A lost Colorado hiker who was gone for 24 hours ignored rescuers' calls because the hiker didn't recognize the phone number, officials say

  • Search-and-rescue authorities discussed the hunt for a hiker trekking Colorado's highest peak.

  • The hiker was reported missing, prompting an overnight search. The hiker returned after 24 hours.

  • During the search, rescuers say, the person ignored calls because of the unrecognized phone number.

Local search-and-rescue authorities say a Colorado hiker who got lost on a trail ignored calls from rescuers because the person didn't recognize their phone number, the New York Post reported Monday.

In a Facebook post from Thursday, Lake County Search and Rescue officials described the ordeal, which they said took place on Mount Elbert, Colorado's highest peak.

Officials said the hiker set out at 9 a.m. on October 18. By 8 p.m., they began searching for the hiker when someone reported that the hiker hadn't returned.

"Multiple attempts to contact the subject via their cell phone were unsuccessful," the Facebook post said.

Officials said a team of five people set out at 11 p.m. to search for the missing hiker and stayed out until 3 a.m. on October 19. A team of three then picked up the search a few hours later, at 7 a.m., looking in areas where hikers typically get lost.

But at about 9:30 a.m. the following day, the post said, the team reported that the hiker "had returned to their place of lodging." It added that the rescuers had all returned by 10 a.m.

Per the Facebook post, the hiker said they "lost the trail around nightfall and spent the night searching for the trail, and once on the trail, bounced around onto different trails trying to locate the proper trailhead."

The missing hiker reached their car the next morning, about 24 hours after setting out for the day hike. The person apparently was unaware a search-and-rescue operation was underway - and had declined phone calls from the officials.

"One notable take-away is that the subject ignored repeated phone calls from us because they didn't recognize the number," the Facebook post said. "If you're overdue according to your itinerary, and you start getting repeated calls from an unknown number, please answer the phone; it may be a SAR team trying to confirm you're safe!"

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