LSProject: The Missing Hiker
No one heads out into the woods expecting to get lost – and the remote and heavily forested landscape along the North Shore poses unique challenges for search and rescue teams.
In the fall of 2001, medical student Jason Rasmussen became lost while hiking the Powwow Trail in Lake County. Shortly after losing the main trail, Jason became separated from his tent and gear, finding himself without shelter and facing deteriorating conditions with deep snow, high winds and very cold temperatures.
Producer Martha Marnocha has created a 3-part feature on one of the longest and most compelling search and rescue stories in northeast Minnesota called “The Missing Hiker.”
Thanks to Peter Smerud, executive director at Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, and BJ Kohlstedt, director of Lake County Emergency Management, for their contributions to this feature. Peter and BJ were both part of the Lake County Search and Rescue team participating in the search for Jason Rasmussen.
For photos of the search and rescue of Jason Rasmussen, please view the slideshow.
More information on the search for Jason Rasmussen can be found in Cary Griffith’s book, Lost in the Wild, published in 2006.
Scroll down to listen to the audio for all three parts.
Lake Superior Project is supported in part by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
