Case file · Anomaly hotspot
Samuel Boehlke, Crater Lake
An 8-year-old boy ran into the forest near the Cleetwood Cove trailhead at Crater Lake on 14 October 2006 and was never found.
2006 CE · 42.98, -122.08 · status: unexplained
The account
Sammie Boehlke of the Portland area was sightseeing with his father when he ran off into the trees. More than 200 searchers went out, but early snowstorms hampered the work and covered tracks. The only find was an old deflated balloon, thought to be litter. Multi-agency searches with dogs were held again in later years without result. He is listed as endangered missing by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The sceptical view
Snow fell within hours; the crater rim and forest have steep drops and deep cover.
Connections in the atlas
- Charles McCullar, Crater Lake
- Derrick Engebretson, Winema National Forest
- Robert Koester, 'Lost Person Behavior'
- 'Missing 411' and Yosemite