Samaritan Search and Rescue

In June of 2020, ultrarunner Jeremy Humphrey used his intimate knowledge of his local mountain range to rescue a missing hiker.

- ZOE GATES

From high on the ridge, I raised my binoculars and scanned the jumble of fallen trees and granite slabs below. A few blackened trunks stood bare from a wildfire that tore through this part of Idaho 20 years ago, and scorched timber littered the landscape like piles of toothpicks. I’d already run 17 miles over these blowdowns today, and fatigue was beginning to set in. “Laura!” I shouted into the valley. No response.

I’d woken up early this morning planning to go on a long run along the Crestline, the chain of mountains near my home in McCall, Idaho. As I suited up for my run, my wife showed me a Facebook post from the local sheriff’s office: A hiker was missing in the area. I was headed out anyway, so I figured I might as well help search.