Joseph Lee Wood Jr was a 34-year-old book editor from New York City who traveled to Seattle in July 1999 for a journalism conference and took a day trip to Mount Rainier National Park on July 8. He was last seen that afternoon on the Van Trump Park trail near Comet Falls at about 4,800 feet, off the main trail and following footprints in the snow. Wood was lightly dressed for a single-day outing and carried binoculars and a field guide; he did not have overnight gear, food, or water.

His rental car was found in the Longmire parking lot with a sweater and a briefcase of clothes inside. A five-day search with up to 35 searchers, four dogs, and a helicopter turned up no trace of him, and heavy snow at higher elevations may have obscured tracks or created hazards such as snow bridges. Theories mentioned include getting lost, exposure, or an accident like falling through snow into a crevasse or stream, but no definitive explanation exists.

If anyone was on the Van Trump Park trail or near Comet Falls on July 8, 1999, or has information about Joseph’s movements that day, please come forward.