Father and Daughter Vanished on Mount Hooker — 11 Years Later, a Discovery Changed Everything… | HO

LANDER, WYOMING — In the heart of Wyoming’s Wind River Range, Mount Hooker rises in silent, granite defiance. Its sheer faces and unpredictable weather have lured and humbled climbers for decades. But for over eleven years, the mountain harbored a secret: the fate of Colin Redford and his daughter Riley, who vanished during a routine summer climb in 2013.

Their disappearance would become one of the most haunting unsolved mysteries in the American West—until a chance discovery in 2024 finally revealed the truth, and left a legacy that would change backcountry search and rescue forever.

The Disappearance

On a late August morning in 2013, Colin Redford, a 45-year-old structural engineer and meticulous climber, set out with his 19-year-old daughter Riley for what was meant to be a final father-daughter adventure before she returned to college. Both were experienced, safety-conscious, and well-equipped. Their destination: Mount Hooker, a daunting but familiar challenge for Colin, who had summited it before.

Before leaving, Colin set a strict check-in time with his wife, Heather: 7:00 p.m., two days later. If she didn’t hear from him, she was to alert authorities. The plan seemed foolproof.

But when the check-in time passed with no word, Heather’s worry mounted. Another day went by. Still nothing. On the second night, she called the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office and triggered a search that would grow into one of the most extensive in Wyoming’s history.

The Search

Deputy Miles Corbin was the first to investigate. He found the Redfords’ dark green Ford F-150 at the Big Sandy trailhead, parked as if its owners would return at any moment. Inside, he discovered something deeply troubling: two fully charged satellite phones, left behind in the glove compartment. For a man as cautious as Colin, abandoning his only link to the outside world was unthinkable—unless something had already gone terribly wrong.

The search escalated rapidly. Helicopters, ground teams, and volunteers fanned out across the rugged terrain. For ten days, they scoured every known route and campsite. But the weather turned suddenly, with an early-season storm dumping snow and sleet over the mountains. Searchers were forced to retreat. No trace of Colin or Riley was found

As days turned into weeks, hope faded. Colin’s climbing partner, Declan Hayes, led his own team of elite climbers to probe obscure and undocumented lines—routes only someone with Colin’s instincts might attempt. Still, nothing surfaced. The Redfords had vanished without a trace, swallowed by the mountain’s silence.

Years of Questions and Rumors

For Heather and the Redford family, the pain of not knowing was compounded by years of false leads and cruel speculation. In 2016, a hiker discovered a climbing nut in a remote creek matching Colin’s preferred gear, but it lacked identifying marks and led nowhere.

Then, in 2020, an anonymous online post suggested Colin had staged the disappearance to escape financial troubles, even harming Riley in the process. The rumor went viral, forcing investigators to review Colin’s records. They found no evidence of fraud, desperation, or escape planning. The theory was baseless, but the damage was done. The Redfords’ reputation—and their memory—was left in limbo.

The Breakthrough

Eleven years later, the answers came not from law enforcement, but from two young climbers: Ava Monroe and Liam Bishop. Known for their bold, technical ascents, the pair set out in the summer of 2024 to chart a new route on Mount Hooker’s unexplored southern face.

Days into their climb, they noticed a rusted bolt and, further on, a weathered portal ledge—an ancient, suspended camp setup dangling thousands of feet above the ground. Inside: a faded sleeping bag, coiled rope, a dry bag, and something no climber ever wants to find—a human skull.

They snapped photos, marked their GPS location, and descended in silence. Ava’s voice trembled as she called 911: “We found a body. We think it might be the missing climbers.”

The Recovery

Within 24 hours, a specialized rescue team was airlifted to the site. Navigating the treacherous wall, they recovered the remains and gear. Dental records quickly confirmed the identity: Colin Redford. But there was no sign of Riley.

Among the items was a crushed red dry sack containing two waterlogged journals and a dead GoPro camera. One journal, miraculously preserved, was Colin’s. His final entries, dated August 21–24, 2013, told a story of bad weather, a knee injury, and dwindling hope. The last line chilled investigators: “Riley left this morning. Said she’d go for help. I stayed. My knee can’t move.”

The Second Search

Colin’s journal upended everything. Riley had left the ledge alive, attempting a desperate descent to find help. Search teams launched a renewed effort, this time focusing on the southern bypass route Colin had documented—a treacherous line never included in the original search grid.

Two days in, a ranger found a rusted titanium bracelet tangled in mountain laurel, engraved “Colin & Riley, Hooker 2013.” It had been exposed by recent rockslides and melting snow. The search narrowed to a single ridgeline, and at the bottom of a narrow chute, beneath a slab of granite, they found what they’d feared: skeletal remains, partially protected by the stone.

Riley’s Final Climb

Next to the remains was a small, battered pack. Inside: a compass, two unopened energy bars, and a zippered pouch containing Riley’s notebook. Her early entries mirrored her father’s—route sketches, weather notes—but after August 24th, the tone shifted.

“Dad’s not doing well. His knee is worse. I’m scared to leave him, but he says I have to. I hate this mountain. I hate what it’s done to us.”

Her final entries, written with jagged, desperate handwriting, chronicled her struggle: a broken ankle, dwindling water, and the realization that she was close to the trail but unable to continue. Her last words: “Tell them we tried. Tell them I didn’t run. I wanted to live. Dad, I made it farther than we thought.”

Medical examiners concluded Riley had likely died of exposure three or four days after leaving Colin, having descended nearly 200 feet over dangerous terrain with no rope and a broken ankle—within sight of the trail.

Lessons Learned

The recovery of Colin and Riley Redford’s remains answered some questions, but raised others: How had such experienced climbers vanished so close to the original search area? The answer lay in assumptions, weather, and human error. Search teams in 2013 had focused on traditional routes, while Colin and Riley had taken an obscure southern traverse based on old maps and personal research. The early storm buried clues and rendered aerial searches useless. Their ledge, fogged and snowed over, blended into the rock face.

The final breakthrough came because Ava and Liam, like Colin, sought out the unknown. Their slow, deliberate ascent along a new line led them directly to the lost camp.

A Legacy Etched in Stone

After the case closed, Wyoming quietly rewrote its search and rescue protocols. Search grids now include speculative routes. AI-driven mapping systems analyze journals, GPS data, and even social media to predict risk paths. All unmarked cliffs in open cases are flagged for review.

But the most poignant discovery came in the summer of 2025, when Ava and Liam returned to honor the Redfords. Near the ledge, they found a faint inscription scratched into the granite: “We stayed together.” Experts believe Riley carved it before making her final descent—a simple, powerful testament to family and endurance.

Remembering the Redfords

Today, a plaque at the Mount Hooker trailhead honors Colin and Riley Redford: “Climbers. Dreamers. Explorers. They stayed together.” Their journals are used by young climbers as lessons in preparation, caution, and love for the wilderness. A nonprofit in Riley’s name, The Ledge Project, now supports girls entering outdoor sports.

Heather Redford, at peace at last, says, “They didn’t die because they were reckless. They died because they were human, and the mountain is unforgiving. But they never gave up—and they were never alone.”

Mount Hooker will always be a place of challenge and risk. But thanks to the Redfords, it is also a place of remembrance, resilience, and the enduring power of family.