View Full Version : Hikers find frozen body near Roan Mountain trail
Hikers found the frozen body of a man missing possibly since Nov. 28th near the summit of Grassy Ridge Bald. No details have emerged from Mitchell County authorities as of yet. Sad thing is, I went right past where this man was possibly laying three weeks ago in a heavy snowsquall and very cold temps on my way to Overmountain. Prayers to his family!
That's such a sad & tragic story. Any word on a family?
Reports say that the body is possibly the man missing from TN since Nov. 28th. No names have been stated until next of kin are notified.
Tennessee Viking
12-28-2008, 00:27
Roan is definitely not a safe place during a snow storm being such an exposed mountain top.
My family and I just did a driveby over Carvers Gap and saw the Missing Person signs.
If the guy was on the southern edge of Grassy Ridge that can explain why he was missing so long. Most people just go up to the rocks & plaque on the summit.
It was VERY VERY cold and blowing snow when I was up there the week of the 1st. There were drifts in some places near Stan Murray that were knee deep. The wind was relentless and even while going full steam, I had to layer down in my down jacket. The cold was brutal!
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 21:44
Sorry if this has already been posted:
Hikers found a frozen body Friday afternoon on Roan Mountain in Mitchell County, and authorities are investigating the death:
http://citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008812280355
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 21:46
Another story:
"ROAN MOUNTAIN — Hikers found a frozen body Friday afternoon on Roan Mountain in Mitchell County, N.C., and authorities are investigating the death.
A wallet on the man contained a Tennessee driver’s license belonging to Thomas William Shell, who had been reported missing out of Washington County on Dec. 1. According to the report, Shell had been missing since Nov. 29.
The hikers called 911 about 2 p.m., Mitchell County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Donald Street said. Authorities and first responders arrived and found the man’s body near the Grassy Creek Bald Trail, near the Tennessee-North Carolina border.
Since then a search has been conducted by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, working with the U.S. Forestry Service, Carter County Sheriff’s Office, Carter County Rescue Squad Search and Rescue Team, and Washington County EMS Search and Rescue Team.
The body was sent to Chapel Hill, N.C., for an autopsy and positive ID.
Authorities said there were no signs of foul play."
http://timesnews.net/article.php?id=9010692
Cabin Fever
12-30-2008, 22:03
Another story:
"ROAN MOUNTAIN — Hikers found a frozen body Friday afternoon on Roan Mountain in Mitchell County, N.C., and authorities are investigating the death.
A wallet on the man contained a Tennessee driver’s license belonging to Thomas William Shell, who had been reported missing out of Washington County on Dec. 1. According to the report, Shell had been missing since Nov. 29.
The hikers called 911 about 2 p.m., Mitchell County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Donald Street said. Authorities and first responders arrived and found the man’s body near the Grassy Creek Bald Trail, near the Tennessee-North Carolina border.
Since then a search has been conducted by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, working with the U.S. Forestry Service, Carter County Sheriff’s Office, Carter County Rescue Squad Search and Rescue Team, and Washington County EMS Search and Rescue Team.
The body was sent to Chapel Hill, N.C., for an autopsy and positive ID.
Authorities said there were no signs of foul play."
http://timesnews.net/article.php?id=9010692
And I threw the Times News away today thinking nothing was in it. Did they mean the Grassy Ridge Bald Trail and not Grassy Creek? I have never heard of Grassy Creek.
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 22:13
And I threw the Times News away today thinking nothing was in it. Did they mean the Grassy Ridge Bald Trail and not Grassy Creek? I have never heard of Grassy Creek.
I feel sure that's Grassy Ridge, I found another story:
The Associated Press
Published: December 30, 2008
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn.
A human body has been found frozen along a North Carolina trail.
Hikers found the body on Friday on Roan Mountain in Mitchell County, N.C.
Authorities said a wallet found on the body contained the Tennessee driver's license of Thomas William Shell, who had been missing from Washington County since Nov. 29.
Mitchell County Chief Deputy Donald Street told the Johnson City Press the remains were found along Grassy Bald Trail near the Tennessee-North Carolina border.
The body was sent to Chapel Hill, N.C., for an autopsy and positive identification.
Police said there were no signs of foul play."
http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2008/dec/30/hikers-find-body-roan-mountain/
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 22:16
Last one, from the Elizabethton Star:
"
News Stories
Body found by hikers on Roan Mountain
From Staff Reports
Authorities suspect the body found Friday on a clearing on Roan Mountain is that of a Washington County man who had been missing since late November.
