Yi-Jien Hwa, 27, of both Kentucky and Malaysia, was due back on Monday, Aug. 18. When he did not call family as planned, park rangers were alerted, said Glacier spokeswoman Norma Sosa.
“A lot of the evidence still doesn't seem to make sense,” she said. “He was last seen at St. Mary, but then his car was found at Logan Pass. We have his hiking itinerary, but nothing about this provides us any idea of where he really went.”
Park officials conducted an initial sweep along those trails Wednesday, Sosa said, talking with hikers and campers along the way.
“But no one had seen him,” she said. “That's hard to explain at this point.”
On Thursday, about two dozen searchers worked the ground, including four dog teams on loan from the U.S. Border Patrol. They focused primarily on the Floral Park area, Sosa said.
“The National Park Service is very concerned about the safety and condition of Mr. Hwa,” said incident commander Patrick Suddath, “and we are doing everything possible to locate him. We are exploring every possible lead, and we are ruling nothing out.”
Low clouds, rain and fog grounded search planes Thursday, but Sosa said a predicted break in the weather should allow an expanded search Friday and into the weekend.
Sosa said she knew little about Hwa, except that “he has backpacking experience. This wasn't his first trip. What I don't know is if any of that experience has been in Glacier.”
Several backpacking Web sites include posts and gear reviews from a Yi-Jien Hwa, who lists his home in Kentucky and Malaysia. That person characterizes himself as 27 years old, 6-foot-1 and 160 pounds, a match with the missing hiker.
“I backpacked a few times in high school and college, but only got ‘into it' (OK, I'm a little obsessed) last year,” Hwa wrote on one message board. “I'm a busy seminary student, but whenever we can, my wife and I hike in Kentucky's Red River Gorge. Thus far, we've hiked Isle Royale, Hawaii's Big Island, the Smokey Mountains and are planning several trips this summer.”
He also talked about hiking portions of the famed Appalachian Trail.
In another post, Hwa mentioned leading youth groups on backcountry hikes, and noted that “in August and September my wife and I will be backpacking in the Theodore Roosevelt, Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Zion and Grand Canyon National Parks.”
He also commented that he's a student at Asbury Theological Seminary, located in Wilmore, Ky., and his Facebook page lists friends in both Kentucky and Malaysia.
Staff at Asbury Seminary confirmed Yi-Jien Hwa is enrolled there, but had not heard whether their student was the missing man.
Online, the seminary student listed his interests as including “storm clouds, autumn leaves, theology, human beings, sunsets, philosophy, long meandering walks, golden evenings, international politics, soul-forming, saving the earth from ourselves, photography, and beauty in every form.”
Former students from the seminary confirmed their friend Hwa is on a hiking trip in the West, but they, too, had not heard if he'd gone missing.
Park officials said Hwa was hiking alone, carrying a blue Kelty backpack and trekking poles. He may be wearing dark clothing - either blue, black or green.
Anyone with information should call park rangers at (406) 888-7801.
This marks the first large-scale search of the park's 2008 summer season.
Reporter Michael Jamison can be reached at 1-800-366-7186 or at mjamison@missoulian.com.
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