The shockingly weird disappearance of Terrence Woods
Terrence Shemel Woods Jr., disappeared October 5, 2018, Penman Mine, Idaho.
Thanks to the team at Locations Unknown for the details around this story. You can hear their podcast here.
On October 5th, 2018, 27-year-old Terrence Shemel Woods, a freelance filmmaker, was working with a production company, filming a reality show at Penman Mine in Western Idaho. Whilst the crew was wrapping up, Terrence jumped off a cliff and sprinted into the thick mountain forest stunning the entire crew. Before anyone could respond, Terrence had disappeared without a trace.
On the same day, Connie Johnson, disappeared in strange circumstances from Fog Mountain in Idaho, around 56 miles to the north.
Connie Johnson, Fog Mountain disappearance October 5, 2018
On Sunday, October 7, at approximately 5.30 pm, the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office was advised of another missing person. 42-year-old Jose Mendez-Morales of Tacoma, Washington left his residence and was going to Elk City, Idaho. Jose checked in with his family from Grangeville on September 25th, but no one has heard from him since. He normally checks in every three days. Jose is believed to be driving a red and white Ford F-250 with Washington license plate A84361P.
Penman Mine is located in the Orogrande area which is part of the larger Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest. It's in Idaho County, a mountainous 8,500 square mile region of Western Idaho. Nez Perce is a 2,224,091-acre US National Forest located in west-central Idaho and is made up of 4 separate wilderness areas.
The Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests are located in the heart of north-central Idaho. They stretch from the Oregon border on the west to the Montana border on the east and are bounded by the Idaho Panhandle National Forest on the north to the Salmon River on the south. They are located within the Latah, Nez Perce, Idaho, Clearwater, and Lewis counties.
The Forest was the traditional home of the Ni Mii Puu, who were later named the Nez Perce Indians by the Lewis and Clark expeditions. To show respect to the Nez Perce Tribe, the name Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests was chosen when the forests were administratively combined in 2012.
The Nez Perce National Forest was created by Executive Order No. 854 signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. That Order, which became effective July 1, 1908, established the Forest from lands given up by the Bitter Root and Weiser National Forests. On October 29, 1934 part of Selway National Forest was added by Executive Order No. 6889.
The Clearwater National Forest was created by Executive Order No. 842 signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. That Order, which became effective July 1, 1908, established the Forest from lands given up by the Coeur d'Alene National Forest and Bitterroot National Forest. On October 29, 1934 part of Selway National Forest was added by Executive Order No. 6889.
The mountains in this forest provide wildlife habitats for timber wolves, raccoons, moose, black bears, coyotes, cougars, elk, and other forest animals.
The terrain is very mountainous in the 5k to 7k range and thick with multi-year deadfalls of large trees, making travel by foot difficult in areas.
Terrence grew up in Capitol Heights, Maryland, with his parents and three siblings and was a University of Maryland graduate. He lived in London for several years, attending the American International University, before moving back to the USA in 2018. He was an experienced journalist who had traveled the world working on documentaries and television shows, often working in tough situations whilst filming.
His father said he had no history of panic attacks or psychiatric issues such as depression.
He appeared to have been prepared for the wilderness shoot. His parents were given his backpack that he had left at the site - inside it was a couple of camera bags, batteries, sharpie pens, over-the-counter painkillers, and cough drops, hand cream, iPhone charger, a three-inch folding tactical knife, and a stun gun.
He’d been on several different rugged wilderness shoots prior to this including Turkey & Alaska, so he has experience in the backcountry and this section of Idaho but never in the location of the mine.
Friends say he didn’t really want to go on this trip, based on text messages before he left. Friends weren’t shocked by the comments but thought it was unusual after the fact. They said his behavior on this shoot didn’t match what he was like in normal life.
Minute By Minute Chronological breakdown of events
Fall 2018: Terrence got a freelance job working for London-based Raw TV, the production company for the popular Discovery Channel show Gold Rush. The shoot required Terrence to be out in the Western United States, specifically Montana & Idaho, for several weeks, starting on 10/1/2018 and concluding in the second week of November. They were making a TV series about an abandoned gold mine called the Penman Mine (elevation about 6,000 feet), located in the Orogrande area of the Nez Perce Clearwater National Forest. Including Terrence, the crew consisted of 12 people.
9/30/2018 -Terrence Sr. dropped Terrence off at the airport in Maryland - this would be the last time he would see his son.
10/1/2018 to 10/5/2018—From landing at the airport to Friday morning (10/5), Terrence was in Montana. During this time, Terrence was in good spirits, texting his dad pictures of the scenery and telling him everything was fine.
10:58 PM Idaho Time 10/4/18 (Thursday) 12:58 PM Maryland time: Terrence sent his dad a text - the text read - “Hey dad, Just got to the hotel in Idaho.”
12:58 AM Idaho Time 10/5/18 (Early Friday Morning) 2:58 AM Maryland time: Terrence texts his dad a video of a serene river cutting its way through a rocky canyon. The text had no locator or words and no clues. Later, during an investigation by a Washington DC news outlet, a reporter who saw the video remarked how it seemed creepy and foreboding.
