Minnesota Hiker Disappears in Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains, Leaving Wife Struggling to be Strong for Their Children

A hiker from Minnesota has been missing for over a week after vanishing in Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains, with his wife expressing that she is “trying to stay strong for the kids.”

Grant Gardner reached out to his wife on July 29, informing her that he had reached the summit of the 13,000-foot Cloud Peak, but there has been no contact since, according to the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office. The authorities commenced a search and rescue mission under what they referred to as “extreme and very challenging” conditions.

“He hikes alone and has been doing so for over ten years,” his wife Lauren Gardner told Cowboy State Daily. “He’s accustomed to this and pays great attention to detail.”

“The entire situation feels surreal,” she reportedly added. “I’m in shock, I think, but trying to remain strong for the kids. This has never occurred in all the years he’s been hiking. He knows what he’s doing and has the skills. I’m just holding onto hope right now.”

The search for Grant Gardner has included the use of helicopters. (Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office)

“The search is developing rapidly and continues in the Cloud Peak Wilderness area. Alongside high altitude and terrain challenges, adverse weather patterns such as winds, thunder, and lightning storms have complicated search efforts at different times of the day,” the Sheriff’s Office mentioned in a recent update on the search.

“Search and rescue teams from South Big Horn County, Sheridan County, Johnson County, Washakie County, and Park County Wyoming, in addition to rotor aircraft from First Flight of Wyoming, the Wyoming Army National Guard, and private aircraft” are contributing to the search effort, they also noted.

Grant Gardner’s wife Lauren told Cowboy State Daily “he’s been hiking for over a decade.” (Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office)

“The Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office is requesting anyone who may have had contact with Gardner, please report to the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office at 307-568-2324 or the Wyoming Missing Person Tip line on the Wyoming DCI website,” police said.