They had driven to Hoosier National Forest on Sunday afternoon to hike and see Patton Cave. They left their campsite around 4:45 p.m, Richardson said.
“It was a nice day, getting to the cave was no problem,” he said.
After leaving the cave, Richardson and Denton attempted to return to the campsite.
As the sunlight faded, they started worrying, knowing they would be unable to navigate back in the dark.
“At around 8:30 I was like, ‘Yeah it’s time to call in the troops and try to get us out of here,” Richardson said. “It was pretty much pitch dark before we called.”
Indiana Conservation Officers received Richardson’s 911 call around 9 p.m.
“Connor called in and said they had gotten off the trail, it was dark and they didn’t know how to get back to where they were going,” Corporal Angela Goldman, the responding Indiana Conservation Officer said.
The search-and-rescue began.
Five conservation officers responded. They drove around the area, signaling their sirens to see if Richardson or Denton heard them. Richardson’s cell phone died at 11 p.m., which complicated the search and rescue, Goldman said.
“That’s when we started hiking and searching for them,” she said. “We’re stopping every 150 yards yelling and whistling hoping they can hear us and holler back.”
At 3:30 a.m., the conservation officers suspended the search. Four of the officers went home. Goldman stayed at the park, just in case Richardson and Denton returned.
“We knew that they were OK, in good health, no medical issues, they were just lost,” Goldman said.
On average, Goldman said she receives calls about lost hikers and hunters about six times a year.
As the reality set in that they would be spending the night in the forest, Richardson and Denton searched for a good place to settle down for the night.
“At first we tried to move, but I knew it wasn’t worth it,” Richardson said. “We would just get more lost.”
Shrilling of cicadas, hooting owls, clicking bats and the occasional howling of coyotes resonated across the woodlands.
Richardson hung his hammock on a tree, but the cold wind forced them to move to the ground.
Richardson said he and Denton initially laughed about being lost, but their morale declined as the temperature continued to drop.
“It was dark, we could barely see but nothing can prepare you for the cold we went through,” he said. “The whole time we kept thinking, ‘Why are we here?’”
The search resumed the next morning when daylight broke. Five Hoosier National Forest employees joined five conservation officers as they scoured the forest.
The conservation officers retraced the steps of the pair and started hiking the trails where they thought Richardson and Denton could be, Goldman said.
Since vehicles were prohibited in that part of the forest, the Forest Department brought two mules to cover more ground.
Goldman also sent two officers by boat to check the Monroe Reservoir shoreline.
By this time, Richardson and Denton were exhausted. “We hadn’t eaten in over 24 hours and had minimal water,” Richardson said.
After hours of searching, they were finally discovered walking on a trail at 11 a.m.
“I was relieved,” Richardson said. “It was finally over. Whenever they say it’s a psychological thing when you survive out there, it’s true.”
