,700 Probably pretty hazardous to hike and search. 524 00:31:13,161 --> 00:31:15,161 You can see, look at the snow up against this house. 525 00:31:15,302 --> 00:31:15,481 Yeah. 526 00:31:16,185 --> 00:31:18,583 Let's see how far I can zoom in without it getting too gnarly. 527 00:31:19,755 --> 00:31:20,317 That's crazy. 528 00:31:21,302 --> 00:31:24,005 Yeah, it's definitely up to the base of the roof. Yeah. So I 529 00:31:24,006 --> 00:31:26,677 don't know how, I mean, that's a one-story building. I don't know 530 00:31:27,036 --> 00:31:27,739 if it's standard. 531 00:31:27,802 --> 00:31:30,520 But that's a lot

of snow. Eight or nine feet? Yeah. Yeah. 532 00:31:30,958 --> 00:31:31,699 That's a lot of snow. 533 00:31:32,119 --> 00:31:34,901 Yeah, so think like, you know, we say it's dangerous to hike in 534 00:31:34,902 --> 00:31:37,526 it, but so these searchers have to go out in this. So, I mean, 535 00:31:37,983 --> 00:31:41,948 the searchers are just susceptible to avalanche dangers 536 00:31:41,972 --> 00:31:44,909 as a hiker would be. Yeah, absolutely. So more credit to 537 00:31:44,933 --> 00:31:46,855 these, you know, people going out there to search. 538 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:53,487 So after the ground search was canceled due to the bad weather 539 00:31:53,925 --> 00:31:59,003 and danger, some airbase searches commenced. 540 00:32:00,050 --> 00:32:02,573 Sequoia and king's National Park joined in on the search 541 00:32:02,632 --> 00:32:07,616 providing another helicopter the boundary now for the search 542 00:32:08,796 --> 00:32:11,483 started at the top of cure search pass and extended for 543 00:32:11,624 --> 00:32:14,804 approximately 70 miles of the Sierra High Route so that is a 544 00:32:15,085 --> 00:32:18,288 massive area to be searching and look at these conditions they're 545 00:32:18,335 --> 00:32:23,366 searching in i mean yeah it's just crazy at least it's like 546 00:32:23,460 --> 00:32:26,916 nice out yeah can you imagine if it's like snowing or blizzarding 547 00:32:26,976 --> 00:32:29,160 like on top of it you wouldn't be able to go out there and yeah 548 00:32:29,340 --> 00:32:32,301 it would be you'd be losing so many more people yeah so 549 00:32:33,722 --> 00:32:37,449 aircraft utilize thermal and night vision imagery they use 550 00:32:37,527 --> 00:32:42,715 this technology called rico r-e-c-c-o technology to find 551 00:32:42,730 --> 00:32:47,652 people buried under at an avalanche and they did find a 552 00:32:47,699 --> 00:32:52,386 heat spot but it was found to be a hibernating bear oh geez yeah 553 00:32:54,038 --> 00:32:55,419 They also found other areas. 554 00:32:55,520 --> 00:32:56,500 That's kind of really cool. 555 00:32:56,782 --> 00:32:57,821 Yeah. 556 00:32:57,822 --> 00:32:59,723 Like you can find the hotspots right away. 557 00:33:00,364 --> 00:33:02,704 Yeah. So, you know, they searched other areas that they 558 00:33:02,727 --> 00:33:06,969 got, you know, signatures of heat, but nothing, you know, 559 00:33:07,649 --> 00:33:11,469 provided any clues to where Matthew might've been. So it's 560 00:33:11,579 --> 00:33:17,844 now March 11th, 2019. So avalanche experts being towed on 561 00:33:17,938 --> 00:33:21,985 skis by the snowcat deployed to clear the east route and assess 562 00:33:22,047 --> 00:33:23,625 the risk of future avalanches. 563 00:33:25,738 --> 00:33:27,938 Oh, and there's a cool picture of one of the guys getting 564 00:33:27,979 --> 00:33:28,258 towed. 565 00:33:29,719 --> 00:33:32,258 I'll get there. You can't talk about pictures I'm not showing. 566 00:33:32,259 --> 00:33:37,778 I'm

