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| • | June 28: SAR Op endurance training, 13-mile Pictured Rocks Road Race, Munising, Mi | ||||||
| • | July: Henagan SAR Operations | ||||||
| • | July: Clewley SAR Operations | ||||||
| • | July: Hallaxs SAR Operations | ||||||
| • | July 12: SAR operations endurance training, 15-mile Kewenaw Trail Run, Copper Harbor, Mi | ||||||
| • | July 25: SAR operations endurance training, 26-mile Grand Island Run, Munising, Mi | ||||||
| • | Aug 8: SAR operations endurance training, 48-mile Hard Rock Ore-to-Shore Mountain Bike Epic, Marquette, Mi | ||||||
| • | Aug 15: SAR operations endurance training, 15-mile Tahqua Trail Run, Paradise, Mi | ||||||
| • | Sep __: SAR operations endurance training, 13-mile Lake Superior Shore Run, Marquette, Mi | ||||||
| • | Oct 10: SAR operations endurance training, 15-mile Run for Youth, Marquette, Mi | ||||||
| • | Feb 13- 28, 2010: Long-range Arctic Ocean (Canada) SAR operations training--84 km Abitibi River Expedition, ski & snowshoe from Blacksmith Rapids to James Bay (lower Hudson Bay). View log or slideshow from last year's Arctic Training Expedition | ||||||
You're
here: MiBSAR's home page
(Last modified on
July 8, 2009 10:03
)
Page contents:
• Chimo!—Welcome
to MiBSAR
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR team
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR services
• MiBSAR's advisory board
• SAR cold-case investigations
underway
• SAR operations recently completed
• SAR cold-cases being researched
• MiBSAR's Special Ops Blog
(new)
• MiBSAR's
origins
• Emergency
SAR operations
• Contact
MiBSAR
What's
new on www.MiBSAR.com
•
Log
& pics from June 24-25
Chris Hallaxs SAR operation uploaded
•
Clewley case lead
story in
June 25 issue of the Mining
Journal (Marquette, Mi)
•
New
SAR operations resource:
Prayers
for the deceased
•
MiBSAR welcomes Chuck
Koehn,
a Eugene, Oregon man-tracking
instructor with
Universal
Tracking Services
to its Advisory
Board
• MiBSAR has uploaded a missing-
person Web
site and poster
in support of the
Derrick Henagan investigation
• MiBSAR welcomes
Burt Crawford
of Highland Michigan's
Maple Lane Bloodhounds
(K-9 SAR)
to its Advisory Board
• New man-tracking book
featured in
Special Ops Blog
• Light-duty tactical
belt popular among
smokejumpers
featured in
Special Ops Blog
•
MiBSAR welcomes
Corporal
Errol Lukkarinen
of the Marquette County Sheriff's
Office Special Operations Unit
to its Advisory Board
• MiBSAR acquires
www.MiBSAR.com
domain name
• Trip log
and slideshow
from 4-day
SAR training operation: circum-
navigation of Grand Island on
ice of Lake Superior
• Expedition log
and video/slideshow
from 9-day Arctic Ocean SAR
training operation
The best
way
to find yourself,
...is to lose yourself
in the service of others.
—Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
a.k.a. Mahatma, 1869-1948
Indian nationalist leader and philosopher
Top
Chimo!
Welcome to the home of Michigan Backcountry Search and Rescue (MiBSAR), a special operations SAR team of cold-case investigators organized as a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
| Chimo is an ancient Inuit—or Eskimoan—term used to convey the warmest of greetings and salutations. It's often accompanied by a friendly hand gesture; namely, a circular movement of the left hand over one's heart |  |
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As a Michigan CERT team, MiBSAR's mission is to assist law enforcement agencies with unsolved missing-person cases.
Job one for Michigan Backcountry Search and Rescue is reuniting bereaved families with their missing loved ones. MiBSAR's creedo—Because the search must continue...So loved ones aren't left behind.
MiBSAR's specialized squad of cold case investigators primarily focus on cold cases that occurred in remote, wilderness regions of Northern Michigan as well as the eastern Lake Superior watershed of Ontario, Canada.
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MiBSAR is a member of the National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) and the International Society of Professional Trackers (ISPT).
