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grand canyon disappearance

36K views 41 replies 27 participants last post by  Tom Martin 
#1 ·
Not sure if this has been posted yet but I didnt see it on the first couple pages.
Sad. My condolences To her family, crew she was in there with and friends.


7NEWS - Mom fears worst in disappearance of Englewood woman Kaitlin Kenney during Grand Canyon river trip - Local Story

I cant imagine waking up, doing breakfast, rigging, .....and realizing someone is just gone. what are you thinking. uh, maybe shes asleep? uh maybe shes doing yoga? maybe she went hiking? ya, hiking. we didnt talk about hiking today? uh, lets just wait. I'll scramble up there and have a look......... When do you get out the sat phone?

I assume her crew is still in there.

pee buckets are your friend
 
#3 ·
had a buddy go a drunken solo night hike for about 4hrs one time on the san juan. nobody could find him and we we starting to get worried when he finally showed back up. hope somehow it all turns out okay
 
#4 ·
Hi,

Sadly, in this kind of weather, and over this length of time, prospects for a happy outcome here are very low.

A fair number of drownings in GC result from someone going down to the river to pee -- often in the middle of the night -- and falling in. No PFD. Cold water. In this case cold air. If you are immediately immobilized by the cold water, maybe you can't cry out. Maybe your companions are sound sleepers, and don't hear the spash and your voice calling out.

We can only hope for a better outcome than the circumstances seem to indicate.

FWIW.

Rich Phillips
 
#6 ·
Nothing has been said about a sandbar. The specific camp has not been disclosed to my knowledge. There are a few places that they could have been camped on the north side in that area. Each of them have their own perils. It probably would be best to stop conjecture.

Best thoughts for all involved!
 
#8 ·
First off this is a winter trip. There are no guides, just a TL. Second, if she disappeared near Tapeats, that means she was at least ten days into her trip. By this point, even if she was inexperienced(highly doubt that), she would be a pro.

Personally, I just got off a winter trip. And I can remember one chilly night at the Ledges campsite, staring at the moon, thinking that if you were to fall in the water no matter who you are, even if you were Chuck Norris' body guard, you would die within minutes. My conclusion is that is just a sad and tragic occurrence.

Zero degrees in the canyon is hella cold!
 
#9 ·
at least one of the news releases using NPS info mentioned a camp on a sandbar at about mile 134.5.

Think they used the South Rim temp to come up with zero degrees. At phantom, the lows were 30s-40s (if you google it, the first displayed temp you find for phantom is actually the south rim weather).

Easy to jump to conclusions about a pee bucket and its use or lack of use. She had plenty of outdoor experience. Perhaps more likely she went down to a boat to get something, slipped on a wet (or icy) tube or frame, and fell in. If she hit her head on the way down, she could not have called for help. I know this scenario could easily happen to experienced boaters, with no one to blame.

A really sad event.
 
#11 ·
I don't believe sandbars are solely in the middle of the river. Racetrack could easily be described as a sandbar. Not sure what mile it is exactly, but in that area.

Very sad story to hear, my condolences for friends and family.
 
#13 ·
Grand Canyon Incident Release (from the internal park service website):

On Saturday, January 12th, park dispatch received a call via satellite phone from a private river trip reporting that a member of their party was missing. Initial helicopter search operations were begun and rangers were flown to the scene, where it was determined that 21-year-old Kaitlin Anne Kenney of Englewood, Colorado, had last been seen Friday night at her group’s camp at river mile 134.5 near Tapeats Creek on the north side of the river. On Sunday, rangers continued their investigations and helicopter search operations while ground-based teams searched the Tapeats and Deer Creek drainages, Surprise Valley and along the Colorado River. Yesterday, based on their investigations and search efforts so far, the ground-based teams intensified their search efforts in the Tapeats Creek area. Kenney is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 125 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes and was last seen wearing a tan knee-length coat, hiking boots, rugged tan pants, a long-sleeved grey shirt, multi-colored scarf and black knit cap. Visitors who think that they may have seen her or who have information that would aid in the park’s search efforts are asked to call the Grand Canyon tip line at 928-638-7767.

: No newer release yet: Will post this week if another comes up.

No sandbar info from the park. This was a private launch, not commercial, so Trip leader
isn't likely sitting up all night watching every person to ensure they stay in their tents.

As for most of us in the reply's in saying we don't have issues peeing in the river, we are guys, its not that hard. For a women.....icy rocks, slippery slopes, moving sand. Lot more changes.

AZ has been slammed with very cold temps. Its possible it was around 0. At the rim of Friday and Saturday high was 20, low of -15. 4000ft lower, with a cold river pumping past, either way it was cold! Here is the last 7 days:
National Weather Service - NWS Flagstaff

Says flagstaff, but the location is grand canyon airport.
 
#14 ·
Thank you twitch.

Enough. Take your complaints to PM, get it off the forum. Both family and MEDIA look at this site.

Updated Park Service News Release:

The search for 21-year-old Kaitlin Kenney, underway since last Saturday, has been scaled back due to lack of clues as to her whereabouts. Kenney was last seen on Friday at a river camp located near Tapeats Creek on the north side of the Colorado River. Rangers used the park’s helicopter to search the river corridor and area trails for two days, while ground-based teams thoroughly searched the accessible trails, beaches, drainages and backcountry areas in the vicinity. With no additional clues to guide search efforts on land, the decision was made to scale the search back to a continuous but limited mode in which rangers and pilots will continue to search for clues when in the area. Flyers with Kenney’s picture and description remain posted at popular river trip launch and takeout points, and anyone with information regarding her whereabouts is encouraged to call the park tip line at 928-638-7767
 
#15 ·
very sad

She sounded like an amazing young woman. Someone that would have been a wonderful addition to the boating community, and the community at large. A great loss.

While there is much speculation about what has happened, there are many possibilities. What is know is that there is not much room for error with winter air and water temperatures. Be careful out there.
 
#17 · (Edited)
ADMIN NOTE

Inappropriate speculation posted about what may have happened, finger pointing, and other talk arising from that, is not suitable for this thread and was removed and then accidentally deleted. Please use MB's personal message system for any discussion with and schooling of new boaters who are less sensitive to the issue at hand.

MountainBuzz, and the portion of the boating community represented here, hold out hope that she will be found soon.

-AH
 
#20 ·
I too would like to thank the admin's for their work.

My condolences to the family, friends and love ones. This is a trips worst nightmare. I hope and prey the rest of the trip makes it out OK.

Once again......condolances to all.
 
#22 ·
The November 2012 High Flow Experiment left a vast number of sand deposits on camp beaches. These areas were rapidly being eroded away by daily flucations of the river flow. The edges of these sand deposits were extremely fragile and easily collapsed. This photo was taken December 2012.

My thoughts and prayers are with the family.
 

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#26 ·
This is a very difficult situation.

I hope the boating community can keep this issue in the public eye. Having been down the Grand Canyon three times, I understand how difficult searching for someone can be.

I understand full blown searches can only go on for a limited time for a lot of reasons.

I hope every one who works in the Canyon, is floating the river or hiking the canyon will continue the search until this lady is found. Signs posted at all hiking entrance points and at the put in and take outs would be a good thing. Lets not give up the search.
 
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