Missing Hiker Found Alive in Washington National Park After Nearly a Month

A missing hiker that was gone for nearly a month in the North Cascades National Park was found safely at the end of August.

A long trail below. North Cascades National Park, Washington, USA / Alex Moliski/Unsplash

A missing person case can get very daunting after the first couple of days without any advancement, but one hiker was just found almost a month after the search began.

Robert Shock, 39, went to the North Cascades National Park for a hike before he was declared missing on July 31 per the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office.

Shock was seen earlier in the day without any gear that would suggest that he was going to be staying overnight, near the Chilliwack River which made the fact that he was in fact gone over night all that more worrying.

The park's rangers and deputies had done searches all over, including the use of helicopters, but they had no luck.

Miraculously on August 30, almost a month after he initally went missing, the National Park Service alerted the sheriff's office that Shock had been found in the Chilliwack Basin 'alive and well.'

The local outlet Cascadia Daily News did some further reporting past the news release that further documented the torturous month and shocking recovery.

"He’s in a lot of pain and he isn’t speaking very well, but he’s coherent and seemed in pretty high spirits, said Shock's mom Jan Thompson per CDN. “I didn’t push him too much.”

The Pacific Northwest Trail Association said that a group of crew members were able to barely hear Shock's cries of help over the sound of the Chilliwack River.

It's clear that the hiker was found in pretty bad shape, but it's just good news overall that he was able to be found alive in any condition.

Though Shock had been to the area plenty of times before, some unexpected changes to the river crossing led to him being confused as he still tried to continue through his trip.

The Chilliwack River Trail is a very hard five-mile hike that can take a lot out of even the most experienced visitors.

The North Cascades National Park is a popular hiking spot that has been around since the 1960s. It's well-regarded thanks to the mountains, lakes and overall beautiful Washington wilderness that it has to offer. Just because it's a national park, doesn't mean that visitors shouldn't do everything in their own power to ensure safety.

It's important to be over-prepared when heading out on a hike of any difficulty to avoid issues. As seen by the case of Shock, though, there can always been some unexpected issues that pop up to confuse things.