NASAR is a national, not-for-profit association of 1,000s of civic-minded, search-and-rescue professionals who have dedicated their efforts to the ultimate of humanitarian causes: saving lives. One of NASAR's primary missions is advancing professional, literary, and scientific knowledge in the field of search and rescue. NASAR's motto—that others may live.
The ISPT is an international, nonprofit organization of paid and unpaid trackers. Its primary mission is the promotion and advancement of the science of tracking, including man-tracking, combat tracking, and tactical tracking operations.
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View/print
poster
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Michigan Backcountry Search and Rescue is dedicated to the honor and memory of Joseph R. Clewley, a beloved, 73-year-old, father of five.
An avid North Country Trail (NCT) and off-trail hiker, Joe and his dog Chip, a nine-year-old chow-springer mix, vanished in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan's Tahquamenon Falls State Park on July 13, 2008.
While Chip did return to the Clewley family's, circa-1920 log cabin—The Chippewa Hunting Post—along the north bank of the Tahquamenon River some 20 days later, Joe has not....learn more.
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The best way to do
good to ourselves,
...is to do it to others; the right way to gather, ...is to scatter. —Lucius Annaeus Seneca a.k.a. Seneca the Younger, 4 B.C. - 65 A.D. Roman statesman, philosopher, and writer |
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| Chris Ozminski Investigator Frankenmuth, MI |
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| Dave Mansfield Investigator Davison, MI |
MiBSAR's special ops SAR team members are hard-core, dyed-in-the-wool bushmen who thrive in remote, inhospitable wilderness. They're at their best living out of a rucksack, panier, sledge, or canoe for days—sometimes weeks—at a time.
Wilderness survivalists by nature, these foul-weather-ready, expert land navigators spend dozens of nights in the bush yearly, irrespective of the weather or season.
Since they frequently work the bush fully equipped and provisioned for long-range operations—without support or resupply for up to 10 days or more, if necessary—they're considered a heavy team by conventional SAR standards.
To learn more about MiBSAR's special operations
SAR team, visit:
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR
team qualifications page
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR
team member bio page
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR
team operations log
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR
team message board
Do all the
good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.
—John Wesley, 1703-1791
Christian theologian and founder of Methodism
John Wesley's Rule
On select, missing-person cases—particularly
cold cases in remote, wilderness areas of Northern Michigan—MiBSAR's
special ops SAR team may be able to bring a wide range of investigative
resources and assets to bear on an investigation:
• Long-term, long-range
operations up to 10 days
in duration without resupply or support
• All-season operations: winter, spring,
summer, and fall
• All-weather, rain-or-shine operations,
including arctic conditions down to ambient
temps of minus 40° Fahrenheit
• Remote, off-trail operations in challenging,
inhospitable, wilderness
regions
• Fully-equipped and provisioned operations
by foot, snowshoe, ski, mountain bike, or canoe
• Aerial searches with squadrons from the
Michigan Wing of the Civil Air Patrol.