just talking to myself here. March 16th now, 2019, a search 567 00:33:37,903 --> 00:33:40,559 moved to limited continuous mode due to severe weather 568 00:33:40,598 --> 00:33:44,739 conditions. Thick clouds hampered the aerial search, and 569 00:33:45,785 --> 00:33:50,645 the winter weather made the ski and ground searches just unsafe. 570 00:33:50,879 --> 00:33:54,648 So, and... There was another forecasted storm coming in that 571 00:33:54,749 --> 00:33:56,870 Saturday afternoon that was going to last through the 572 00:33:56,871 --> 00:33:57,249 weekend. 573 00:33:57,351 --> 00:34:02,413 So just a really tough environment to search in. Like 574 00:34:02,437 --> 00:34:06,398 we said, they had record amounts of snow that led to frequent 575 00:34:06,483 --> 00:34:11,405 avalanche warnings in the area. So the final news release about 576 00:34:11,406 --> 00:34:18,530 the Search And Rescue operation was published with the NC Web 577 00:34:18,671 --> 00:34:20,233 Incident Information System going. 578 00:34:20,642 --> 00:34:23,386 To inactive status, meaning no updates would be posted, but 579 00:34:23,444 --> 00:34:25,667 anyone looking for info about the search would remain 580 00:34:25,847 --> 00:34:29,854 accessible. So, but however, the link to it now doesn't work any 581 00:34:29,933 --> 00:34:34,433 longer. It is now August of 2019, so we're fast forward a 582 00:34:34,456 --> 00:34:37,620 few months. So with most of the snow melted and granite rock 583 00:34:37,698 --> 00:34:43,229 exposed, Kraft's family resumed the search for Matthew, handing 584 00:34:43,245 --> 00:34:45,042 out hundreds of flyers to hikers in the area. 585 00:34:45,933 --> 00:34:48,589 And search teams once again combed the area for evidence 586 00:34:48,636 --> 00:34:53,917 with and still found no signs of Craft so i have some theories on 587 00:34:53,936 --> 00:34:59,217 this but it's now September 28th of 2019 the family held a 588 00:34:59,218 --> 00:35:04,335 memorial service near their home at the first congregational 589 00:35:04,421 --> 00:35:08,522 church of washington more than 215 people came to show their 590 00:35:08,553 --> 00:35:15,600 respect so that's nice yeah now at some point in 2021 Kraft's 591 00:35:15,678 --> 00:35:16,163 alma mater. 592 00:35:16,802 --> 00:35:21,147 Rumsey Hall School established the Matthew C. Kraft 09 Memorial 593 00:35:21,366 --> 00:35:24,608 Reward for leadership created to honor Matthew's memory and to 594 00:35:24,671 --> 00:35:27,835 fund a student outdoor leadership trip prior to the 595 00:35:27,874 --> 00:35:30,936 student's senior year, which is really cool. It is cool. Nice 596 00:35:30,975 --> 00:35:31,397 gesture. 597 00:35:32,397 --> 00:35:37,327 That's how I got into all this was doing these types of trips 598 00:35:37,343 --> 00:35:38,483 when I was in high school. 599 00:35:38,749 --> 00:35:39,186 Interesting. 600 00:35:39,843 --> 00:35:41,421 The show wouldn't exist and we wouldn't have met. 601 00:35:42,202 --> 00:35:47,307 Wouldn't have happened. Yep. In all, there was an... An amazing 602 00:35:47,347 --> 00:35:52,010 amount of resources in the field looking for Matthew. Here's just 603 00:35:52,030 --> 00:35:55,112 a list of some of the organizations involved. The 604 00:35:55,151 --> 00:35:59,557 Marine Corps Air National Guard, Monaco County Search And Rescue, 605 00:35:59,659 --> 00:36:02,299 Inyo County Sheriff, Fresno County Sheriff, Yosemite 606 00:36:02,362 --> 00:36:06,260 National Park, Air National Guard, and the California Office 607 00:36:06,261 --> 00:36:07,479 Of Emergency Services. 608 00:36:08,410 --> 00:36:12,094 They also had some really cool search methods. They used, like 609 00:36:12,095 --> 00:36:16,117 we said, those special snowcat units that would do a rope tow 610 00:36:17,058 --> 00:36:20,160 up to the Onion Valley parking area near Independence, 611 00:36:20,199 --> 00:36:20,824 California. 