According to Washington County Sheriff Ed Graybeal, hikers found the body in the Grassy Ridge Bald area in Mitchell County, N.C. with a wallet belonging to 52-year-old Thomas William Shell, who was reported missing Nov. 29 from his home at 134 Union Church Road in Jonesborough.
Shell's black Toyota pickup truck was found on Dec. 9 in the Carvers Gap area of Roan Mountain, where it had been parked since Dec. 3.
Shell reportedly did not have his medication with him and had a history of depression, the onset of Alzheimer's and other medical conditions.
Graybeal said no signs of foul play were evident to investigators at the scene where the man was found.
The body was sent to Chapel Hill, N.C. for an autopsy and positive identification."
http://www.starhq.com/news/html/news/articles/articles.asp?day=Tuesday&article=nw-thomasshellbody.html
Cabin Fever
12-30-2008, 22:22
I don't want to start a ton of speculation, but I wander if he got up there, got disoriented and got caught in a typical Roan Highlands storm. We (TEHCC) had a couple of guys up there last weekend hiking.
Ron Haven
12-30-2008, 22:25
So Sad,
If anyone out there knows him does he have a trail name?
this thread is on the same guy i think
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=44528
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 22:27
Cabin Fever:
According the the Elizabethton Star:
"Shell reportedly did not have his medication with him and had a history of depression, the onset of Alzheimer's and other medical conditions."
There was also a bitter cold snap late Nov./early Dec.
Jan LiteShoe
12-30-2008, 22:28
this thread is on the same guy i think
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=44528
Thanks, Gaiter, maybe the mods can merge the threads.
No Belay
12-30-2008, 22:42
Sometimes when I look at person's life situation, i.e. poor health, Alzheimer's, etc., I think back to a scene in "Little Big Man". The village Chief and Dustin Hoffman go up the mountain because according to the Chief "This is a good day to die." I hope I have the privilege of making that choice.
double j
12-30-2008, 23:18
well guys his wife works with me , at exide .from my understading he wondered off all the time.I dont think he was a hiker.
double j
12-30-2008, 23:23
he was 60 yrs old and had health problems . he did have alzheimers
D'Artagnan
12-31-2008, 13:53
Sad to hear of their loss. I hope they find peace.
So sad.
When I went through there earlier this year the fog was so bad that visibility was less than 20', with minimal landmarks & poor visibility I can see that it would be very easy to get disoriented in a very short time up there. I suspect that even a few feet off the trail I would have had a hard time finding my way back if I had not paid extra attention to where I was in relation to the trail. So add in even a little Alzheirmers & it's a bad situation all around.
boarstone
12-31-2008, 21:25
My prayers and thoughts are w/his family...sad to hear, hard to bear...I've been there...
boarstone
12-31-2008, 21:27
...let me expound...in where his wife is at a loss over her loss.. of her love...
If you look at my last posted photos that I took up there that weekend he went missing, you can see it was well below zero temps, I am going to research my photos because I think I remember seeing his pickup truck parked in the parking area. I took some looking back toward Carvers Gap from Round Bald. I only hope that when I went past that area that he was not still alive or suffering, that would be a horrible feeling to deal with. But the conditions going in were bad. High winds and blowing snow and the trail was nothing but ice. Prayers to him and his family.
berninbush
01-01-2009, 06:00
Shell's black Toyota pickup truck was found on Dec. 9 in the Carvers Gap area of Roan Mountain, where it had been parked since Dec. 3.
I am going to research my photos because I think I remember seeing his pickup truck parked in the parking area.
Can't help but notice the date the truck was known to have been parked there, December 3, is several days after he went missing on Nov. 28th. I am assuming that nobody saw the truck ARRIVE on the 3rd, and they just mean that's the first day they have documentation it was there. Joey, if you've got a photo of the truck parked there before that, it might be helpful to the authorities in reconstructing what happened.
As others have said, it's very tragic and I will pray for his family.
Can't help but notice the date the truck was known to have been parked there, December 3, is several days after he went missing on Nov. 28th. I am assuming that nobody saw the truck ARRIVE on the 3rd, and they just mean that's the first day they have documentation it was there. Joey, if you've got a photo of the truck parked there before that, it might be helpful to the authorities in reconstructing what happened.
As others have said, it's very tragic and I will pray for his family.
Going to get the disk developed today. If it is there, I will call up there and let them know. I went that Saturday morning the first weekend. I got to talking to a group from my hometown up there and really did not pay that close attention to detail as I normally do. But there were a few pickups including mine up there. But I figure that the days prior to my hike out there and the cold that hit the region, he had already passed before I went through. Still sad though.