Camas Trail Runner Found Dead After Fall

Nicholas Wells, a 33-year-old from Camas, Washington, was found dead early Sunday after disappearing during a trail run in the Columbia River Gorge. (kgw.com) Wells’ wife reported him missing Friday, October 21, 2022, after he did not return from a morning run on the Pacific Crest Trail, according to the Hood River County Sheriff’s Office. She told deputies he had been in contact during the day and said at one point that he had lost the trail, then found it again. (kgw.com) (koin.com) Search teams first worked the Pacific Crest and Ruckel Creek trails Friday night, then expanded the operation Saturday with Portland Mountain Rescue, Clackamas Search and Rescue, Hood River Crag Rats, Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue, a sheriff’s office airplane, and an Oregon Air National Guard Black Hawk helicopter. (kgw.com) The sheriff’s office said early cellphone tower data could not pinpoint Wells because of the terrain. Later location information from his family helped narrow the search area. (kgw.com) Searchers found Wells around 1 a.m. Sunday, October 23, at the bottom of an 80-foot cliff near the Ruckel Creek area, about a mile from the freeway. His body was recovered later that day. (koin.com) (katu.com) The case centered on a steep, rugged section of the Gorge where trails can split, narrow, and run close to cliffs. In this search, crews shifted from a missing-person response to a recovery after the updated phone data changed where they were looking. (kgw.com) (flashalert.net) The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office said Wells’ family asked for privacy as they grieved. The agency said its “hearts go out” to the family after the two-day search ended. (kgw.com)