3:00 AM Idaho Time 10/5/18 - 5:00 AM Maryland time: Terrence calls his dad to tell him that he made it here and is ok. Not much more was said and his dad said let’s talk more later in the day. The film crew was using Elk City, Idaho, as a base of operation.
5:44 AM Idaho Time 10/5/18 Terrence texts his dad again and said, “I’m coming home on Wednesday the 10th (10/10/18). (This would be cutting the trip short by several weeks - something Terrence has never done). Terrence was supposed to be in Idaho working on the documentary until mid-November.
3:00 PM Idaho Time 10/5/18: Terrence Sr. texts Terrence back, but the crew is already in the middle of an all-day shoot in a remote area a few hours from the hotel with no cell service. Terrence Sr. isn’t sure if Terrence ever saw the text.
October 5th, 2018 (Late afternoon/Early Evening:
On October 5, the crew spent the day filming in the mountainous area of Penman Mine. What happens next is unexplainable, according to the on-site production manager, Simon, who later recalls what happened to Terrence Sr.
Simon recalls, “So we were finishing up for the day and your son was talking to one of the miners. I was in one of the vehicles doing some work when your son told the miner that he had to go relieve himself. Something told me, kind of like a gut feeling, to look over near the cliff your son was at, when I looked over there all I saw was the radio lying on the ground. I originally thought your son fell off the cliff so I leaped out of the vehicle and ran over there immediately. To my shock, your son was already 15 feet down the cliff running like a hare. I’ve never seen anyone run that fast. At that point, I yelled to the crew to get in a vehicle and go to the main road. I proceeded down the cliff after your son but he kept running. Due to my professional SAR training, I stopped running after him out of fear he’d be further scared. So I went back topside and the crew hadn’t found your son on the main road. At this point, we found the first house with a phone and reported your son missing. “
A local woman from Elk City who was with the film crew (Sheree) eventually corroborated the story that Simon told, and local law enforcement stated she was a very reliable witness.
Terrence was reportedly acting strangely and was noticeably quiet. It is also reported that his cell phone was with him at the time he ran into the wilderness.
6:41 PM 10/5/18 (911 call log transcript from the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office)
It reads, “Advise that a male Terrence Woods. 27 from London. Works for a TV company that was creating a movie in the area of Penman mine. Never been in the woods. No guns. Terrence has been having a really hard time emotionally and had a mental breakdown earlier today. Dark complexion and light clothes. Terrence is not going to respond back to responders, per the reporter. Terrence does not have communication. There are people searching for him now.”
10/6/2018 - Saturday Morning
Simon calls Terrence Sr. to tell him his son is missing. In addition to giving a detailed account of what happened to Terrence Jr., Simon mentions some issues he had with Terrence leading up to his disappearance.
Simon said, “Terrence came highly recommended to us and was our first pick. When I met your son, you know he didn’t live up to my standards - well, I asked him to do different things, and he didn’t know what to do. He said there were other things your son did not do that I didn’t like.”
10/5/2018 Evening to 10/11/18: A massive search and rescue operation involving multiple counties and law enforcement agencies kicked off. Search crews on ATVs circled the area, multiple dog teams set out in the search area, and a helicopter with heat-sensing technology was in the air. There were also crews on horseback. However, search conditions were extremely difficult due to the rugged terrain. One searcher commented, “You couldn't even walk through there, all the downed trees and the brush.” By mid-week - heavy rain and snow in the high mountains hampered the helicopter search.
After seven days of searching, the Idaho County Sheriff’s Department started to scale the search back on 10/11/18 after nothing had been found regarding Terrence.
It was reported that at some point during the search, law enforcement officials went to Simon’s room to make sure it was locked. However, people from the crew had already been in his room to supposedly get articles of clothing for the tracking dogs.
It’s also been reported by the news media that law enforcement never asked for Terrence’s cell phone records and never did a search history of Terrence’s laptop. Both would have required going to a judge and getting a subpoena, which would require evidence of a crime or that he is endangered. Law enforcement officials concluded the evidence showed Terrence intended to disappear. Many were shocked this never happened. People familiar with cases like this said it would not have been hard to get the proper authority to do the searches.
In an interview, the local sheriff said that the guys working the SAR operation would tell you that Terrence was not in this area, the area that we searched. They determined that he slid down the bank and made it to the road. After that, they don’t know where he would have gone. They said if he was hurt or injured, they would have found him, and if he had done something fatal, the dogs would have found him.
However, another officer said he was shocked he could get out of the area. The forest floor is thick with deadfall lodgepole and Douglas furs that have toppled down on each other year after year. The officer described it as trying to run through giant pick-up sticks, with some parts so thick with deadfall that your feet would never touch the ground.
Search teams also found no prints in the fresh snow, and there was no indication whatsoever that Terrence was ever there.
