The Search for Steve Fossett

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Day 3:

Adventure Science Crew / 17.07.2008

The search area today was in the Mount Patterson area at an elevation of 10,500 feet. The teams worked together so they could cover a larger area.

By 11:30am the teams had crested Wheeler Peak (11631 feet) and were proceeding to the first search area. Rover One reported heavy inter-team radio communications as they could now see the area first hand and were deciding how to space the athletes. The athletes were in good shape and high spirits.

At the end of the day, athletes reported that:
Day 3 took us above 10,000 ft and we spent most of the day between 9,000 - 10,500 ft. Overall, the weather was great. Morning was cold, but it definitely warmed through the day. We began our search near the old mining town of Belfort, at 10,200 ft and moved north from there. The goal was to search Ferris Canyon in detail, and scour the steep slopes and the alder-choked river bottom.

Access to this region was difficult and required a careful traverse of some glacial terrain to the first vegetated area. The team divided to cover the canyon, and put 2 near the creek bed, and 2 on each slope.

After the punishment our feet took yesterday, today was a bit easier as there was not as much brutal side sloping, although the stinging nettles, and dense alders took their toll on most members of the team. The greatest danger in the canyon, as we found out was the loose scree, which caused every member to take at least one fall. There were no injuries beyond cuts and bruises.

Because of the steep and loose terrain, we covered less terrain than the previous two days, but today’s area was very isolated and off the beaten track, which is exactly what we are after.

Overall, everyone is still in good spirits and hopeful that we will discover the wreckage. Feet are still in good shape for most of us, although Gary had some nasty blisters (they didn’t slow him down though), so we will be able to maintain a fast pace tomorrow, as we head back to continue searching areas near Day 1 and Day 2 search locations.
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