612 00:36:21,605 --> 00:36:24,363 They also had two avalanche experts leading the search team 613 00:36:24,472 --> 00:36:31,238 as they navigate real avalanche-heavy areas. So one 614 00:36:31,316 --> 00:36:33,957 final note before we get into theories. This was a pretty 615 00:36:34,035 --> 00:36:37,211 recent case, so individuals with any information Guardian Crafts 616 00:36:37,251 --> 00:36:40,410 whereabouts should immediately contact the Inyo County Sheriff 617 00:36:40,410 --> 00:36:45,615 's Office at 760-878-0383, option 4. 618 00:36:46,318 --> 00:36:49,146 You could also contact the Mono County Sheriff's Office at 619 00:36:49,302 --> 00:36:56,412 760-932-7549, option 7, or the Fresno County Sheriff's Office 620 00:36:56,443 --> 00:37:04,372 at 559-600-8400. And if you For additional inquiries, please 621 00:37:04,412 --> 00:37:08,056 contact the 1St Marine Division Press Officer, Captain Paul 622 00:37:08,115 --> 00:37:15,345 Ganey, at 760-725-9226, or you can email him at paul.ganey, 623 00:37:15,439 --> 00:37:19,853 that's G-A-I-N-E-Y, at usmc.mil. 624 00:37:20,525 --> 00:37:26,478 So anyone knows anything about this? It's obviously been a few 625 00:37:26,494 --> 00:37:30,603 years since it happened, but, you know, the Marines declared 626 00:37:30,604 --> 00:37:36,602 him dead. So The family got closure in a sense by that, but 627 00:37:37,043 --> 00:37:42,485 obviously his remains were never found. So going into theories, 628 00:37:42,727 --> 00:37:42,930 sorry. 629 00:37:44,492 --> 00:37:48,594 So the likely theory from the Marines was that he died of 630 00:37:48,617 --> 00:37:52,430 exposure from severe winter weather. On scene Search And 631 00:37:52,431 --> 00:37:57,024 Rescue experts believe he was overcome by severe weather and 632 00:37:57,039 --> 00:37:59,961 exposure due to the increased avalanche activity in the area. 633 00:38:01,806 --> 00:38:06,311 Family and friends, so Matthew's father, Graycraft, has kept a 634 00:38:06,370 --> 00:38:09,975 candle lit since March 16th, the day after the Marine Corps

635 00:38:10,038 --> 00:38:13,296 officially pronounced Matthew dead to guide Matthew home. He 636 00:38:13,358 --> 00:38:16,382 thinks Matthew made it through the Kearsage Pass through the 637 00:38:16,383 --> 00:38:19,819 bad weather as he had traveled 30 miles a day in the White 638 00:38:19,850 --> 00:38:26,335 Mountains in New Hampshire and was strong as a moose. So that's 639 00:38:26,336 --> 00:38:27,178 what family thinks. 640 00:38:27,210 --> 00:38:31,103 Here's just some other opinions you know scraped from the 641 00:38:31,123 --> 00:38:37,326 internet from most explainable to crazy so here's some of the 642 00:38:37,327 --> 00:38:40,146 most explainable obviously theory number one he succumbed 643 00:38:40,147 --> 00:38:43,748 to bad weather and wind exposure due to the really bad storms and 644 00:38:43,802 --> 00:38:47,732 avalanches in the area sadly one of the theories was he might 645 00:38:47,733 --> 00:38:51,904 have gotten crushed or buried in an avalanche another theory was 646 00:38:51,919 --> 00:38:54,748 he fell down the side of one of the steep granite peaks or 647 00:38:54,794 --> 00:38:58,810 gorges or slick and icy snow slopes that was covered in snow. 648 00:39:00,190 --> 00:39:03,710 Another really plausible one was a snow bridge collapse. Those 649 00:39:03,711 --> 00:39:07,534 can be really dangerous because you can't tell it's a snow 650 00:39:07,573 --> 00:39:10,612 bridge when you're on top of it. And there's not like a map of 651 00:39:10,651 --> 00:39:11,229 snow bridges. 