After several days of extensive searching, 71-year-old Abilene resident Richard Berry has been found alive in a remote area of Guadalupe Mountains National Park along the Texas – New Mexico border.
He had been missing since late last week during a planned hiking trip in the park.
Berry was located late Monday evening by a border patrol search group, who discovered him in an off-trail northern region of the park near where Berry had told his family he planned to hike. According to a Facebook post by Guadalupe Mountains National Park officials, Berry was “found alive in a remote, off-trail location in the northern portion of the park.”
The elderly hiker was last seen around noon on Thursday, November 2nd at the trail junction for the Marcus and Blue Ridge trails in the park. Berry had shared his hiking plan with family members to traverse from Dog Canyon to Blue Ridge Canyon. When Berry did not arrive at his hotel Thursday evening as planned, his daughter became concerned.
On Saturday morning, Berry’s daughter contacted the hotel where he had made reservations, then immediately reached out to park rangers and the county sheriff to report her father missing. Berry’s car was located at the trailhead where he started his hike in Dog Canyon, but there was no other sign of the missing hiker.
After an extensive multi-agency search effort over the past several days, Berry was finally located late Monday night near where he had planned to hike. He was transported to a nearby hospital for evaluation, although his condition remains unknown.
The successful conclusion to the search efforts was met with relief from Berry’s family, who expressed their gratitude to the many agencies and volunteers who assisted. Guadalupe Mountains National Park also thanked the following for their invaluable help locating the missing hiker: Carlsbad Bureau of Land Management, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Carlsbad Police Department, Eddy County Fire & Rescue, Texas Rescue Patrol (TRP), Texas SAR (TEXSAR), Texas Department of Public Safety – Aircraft Operations Division, United States Border Patrol Air & Marine, United States Border Patrol BORSTAR, as well as National Park Service partners, volunteers, and neighbors.
The multi-day search for Richard Berry involved meticulous tracking and recovery efforts across challenging remote terrain until he was finally found alive late Monday night.
Cover photo courtesy of: Raychel Sanner