• Collaborative operations with local SAR teams,
crime lab field teams, and multi-jurisdiction
SAR task forces and strike forces
• K-9 team deployment and field support
• Scuba diver deployment
• Backcountry investigations, interviews, crime
scene processing, forensic evidence collection,
and confidential, detailed, evidence-seized reports
• Forensic evidence analysis at Michigan State
Police Forensic Science Laboratories and the
FBI's Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia
• Forensic computer & digital media examinations
• Internet investigations
• Missing-person Web sites and Internet blogs
• Assistance getting cases listed in the FBI's
National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system
and National Missing Person DNA Database
(NMPDD) as well as the DOJ's National Missing
and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
• Covert psychological operations (PSYOPS)
• Graphic design and digital distribution
of large-format, full-color, missing-person posters
• All services provided pro bono—free
of charge
To learn more about the free, special ops
SAR team services MiBSAR offers, visit:
• MiBSAR's special ops SAR
Team Services page
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If you want happiness
for an hour,
...take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, ...go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, ...inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, ...help someone else. —Ancient Chinese proverb |
To more efficiently
and effectively assist Northern Michigan law enforcement agencies and
families with unsolved missing-person cases, Michigan Backcountry Search
and Rescue (MiBSAR) has formed an Advisory
Board, partnering with some of the Midwest's top forensic experts
and investigative specialists:
• Forensic scientists
• Forensic pathologists
• Forensic anthropologists
• Forensic odontologists
• Attorneys
• Wildlife biologists
• Cartographers
• Geographic information system (GIS) specialists
• Search and rescue coordinators
• Forensic computer examiners
• Specialized K-9 handlers
• Man-trackers
To learn more about
MiBSAR's Advisory Board, visit:
• MiBSAR's special operations Advisory
Board page
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We make a living by what
we get, |
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Chris
Hallaxs
Age 30 Missing since March 16, 2004 NCT, Lake Superior State Forest Chippewa & Luce Counties Paradise, Michigan |
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We take risks not to
escape Life,
...but to prevent Life from escaping us. —Anonymous |
SAR operations recently completed
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• SAR Op Training:
Lake Superior Ice Travel
Grand Island, Munising, MI, March 2-5
(view log
& slide
show)
• SAR Op Training: Emergency
Management
and Homeland Security CERT program,
Feb 26-27 (view log)
• SAR Op Training: Remote River-Ice Expedition,
Moose River, James Bay, Arctic Ocean,
Ontario, Canada, Feb 7-18 (view log
& slide
show)
View complete
index of completed SAR operations
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Some people dream of
worthy accomplishments,
...others stay awake and do them. —Anonymous |
• Robert Kyle,
15, 1972, Isle Royale National Park
• Raymond Perry, 85, 2006, Pictured Rocks National
Lakeshore, Mich.
• Derrick Henagan, 36, 2008, Luce County, Mich.
• Bush plane, wreck date unknown,
White Gravel Canyon, Pukaskwa National Park,
Ontario, Canada (wing cross-section found
by Michael Neiger in 2005)
1944 wreckage of a
U.S. Army B-17 Flying Fortress
found on a July '08 SAR training
op
in the Porcupine Mountains
by Dennis Waite and Michael Neiger.
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People who say it cannot
be done,
...should not interrupt those who are doing it. —Anonymous |
Top
Special Ops Blog
By Michael A. Neiger
New man-tracking book
04-01-09
In signing up for a man-tracking course offered by the Oregon & Washington-based Universal Tracking Services, Inc., school, I learned of another man-tracking book: Tracking Program—Track Aware, Tracker I, Tracker II, Sign Cutter—Course Materials, by Universal Tracking Services, Inc. (Universal Tracking Services, Inc., 2004). It has been added to the man-tracking books page on this Web site.
This spiral-bound course book serves as the text for Universal Tracking Services, Inc.'s four levels of man-tracking courses. It can be ordered directly from Universal Tracking Services, Inc.'s store. (For those registered for this course, I am awaiting word as to whether this book is included in the course fee...)
Rescue/tactical
belt
03-31-09
I purchased the light-duty version just for the buckle, but the single-layer of heavy-duty webbing appears to be as strong as any webbing we rig swamis from, so I will likely use it as-is, after reinforcing the buckle attachment with another bar-tack or two of heavy-duty thread. I got the XL size to make sure I had enough extra webbing to secure the biter end of the belt (either thread it back through the buckle or half-hitch it around the belt itself) for light rappelling, belaying, and other light-duty rescue/recovery tasks. The single-thickness webbing also appears to be substantial enough for racking bowies and weapons.
Sheriff forms Cold
Case Posse
03-11-09
According to the March 7, 2009 issue of the Detroit Free Press, budget cuts and a backlog of unsolved violent crimes have led Oakland County (Michigan) Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard to form a Cold Case Posse. Staffed by volunteers--retired detectives made special deputies--the Posse will investigate unsolved violent crimes that have grown cold.
New man-tracking
textbook released
03-10-09
dbS Productions has just released a new man-tracking book entitled Foundations for Awareness, Signcutting and Tracking. This informative, 240-page, full-size manual was authored by Robert Speiden, who runs Natural Awareness Tracking School. He also serves as the coordinator of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management's Field Team Signcutter Course, for which this text serves as the basis.
Passport required for Canadian SAR
Training
03-08-09
Per the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), enacted pursuant to the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), passport-grade identification—such as Michigan's Enhanced Driver's License (EDL)—will be mandatory for MiBSAR training ops in Canada as of 06-01-09.