652 00:39:11,635 --> 00:39:14,237 Yeah. You're just going to be stuck falling down. Yeah. And 653 00:39:14,238 --> 00:39:16,253 you think it's solid ground and then just drop out from 654 00:39:16,299 --> 00:39:16,768 underneath you. 655 00:39:17,049 --> 00:39:20,753 Yeah. So snow bridges can be really dangerous in areas like 656 00:39:20,799 --> 00:39:25,909 this. So locals from the area, I just had a couple quotes from 657 00:39:26,221 --> 00:39:26,737 people that... 658 00:39:27,310 --> 00:39:30,333 Live in the area and a first gentleman said i was in the area 659 00:39:30,374 --> 00:39:33,717 the week of his disappearance i remember that storm very well it 660 00:39:33,718 --> 00:39:37,463 was the worst winter weather i've ever seen and i'm a snow 661 00:39:37,503 --> 00:39:42,346 abuler he said i chase blizzards another person wrote the 662 00:39:42,424 --> 00:39:46,065 avalanche forecast indicated this tour was basically suicide 663 00:39:46,143 --> 00:39:51,034 by adventure from the outset so locals in the area said it was 664 00:39:51,096 --> 00:39:54,315 some of the worst winter weather they've ever experienced and 665 00:39:54,503 --> 00:39:57,266 places like this experience A lot of winter weather. 666 00:39:57,426 --> 00:39:59,172 So that's right when he started. 667 00:39:59,371 --> 00:39:59,975 Yeah, so for people. 668 00:40:00,280 --> 00:40:03,324 People that live there to say this was the worst they've seen 669 00:40:03,325 --> 00:40:06,727 in their lives, like, you know it's bad. Because the Sierras 670 00:40:06,785 --> 00:40:11,688 get a ton of snow. I mean, they're not strangers to snow. 671 00:40:11,812 --> 00:40:13,156 Thousands of millimeters. 672 00:40:19,281 --> 00:40:24,000 So one of the off the deep ends was he ran into a hibernating 673 00:40:24,062 --> 00:40:26,828 black bear while looking for cover from a storm and 674 00:40:27,531 --> 00:40:29,516 unfortunately met his demise. 675 00:40:30,124 --> 00:40:32,884 I wouldn't say that's off the deep end yeah i guess it's not 676 00:40:32,925 --> 00:40:35,767 off the deep end but not plausible that's what cherish 677 00:40:35,825 --> 00:40:39,825 thinks is off the deep end so which is fine i would say off 678 00:40:39,826 --> 00:40:43,567 the deep end would be like an alien alien or vortice yeah it's 679 00:40:43,630 --> 00:40:47,013 like that's off the deep end like a bigfoot that like a snow 680 00:40:47,044 --> 00:40:51,216 bigfoot yeah i mean or a baronado yeah baronado yeah. 681 00:40:51,217 --> 00:40:53,185 If you didn't if you don't have a patron account you need to get 682 00:40:53,231 --> 00:40:55,403 patron and listen to our last patron episode that was so much 683 00:40:55,513 --> 00:41:00,378 one yeah i think fell into a tree well i don't think is that 684 00:41:00,398 --> 00:41:05,501 insane okay yeah that's not i mean are there gonna be a lot of 685 00:41:05,525 --> 00:41:09,470 trees at that elevation well you wouldn't know yeah if you and if 686 00:41:09,486 --> 00:41:11,829 you're skiing down so when that 's gonna happen is when you're 687 00:41:11,868 --> 00:41:14,665 skiing yeah and he's gonna get too close to a tree for those 688 00:41:14,666 --> 00:41:18,087 who don't know a tree well is like a snow packs around in 689 00:41:18,088 --> 00:41:21,056 these areas if you have a tree that's full-size tree it's like 690 00:41:21,057 --> 00:41:24,369 an evergreen and snow starts falling around it It might not 691 00:41:24,469 --> 00:41:26,190 pack into where the base of the tree is. 692 00:41:26,210 --> 00:41:28,153 So if you're skiing next to the tree and all of a sudden you 693 00:41:28,154 --> 00:41:31,880 just fall down into the quote unquote well where the tree is, 694 00:41:32,919 --> 00:41:34,958 if you use your skis on, you can get stuck upside down in the 695 00:41:34,981 --> 00:41:35,317 snow. 696 00:41:36,177 --> 00:41:40,067 Only thing is I think you would find the remains in the spring. 