Search suspended for missing hiker

MAT-SU -- The search for an Eagle River man whose parents reported him missing Oct. 8 after he failed to return from a hiking excursion in the Pioneer Peak area was suspended after sudden snows earlier this month blocked rescue efforts.

Norman Gene Baker III, 25, went on a day hike and didn't return. He was reportedly wearing blue jeans, a gray jacket and a black ski cap when he left for his hike. Baker's van was found parked near Mile 7 Old Glenn Hwy., near the Knik River bridge.

Alaska State Troopers were called into the search on Oct. 11, in an Anchorage Police Department request to launch a helicopter in the area, which also was the first day of snowfall. Ground searchers using dogs tried to find Baker the day before, but were unsuccessful.

"We were hoping for the weather to clear up," Wilkinson said, "so we could continue the search (by helicopter). Usually the first snow melts, but this year that hasn't happened. It stayed on the ground and searchers can't see a thing."

The search for Baker is suspended for now.