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I don't know what your
destiny will be,
but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve. —Albert Schweitzer, 1875-1965 French theologian, medical missionary, philosopher, musician, and Nobel Peace Prize winner |
MiBSAR's origins
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| July 19, 2008 issue of the Mining Journal (Marquette, Michigan) |  |
MiBSAR was founded shortly after an article—headlined "Search for missing man suspended"—appeared in the July 19, 2008 issue of the Mining Journal (Marquette, Michigan).
Buried deep inside the Upper Peninsula's largest daily paper, the short, 5 paragraph news briefing immediately caught Michael Neiger's attention.
Perhaps it was because he'd backpacked through this area just a few weeks prior...
Maybe it was the plight of the family...
The Mining Journal reported the man—Joe
Clewley—had gone missing "in a remote area of Whitefish Township",
apparently along a section of the North Country Trail (NCT) located in
Tahquamenon Falls State Park, south of Paradise, Michigan.
As a retired Det./Sgt. with the Michigan State Police; decades-long, off-trail wilderness guide; solo expeditioner; and a member of the North Country Trail Association (NCTA), he wondered if he could be of any assistance to the Sheriff's Office and the Clewley Family.
Figuring the Chippewa County Sheriff's Office SAR resources must be stretched to the limit, and the Clewley Family must be going through a living hell, he contacted the Undersheriff of Chippewa County with an offer of assistance.
After learning both the Sheriff's Office and the Clewley Family would "most certainly welcome your assistance," Michael packed his rucksack with foul-weather gear and 5 days worth of rations; called his partner Chris Ozminski to alert him to the SAR mission at hand; and began what would be a months-long SAR effort in the eastern reaches of Tahquamenon Falls State Park.
Thank you again for all your efforts. I don't know what good deed gave us the blessing of having you [Michael Neiger] in our lives at this particular moment in time; but I'm forever grateful that we have had your unwavering support, expertise and commitment towards Dad's search.
As you can imagine, being in Alabama has distanced me from the search efforts...Your communications are a lifeline for all of us. Thank you again Michael; at the end of this journey I hope we can somehow return this gift to you.
God bless.
—Jamie (Clewley) Anderson, Opelika, Alabama, daughter of Joe Clewley, Sr., September 2, 2008Thank you for [your] continued diligence in the quest to find my Dad. It makes it easier to continue to push through to the next available time for searching when I know that you guys are out there covering the most likely places that he could be. My family can not begin to thank you enough, we are blessed to have such good people as you [Michael Neiger] & Chris [Ozminski] helping to locate him.
Very grateful.
—Teresa Clewley, daughter of Joe Clewley, Sr., October 2, 2008I would like to add my continued thanks to Mike [Neiger] and Chris [Ozminski] for the undying efforts that you have displayed. Thank you for the website and the searches, it has been a comfort when we aren't able to be there. I hope that we are able to locate my father soon to put this tragedy to rest. I also would like to thank everyone who has responded to the thread [blog], I don't feel so alone with your responses.
Thank you everyone.
—Tkdjunkie (Russ Clewley), son of Joe Clewley, Sr., Backpacker.Com Midwest Forum, October 3, 2008
While Joe's whereabouts—as well as the circumstances surrounding his disappearance—remain a mystery to this day, MiBSAR has been able to make substantial progress in the investigation after months of hard work in the bush:
Hey Mike [Neiger]...I just wanted to say thank you for the clue. It was getting very frustrating to search without any sign of my dad. After approximately fifty days of searching, you somewhat broke the case with your discovery....
Anyway, thanks again for the help and the reassurance that there is still hope, through any little clue, that we might find my dad.
—Joe Clewley, Jr., Lansing, Michigan, son of Joe Clewley, Sr., September 6, 2008Special thanks must go out to Mike Neiger and Chris Ozminski. They have dedicated most of their summer searching diligently in the search area.
A personal thanks to them is needed as their searching came up with some very pertinent/hard-to-find evidence that has led this investigation in a certain direction.
Mr. Neiger is a survivalist with an extensive Law Enforcement background. His knowledge in the preservation of evidence and crime lab expertise has been a great help in the field.
