Searchers a match for our mountains

An empty vehicle parked at a popular spot is the only thing searchers had to go on last week in their search for Leslie Lee Gray.

The 51-year-old Sun Valley resident sold the home she'd bought new in 1998 on March 25 and left town.

Her car was spotted March 31 near Hangman's Bridge in Alpine County. According to authorities, no one has come forward with an explanation of what she was doing there. However, we know a couple of spots we'd want to say goodbye to if we were leaving the state, and Markleeville's not a bad one.

No witnesses have come forward to say what happened after she parked her car. It's not unusual for hikers to park a car there for a few days, so its presence wasn't suspicious until Sunday, when the search began.

For five days searchers from five counties walked, rode along, floated and flew the area where Gray's car was found.

The keys were still in her car and she had food in her cooler. It's as though she only planned to be gone a moment.

Searchers found lots of footprints, but they didn't have anyway of knowing what shoes she was wearing. Without any clues or signs of what happened, the search was suspended.

We know searchers tried their best to find Gray because we could hear their radio traffic.

The folks who go out and look for people missing in the wilderness are for the most part volunteers. Their willingness to spend five days wandering the wilderness is a comfort to us.

We applaud them for their hard work and dedication.