Vladimir Petrovich Kostenko, 41, disappeared from a remote cabin in Hatcher Pass, Alaska, after being last seen on November 3, 2018. An immigrant from Russia described by family as being on a spiritual quest, he had hiked deep into Purches Creek Valley the previous summer and was intentionally living in solitude with minimal supplies. Friends flying over on November 3 dropped two buckets of food and reported seeing him outside; after that, sporadic texts stopped.

By late December friends and a chartered helicopter found the cabin sealed and tidy but empty, with a metal sheet nailed over the door. A handwritten Russian phrase, frankincense aroma — do not burn, was inside, and one food bucket from the December drop was found, suggesting he had been there after November 3. The last cell phone ping on December 3 placed him possibly miles from the cabin but was not precise. An apparent mid-December flight record for his name proved to be a mistaken identity. Alaska State Troopers searched the valley with no trace of Kostenko. He was reportedly fasting and lacked winter clothing, which raised concern that he may have tried to hike out and encountered trouble.

Did anyone in the Hatcher Pass area encounter a man matching Kostenko’s description or see evidence of someone traveling on foot that autumn?