Raw TV said “We can confirm that Terrence Woods, a member of one of our production teams, went missing on Friday, October 5, in Orogrande, Nez Perce National Forrest, Idaho. The Idaho County Sheriff’s Office was immediately informed, and they implemented a Search and Rescue operation.
Mr. Woods is a well-liked, valued member of the production team. We have been working closely with the Sheriff’s Office, which has been leading the search. Mr Woods’ family is in direct contact with the Sheriff’s Office. All inquiries regarding the status of the search should be directed to the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office.”
Official and unofficial Theories
What does law enforcement think happened:
Possible panic attack or mental breakdown. But there are conflicting reports of who said this. Some reports said he had to be detained before his disappearance but later accounts said it was a debrief on the wildlife in the area not detained. Law enforcement said he wanted to get lost.
In an interview, the sheriff said there are about 2 people per square mile and 8,500 square miles, so there are only 16,000 people total. This is a very large, unpopulated area where you could easily go missing.
What do family and friends think happened:
The parents suspect foul play, especially as the production crew and sheriff’s office were very unhelpful. They think he was in an uncomfortable situation and trying to get away. The parents hinted at race playing a role. The father went on a radio station, and this topic came up. The detective on the case responded via email, explicitly denying race played any role in their investigation of Terrence. The detective further stated they were no longer going to communicate with Mr Woods.
Terrence Woods' older sister, Sharnia Tisdale, says her brother is a bright man who is ambitious and kind and loving. She says the activity Idaho County Police described is completely out of the ordinary.
"I talked to him before he went out there and he seemed fine. He was going to go out and do a job with the film crew and he was going to come home, nothing abnormal and he wasn't acting different. We talk all the time."
“He is not the type of person that would just run off or do anything like this, so it seems unusual to me but you know I wasn't there so I can only go by what they are saying”.
"He's traveled around the world he really likes to do tv, he is a loving person and caring and an all-around good person."
Scenarios
Suicide/mental breakdown. Terrence mentioned in his journal the “great reset” where he said he was tired of traveling was ready to head back home and settle down. Several entries in his journal about being tired of London life and all the travel. Law enforcement dismissed the journal as indecipherable rants and gave it back to his parents.
Drug Use - no mention of any of this in the research or reporting
Afraid of a crew member, based on possible texts to his dad.
Exposure or terminal burrowing - It would absolutely be too cold at night without gear in October. Perhaps he had gone to kill himself, maybe changed his mind but was lost and succumbed to the elements. Most people have heard about paradoxical undressing, but a common problem for searchers is the fact that when people are hurt or about to die they will almost burrow or hunker down into hard-to-see places. It's called terminal burrowing.
Animal Attack
Murder by one of the crew: Due to the high-profile nature of the show this seems unlikely.
Call of the void, also known as high place phenomenon (HPP), since people often feel it when standing somewhere high up. You could also experience this type of impulse when doing other things that involve a high risk of danger. For example, the call of the void can involve thoughts or urges to jerk the steering wheel and turn into oncoming traffic while driving. jump into very deep water from a boat or bridge, stand on train or subway tracks or jump in front of a train, cut yourself when holding a knife or other sharp object. When these urges come up, you quickly counter them, telling yourself you’d never do that. You know what would happen in any of those scenarios. But you still think about doing it, however quickly the thought passes
Panic in the Woods - According to the blog The Paranormal Guide, Panic in the Woods has been associated with the Pagan God Pan, protector of wild places, whose unseen presence inspires causeless terror. Victims experience an overwhelming feeling of paranoia, such as a sinister force nearby, and sense imminent danger. This usually leads the person to flee the area, desperately seeking out civilization. One curiously common characteristic of panic is, that people often describe that the woodlands will go completely silent, deafening the witness before the loud pitch sound sets in a few moments later. Deafening silence and paranoia in the woods are related to the real-life cryptid Goatman and another group of paranormal monsters, known as Skinwalkers. At least one article on the phenomenon has been written for Fortean Times Magazine by Patrick Harpur, titled Landscapes of Panic. The behavior is a common post on many paranormal forums and message boards.
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Read more strange stories from Idaho
The tragic disappearance and deaths of Jo Elliott-Blakeslee and Amy Linkert in Idaho
The Strange disappearance of Connie Johnson from Big Fog Mountain
The unexplained disappearance of Susan Seymour Adams
The strange disappearance and death of Todd Hofflander in Hells Canyon
The controversial disappearance of DeOrr Kunz Jr
The strange disappearance of Fern Baird from the Prairie Peak Trail in Idaho
Sources
https://locationsunknown.podbean.com/e/ep-23-terrence-woods-nez-perce-clearwater-national-forest-idaho/
https://idahonews.com/news/local/terrence-woods-sister-says-actions-led-up-to-disappearance-completely-out-of-ordinary
https://katu.com/news/nation-world/gone-without-a-trace-idaho-co-sheriff-gives-reason-for-calling-off-missing-people-search
https://medium.com/true-crime-by-cat-leigh/filmmaker-runs-into-woods-and-vanishes-e9eba4cc1f42