697 00:41:41,583 --> 00:41:42,770 If you know where to look. 698 00:41:43,020 --> 00:41:45,802 Yeah. I mean, I guess we're talking about a search area the 699 00:41:45,833 --> 00:41:46,958 size of Rhode Island. Yeah. 700 00:41:47,083 --> 00:41:49,692 So like I know they didn't think he made it too far from the 701 00:41:49,708 --> 00:41:53,093 start, but still it's a huge area. So, and then as spring 702 00:41:53,133 --> 00:41:55,858 comes, it will overgrow and things like that. So I don't 703

00:41:55,859 --> 00:41:57,417 think that one's that crazy. 704 00:41:57,858 --> 00:41:58,960 No, that isn't actually. 705 00:41:58,961 --> 00:42:00,381 What do you think? What are you thinking? 706 00:42:01,358 --> 00:42:04,928 I think the most plausible explanation is probably 707 00:42:05,085 --> 00:42:09,850 avalanche related. I think it sounds like there were so many 708 00:42:09,944 --> 00:42:14,178 avalanches going on that he probably, unfortunately, it was 709 00:42:14,288 --> 00:42:16,116 the weather probably already was bad. 710 00:42:16,319 --> 00:42:18,459 How many did they say during the search? Like two or three? 711 00:42:18,803 --> 00:42:19,913 A lot of them. I don't remember. 712 00:42:19,914 --> 00:42:21,022 And they searched for like a week. 713 00:42:21,404 --> 00:42:24,646 Yeah, it was bad enough they had to call off the ground search 714 00:42:24,687 --> 00:42:25,787 because of avalanches. 715 00:42:26,748 --> 00:42:31,275 Yeah, that's insane. Yeah, I'm on the avalanche train with you. 716 00:42:31,276 --> 00:42:33,775 Yeah, and you think about, like, an avalanche. So if he's in, 717 00:42:33,978 --> 00:42:38,556 like, driving heavy snow, he's not going to be able to see it 718 00:42:38,588 --> 00:42:40,885 coming. Like, it's not like a clear blue day out. 719 00:42:41,260 --> 00:42:42,650 Oh, like if it's storming? 720 00:42:42,822 --> 00:42:44,588 Yeah, if it's storming and it's windy. 721 00:42:44,589 --> 00:42:45,322 Oh, I didn't think about that. 722 00:42:45,635 --> 00:42:48,775 Like, if you're on a mountain that has a lot of snow and an 723 00:42:48,806 --> 00:42:52,471 avalanche starts, like, And it's a clear blue day. I mean, you 724 00:42:52,491 --> 00:42:57,315 can see it coming. Yeah. It's not like the speed of light. Not 725 00:42:57,495 --> 00:42:59,440 saying that you could get out of its way, because it could be. 726 00:43:00,299 --> 00:43:05,041 Yeah, but people have out-skied it and avoided it. 727 00:43:06,182 --> 00:43:09,846 But if you're in a heavy, severe storm, or even at night, if you 728 00:43:09,847 --> 00:43:13,190 did any night hiking, and the wind is whipping around you and 729 00:43:13,191 --> 00:43:15,877 the snow is coming down, and you can't see two feet in front of 730 00:43:15,878 --> 00:43:17,862 you, you're never going to see it coming. Yeah. 731 00:43:17,863 --> 00:43:21,574 It's just going to hit you. Yeah. And think of how far it 732 00:43:21,615 --> 00:43:24,818 might move him then, too. Like, it may bury him or it may, like, 733 00:43:25,759 --> 00:43:29,900 you know, it may throw him off the side of the mountain. And 734 00:43:29,901 --> 00:43:32,744 the fact that we don't know his exact route, he could have been 735 00:43:32,822 --> 00:43:33,283 anywhere. 