—Det./Sgt. Mike Bitnar, lead investigator, Chippewa County Sheriff's Office Web site, October 23, 2008
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View/print
poster
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Since the Joseph Clewley investigation is currently an open and active police investigation, the Sheriff's Office has requested that no additional information be released about the case at this time.
MiBSAR continues to search for any sign of Joe in the hope that one day, hopefully very soon, they may be able to reunite this beloved man with his bereaved family.
Thank you again for the time Chris [Ozminski] and you [Michael Neiger] have dedicated to finding my dad and helping my family....I know that my family and I look at you guys as more than dedicated searchers....[you're] friends.
—Joe Clewley, Jr., Lansing, Michigan, son of Joe Clewley, Sr., December 2, 2008
To learn more about this baffling and protracted case, visit Joe's missing-person Web site, which is maintained courtesy of MiBSAR.
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Up
to
$1,000 Reward for anonymous tips about Joe Clewley's disappearance Northern International Crime Stoppers Tip Line: 1-800-465-7867 |
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There is pleasure in
the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore, There is society, where none intrudes, By the deep sea, and music in its roar: I love not man the less, but Nature more. —Lord Byron (George Noel Gordon), 1788-1824 Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, canto IV [1818], stanza 178 |
While MiBSAR's special ops SAR team collaborates with law enforcement agencies on active SAR operations, MiBSAR is a SAR team of last resort, not a first response SAR team.
As such, all requests for emergency SAR operations should be referred to a law enforcement agency—typically the county sheriff—which has jurisdiction over the SAR area. Simply call 9-1-1 for help.
MiBSAR generally only investigates unsolved
missing-person cases at the invitation of either a family member or law
enforcement official.
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Those who can,
...do. Those who can do more, ...volunteer. —Anonymous |
To
contact MiBSAR—or suggest a wilderness-related, missing-person, cold
case for MiBSAR to investigate—contact:
Michael Neiger
Lead Investigator
Michigan Backcountry Search and Rescue (MiBSAR)
Marquette, Michigan
E-mail: mneiger@hotmail.com
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When you cease to make
a contribution,
...you begin to die. —Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, 1884-1962 Civil rights advocate, author, speaker, politician, and activist Wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt |
In God's
wilderness
lies the hope of the world,
the great, fresh, unblighted,
unredeemed wilderness.
—
John Muir, 1838-1914
Alaska Wilderness,
1890
If
you've been able to read this Web page...
thank a Teacher;
If you've been able to read this Web page in English...
thank a Veteran.
—Author
unknown
• Disclaimer notice •
The information contained on this Web page and this Web site is provided solely for information, illustrative, and discussion purposes.Although the author has made a sincere effort to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information presented on this Web page and this Web site, no warranty is expressed or implied.
The author assumes no responsibility or liability for any injuries, damages, losses, or other consequences that may result from the use of the information contained on this Web page and this Web site.
As with any human endeavor, omissions, inaccuracies, and errors will occur on this Web page and this Web site and the author makes no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the information presented or that the information presented will produce any particular result or be suitable for any particular situation, person, organization, or other entity.
While corrections and revisions may or may not be made from time to time, any changes made to this Web page and this Web site are made without obligation to notify any person, organization, or other entity of any such changes.
The activities associated with the information contained on this Web page and this Web site are by their very nature inherently dangerous and the information presented can not take the place of good personal judgment, sound decision-making, professional training, proper equipage, adequate physical fitness, and expert guidance by trained and experienced professionals.
•
Copyright notice •
Content Copyright
© 1984 —
2009-07-08
by Michael A. Neiger
• All rights reserved •
No part of this Web page or this Web site protected by copyright law may be reproduced, transmitted, or used in any form—including graphic, electronic, Web, mechanical or other for—or by any means—including photocopying, recording, taping, Internet distribution, information storage retrieval system, or by other means—for any purpose, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages, without the prior, express, written permission of the author.
Comments?
Suggestions?
Dead links? Inaccurate info?
Contact the WebMaster, Michael A. Neiger, at mneiger@hotmail.com
Web site URL: http://therucksack.tripod.com/MiBSAR/MiBSAR.htm
You're here: MiBSAR's home page
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