On November 15, 2015, an 82-year-old avid hunter named Thomas Messick disappeared in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. A former paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division, Messick was a seasoned outdoorsman who had taught survival skills for many years. On that Sunday, he was part of a seven-person hunting party, comprised of friends and family, in the Lake George Wild Forest near Lily Pond in Horicon.
Due to his age and recent health issues, including a bout of shingles and a history of heart problems, Messick's role was to be a 'watcher.' He was to remain in a stationary position while younger members of the group attempted to drive deer toward him. He was last seen around 10:00 AM, equipped with a camouflage jacket and pants, a distinct red and black checkered hat, a rifle, and a walkie-talkie.
The hunting party had agreed to meet at a specific location at 2:00 PM, but Messick never arrived. His companions began a search, and when they could not find him by 4:30 PM, they alerted forest rangers. The initial search by rangers continued until midnight. In the days and weeks that followed, the search intensified into one of the largest in the region's recent history, involving over 300 searchers from various agencies, including the New York State Police, the Department of Environmental Conservation, and the FBI. The exhaustive effort covered an estimated 29 square miles of rugged terrain. Search teams utilized helicopters, K-9 units, and even divers to scour Lily Pond, but found no trace of Messick or any of his belongings. The search was particularly baffling because Messick was a skilled woodsman who, his wife believed, would have left signs like pieces of his clothing to mark his trail if he had become lost.
Despite the extensive and prolonged search efforts, which logged over 10,000 hours, not a single clue to Thomas Messick's whereabouts has ever been discovered. No footprints, no discarded equipment, and no sign of his rifle or walkie-talkie were ever found. The terrain included some caves, crevices, and old mine remnants, but searches of these areas also yielded nothing. Some members of the search party reported hearing an unexplainable 'metallic snapping sound' in the woods during the early days of the search, adding another layer of mystery to the case. The complete lack of evidence has left his family and investigators without answers. The official search was eventually downgraded, though limited searches and training exercises continue to be conducted in the area. The disappearance of Thomas Messick remains an unsolved and deeply puzzling case, a story of a man who seemingly vanished without a trace from the wilderness he knew so well.Last Seen: Nov 15, 2015
