After not being heard from in over a month, missing hiker William M.
LaFever, 28, has been found. He was spotted by a helicopter flying over
the Escalante River gorge, where the bearded man was discovered sitting
in a shallow river in the Escalante Desert with nothing more than his
pants, shoes, underwear, shirt and a lighter. LaFever had been trying to
make his way from Boulder, Utah, to Page, Arizona, on foot, and had lost 50 pounds subsisting on nothing but frogs, roots and river water.
Originally from Colorado Springs, Colorado,
LaFever had called his father on June 6 or 7 to tell him he was hiking
with his dog. He had hoped his father would send him some money to help
with the journey. Although LaFever didn’t have a car, his plan was to
follow the river until he reached Lake Powell, where he wanted to catch a
boat. Unfortunately, the 50-mile desert trek was a lot more difficult
than LaFever anticipated.