736 00:43:34,267 --> 00:43:37,204 Yeah, if he's skiing and, like, snowshoeing or whatever to get 737 00:43:37,267 --> 00:43:39,579 up, he's going to go down the way that makes the most sense at 738 00:43:39,580 --> 00:43:40,095 the time. 739 00:43:40,517 --> 00:43:42,861 And I don't believe he had any kind of, he didn't have, like, a 740 00:43:42,876 --> 00:43:47,533 beacon on him or anything, like an avalanche beacon or anything 741 00:43:47,579 --> 00:43:53,610 like that, which. If the one thing I would say that maybe it 742 00:43:53,610 --> 00:43:56,348 's too bad he didn't have was if I, you know, if I was going to 743 00:43:56,387 --> 00:43:59,453 be hiking somewhere like this in February, which I wouldn't. 744 00:43:59,993 --> 00:44:00,172 Yeah. 745 00:44:00,750 --> 00:44:01,633 I not. 746 00:44:01,774 --> 00:44:03,297 Cause you're none of the things he was. 747 00:44:03,453 --> 00:44:07,274 I'm not at all trained to handle that kind of conditions. I would 748 00:44:07,305 --> 00:44:10,899 definitely have one of those beacons on me. Yeah. I agree 749 00:44:10,914 --> 00:44:13,477 with you. Not saying that. I mean, you're going to survive 750 00:44:13,524 --> 00:44:17,947 that, but at least. They'll be able to find your remains and 751 00:44:17,948 --> 00:44:20,366 your family would get closure from it. Now, I'm not 752 00:44:20,429 --> 00:44:21,929 criticizing him at all. 753 00:44:21,930 --> 00:44:25,234 I mean, he knew what he was doing. 754 00:44:25,296 --> 00:44:26,132 He knew what he was doing. 755 00:44:27,632 --> 00:44:31,241 So I'm just saying personally, like, I think I would have a 756 00:44:31,257 --> 00:44:32,179 beacon like that. 757 00:44:34,601 --> 00:44:36,148 So what do you think? 758 00:44:36,866 --> 00:44:40,507 I'm with you. I think avalanche, if so many avalanches were 759 00:44:40,554 --> 00:44:42,663 happening, they couldn't even do the search. 760 00:44:42,913 --> 00:44:43,070 Yeah. 761 00:44:43,900 --> 00:44:45,842 I don't even think about the fact that he might even got hit 762 00:44:45,843 --> 00:44:47,865 by one and didn't know it until it was too late. 763 00:44:47,885 --> 00:44:50,568 That's what I think. I mean, like you said, I guess if you're 764 00:44:50,666 --> 00:44:54,108 on skis, you could try and get away from it. But yeah, it 765 00:44:54,170 --> 00:44:56,490 sounded like the weather was getting really bad right when he 766 00:44:56,576 --> 00:44:58,717 started. Yeah, that's unfortunate. If you're in an 767 00:44:58,733 --> 00:45:01,483 avalanche hits you well, you're never going to see it coming. 768 00:45:01,484 --> 00:45:02,576 Do you think he made it very far? 769 00:45:03,668 --> 00:45:07,987 I bet. I mean, it depends on, I mean, we don't know where he 770 00:45:07,988 --> 00:45:11,409 went. 771 00:45:11,608 --> 00:45:14,691 It sounded like it couldn't have been more than 20 miles. 772 00:45:15,230 --> 00:45:17,808 Yeah. So you think like the first day he probably got. 773 00:45:17,809 --> 00:45:21,425 If the storm hit then, why not? If anything, if he's not skiing 774 00:45:21,456 --> 00:45:22,675 through it, he's going to take shelter. 775 00:45:22,972 --> 00:45:23,128 Yeah. 776 00:45:23,456 --> 00:45:25,847 And

imagine if you take shelter and you get hit by an avalanche 777 00:45:25,848 --> 00:45:26,534 or something like that. 778 00:45:26,550 --> 00:45:29,237 I mean, someone as smart as him, he may even have tried to turn 779 00:45:29,253 --> 00:45:33,657 around. Yeah, maybe. Something happened. Maybe. I mean, he 780 00:45:33,677 --> 00:45:35,317 could have fallen too. Yeah. 781 00:45:36,800 --> 00:45:37,641 I think avalanche. 782 00:45:38,302 --> 00:45:41,122 In the Tetons, we hiked an area where we had to cross a 783 00:45:41,567 --> 00:45:47,052 snow-covered pass. I mean, I was going across it with one hand 784 00:45:47,130 --> 00:45:48,231 holding the mountain because. 