Hiker texts wife from summit of Wyoming peak, then vanishes, cops say
CLARIFICATION: The Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday, Aug. 5, corrected an earlier news release about the time Grant Gardner reached the summit. It was 7 p.m.
The updated story is below.
A hiker has been missing for a week in Wyoming after last texting his wife he had reached the top of a mountain, deputies said.
Grant Gardner was last heard from at about 7 p.m. July 29 on Cloud Peak, the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office said in an Aug. 4 news release.
The Minnesota man had planned a three-day trek in the Misty Moon Lake area, deputies said.
Once he reached the top of the mountain, he texted his wife he was tired, and the “climb was more taxing than he expected,” deputies said.
But Gardner never returned home.
Authorities found his vehicle parked at the West Tensleep Trailhead and his name was written in the hiking log, deputies said.
Authorities also looked at his cell phone records, which confirmed he reached the summit at 7 p.m. July 29, deputies said. It appeared he was headed down to lower elevation for the night.
However, search teams were worried he summited the mountain so late at night, deputies said.
“The late summit of 7:00pm at 13,000 feet was and is concerning due to the lack of visible trails through cliffs, timber line, boulder fields, and other hazards that had to be navigated after dark before reaching clear trails and safe terrain,” the sheriff’s office said in an Aug. 5 post.
Multiple agencies have scoured the wilderness area for Gardner by foot and by air.
“It should be noted conditions are extreme and very challenging, at least two rescuers have suffered medical conditions,” deputies said.
As of Monday, Aug. 4, teams continued to look for Gardner, using Forward Looking Infrared Radar tracking cameras as storms rolled into the area.
Cloud Peak is in northern Wyoming.
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 11:02 AM with the headline "Hiker texts wife from summit of Wyoming peak, then vanishes, cops say."
