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Michael and Makana Von Gortlers unexplained deaths on Missouri Mountain

Dr Michael and Makana von Gortler Missouri Mountain disappearance

Dr. Michael and Makana von Gortler, Disappeared June 22, 2011, Bodies found June 27, 2011, Missouri mountain, Colorado.

Revised January 2024

Doctor Michael “Mike” von Gortler, a 53-year-old ER physician, and his daughter, Makana, were both keen hikers in Colorado and other parts of the United States.

Makana, Hawaiian for "gift," was a 20-year-old student at the University of Colorado and had recently graduated from Boulder High with honors. She studied ecology and evolutionary biology and hoped to be a Veterinary Surgeon.

The father and daughter headed for Missouri Mountain in Colorado on June 22, 2011. The weather was perfect that day, and there was no rain or wind in the area. Heading out for a trek on the mountain seemed to be a perfectly sensible thing to do.

The previous day, at 6.15 pm on June 21, Makana texted her boyfriend, Paul Kasemir, to tell him she was hiking up the Missouri mountain with her father and that they were due to return on June 23. Unfortunately, the von Gortlers were never seen alive again.

Missouri Mountain is a 14,074-foot (4,290 m) high mountain summit in the Collegiate Peaks of the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains of the USA. It is northwest by west of the Town of Buena Vista in Chaffee County, Colorado, and it is separated from its eastern neighbor Mount Belford by the Elkhead Pass.

Makana messaged Paul Kasemir and said, "I just got back to Buena Vista with my dad. I left my phone here, it’s on roaming so i cant talk. We had a great time and were gonna try a 14 er tmrw. Ill be able to see you in a few days, Ive missed you too."

The penultimate text message from Makana came very early on June 22 at 12.23 am. She texted, "Were hiking Mt Missouri tmrw, staying the night here and then driving back the 23rd. I will help my dad pack the next day, so I can see you the 25th and we can celebrate whatever month were in now." This was followed a minute later by her very last text, simply saying, "Love you so much."

Mike often went hiking in the mountains and was known to go off the beaten track. But he always carried emergency equipment with him. His daughter accompanied him on many of these trips. Both were experienced climbers, and Mike had even written articles about climbing techniques and safety.

The disappearance of the von Gortlers on Missouri Mountain

Makana's mother, Melani Holton, called the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office on Tuesday, June 26, to report her daughter missing after being concerned that she had not heard from her. Melani and Mike had been separated for some years.

The yearly trip began around June 14 when the two went to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. That is the last time Melani Holton, Makana's mother, spoke to her daughter, who did not tell her of plans to scale the mountain.

Melani said, "This is something the two of them have done over the years. You have the parents that take their kids to the beach for vacation. That's me. And you have the parents that take their kids camping or hiking. That's Mike."

She also said she has always been against the trips because she thought they were dangerous, and Makana told her mother that the trips with her father had gotten too extreme for her, but she had continued to go so she could be with him.

The father and daughter had planned to spend a few days after the climb at Dr. Von Gortler's vacation home in Buena Vista, Colorado, before returning to Boulder on June 25 or 26.

Melani thought she might see her daughter on June 26 but said it was "routine" when she did not hear from her and assumed she was catching up with her boyfriend and friends after the trip.

On Monday, June 27, when she did not hear from her daughter after trying a phone call, voicemail and text messages, she began to feel "uneasy." On arriving at work the following day, she had an e-mail from Makana's boyfriend saying he had not heard from her yet. At this point, she became concerned, "If he hasn't heard from her, this is not good.”

This was not the first time they had got lost. Once, on a similar climb with another father and daughter, the Von Gortlers had decided to go off-trail. The friends remained on the trail and grew worried when Mike and Makana were nowhere to be found at the bottom. They contacted mountain rangers, who fortunately found Mike and Makana six hours later.

Holton began making more phone calls and contacted the Chaffee County sheriff's office.

The search

The next day, Wednesday, June 29, rescuers launched a large, five-day air and ground search in the area after finding the pair's vehicle parked at the mountain's trailhead. Twenty-four skilled searchers, canine searchers, technical climbers and three helicopters were eventually deployed.

Authorities heard from a fellow hiker who bumped into the Von Gortlers around 11.30 am on June 22, and he was believed to be the last person to see them alive. Mike and Makana were well below the timberline when they were last seen, and they may have begun their hike much later than advised (it is recommended that hikers begin their climb around sunrise on the trail they were using).

A few family members experienced in climbing went to the mountain on Wednesday to search, including Makana's cousin and close friend, Nicole Box. Nicole said, "If you stay on the logical trail, you're good, but once you go illogical, it can be really dangerous.". She described the terrain as rocky, steep and covered with dense forest.

The discovery of the bodies and autopsy

A helicopter pilot noticed what appeared to be bodies whilst dropping off a ground search and rescue team. Rescue crews were deployed to check the location about one mile from the mountain's summit, 500 feet above the main trail. Eventually, the searchers reached the area and discovered two bodies on a steep, grassy area.

Coroner Randy Amettis conducted autopsies and reported that "Dr. Michael von Gortler and his daughter, Makana, both died from blunt-force trauma injuries to the head and neck. There was no indication of injuries from lightning.” He stated that the conditions of the bodies and other factors indicated that the von Gortlers died on June 22, the day they began the hike, “No crime is believed to have been committed”. He declared the deaths an accident. While Coroner Amettis could not say if the hikers had fallen, he said their injuries were not inconsistent with a fall.

What happened to the Von Gortlers on Missouri Mountain?

What caused the blunt force trauma to the head and neck and caused the deaths of these two experienced hikers?

Relatives believe the two were likely blown off a cliff, but there were no reports of high winds on June 22, 2011. Why did the coroner say that he could not tell if the von Gortlers had fallen? Surely, these sorts of injuries would have been obvious if they had fallen off a steep cliff.

During this time of year, the snow from the top of the mountain melts, which causes rapid rivers to flow down the mountainside. People can lose their footing and be pulled into these.

The conditions on Missouri Mountain most likely cause these deaths but are still shrouded in a little mystery.

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