785 00:45:48,794 --> 00:45:50,927 I didn't have And you were shaking and crying. 786 00:45:51,177 --> 00:45:54,380 No. But I just had regular hiking boots on, and the snow 787 00:45:54,411 --> 00:45:56,895 was slippery. I mean, one misstep and I would have gone 788 00:45:56,927 --> 00:45:57,614 tumbling down. 789 00:45:57,895 --> 00:45:58,958 Yeah, that would have been no good. 790 00:45:59,067 --> 00:46:02,944 But now imagine just the whole mountain is just Yeah. Lizard. 791 00:46:03,004 --> 00:46:07,526 And I can't even imagine. I mean, this guy was bad-ass for 792 00:46:07,925 --> 00:46:14,105 attempting it. Yeah, absolutely. But sadly, sadly his remains 793 00:46:14,144 --> 00:46:16,589 haven't been found yet. It's still, you know, a relatively 794 00:46:16,667 --> 00:46:19,386 fresh case. So maybe, you know, there's hope the family will 795 00:46:19,433 --> 00:46:21,136 get, you know, final closure from that. 796 00:46:22,636 --> 00:46:25,230 But it's, it's sad cause it sounds like he was a really cool 797 00:46:25,276 --> 00:46:25,526 guy. 798 00:46:27,714 --> 00:46:30,495 And, everyone loved him and he was really passionate about the 799 00:46:30,496 --> 00:46:33,854 Marine Corps and Those are the kind of people you want in the 800 00:46:33,873 --> 00:46:34,155 world. 801 00:46:34,715 --> 00:46:35,676 Yeah, absolutely. 802 00:46:37,137 --> 00:46:37,977 But other than that. 803 00:46:38,520 --> 00:46:39,559 I don't have anything else. 804 00:46:40,801 --> 00:46:44,746 I think for me this case is pretty clear cut, which is 805 00:46:44,785 --> 00:46:45,926 unusual for our cases. 806 00:46:46,223 --> 00:46:46,825 Yeah, I think so. 807 00:46:48,481 --> 00:46:51,075 I think it's definitely exposure. It's just what type of 808 00:46:51,106 --> 00:46:53,887 exposure. Was it avalanche? Was it just the weather and he 809 00:46:54,028 --> 00:46:56,496 succumbed to maybe getting lost in time? 810 00:46:56,575 --> 00:46:59,505 Yeah, I just feel like. It had to have been a freak of nature 811 00:46:59,506 --> 00:47:00,507 because this guy was too good. 812 00:47:00,808 --> 00:47:03,370 Yeah, I would say accident above just succumbing. 813 00:47:03,511 --> 00:47:05,132 I think like an avalanche. I agree with you. 814 00:47:05,691 --> 00:47:07,937 Yeah, so it would have to be something pretty gnarly, I 815 00:47:07,938 --> 00:47:13,038 think, to get him. Well, let us know what you all think. And 816 00:47:13,117 --> 00:47:15,867 thanks again for tuning into our show. We appreciate all of you 817 00:47:16,085 --> 00:47:18,179 for listening and sharing locations and known with your 818 00:47:18,226 --> 00:47:18,898 friends and family. 819 00:47:19,580 --> 00:47:22,664 Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, 820 00:47:22,803 --> 00:47:25,324 and YouTube, where you can find all the videos of each episode, 821 00:47:25,445 --> 00:47:27,672 and subscriptions will hopefully be coming back soon there. 822 00:47:28,352 --> 00:47:30,570 Also, if you would like to support the show monetarily, 823 00:47:30,891 --> 00:47:33,633 please visit our website or Facebook store to buy some cool 824 00:47:33,711 --> 00:47:36,750 swag. And additionally, you can subscribe to our Patreon account 825 00:47:36,875 --> 00:47:40,281 and get access to all of the extra episodes. You can also do 826 00:47:40,282 --> 00:47:43,406 an Apple, wherever you go, get your extra subscriptions. 827 00:47:45,719 --> 00:47:48,430 And lastly... When enjoying the beauty of nature, whether 828 00:47:48,470 --> 00:47:51,832 backpacking, camping, or simply taking a walk, always remember 829 00:47:52,172 --> 00:47:55,898 to leave no trace. Thank you, and we will see you all next 830 00:47:55,937 --> 00:47:56,414 time.