Four Hikers Vanished In Rockies, 7 Years Later Rangers Find a Booby Trap Deep in Forest

When four college friends set out for a celebratory trek through the Rocky Mountains in July 1999, no one imagined their story would become one of the most haunting mysteries in U.S. wilderness history. Seven years later, rangers discovered a primitive booby trap hidden deep in the forest—a clue that transformed a cold case into a chilling tale of survival, fear, and human ingenuity.

This is the story of Mara Kensington, Leora Finch, Selene Carver, and Torren Hail, and how the Rockies held onto their secrets until a sinister discovery reopened wounds long thought closed.

The Disappearance in 1999

The hikers were not novices. Each was young, energetic, and equipped with gear appropriate for a three-day trek. They departed from the Bear Lake Trailhead in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Mara, 22, was an artist with a love for sketching alpine flowers; Leora, 21, was the group’s planner; Selene, 20, was known for her quiet laughter; and Torren, 23, was a nature enthusiast.

By nightfall, they had failed to return. A search was launched immediately. Helicopters, search dogs, and dozens of rangers scoured the steep valleys and dense spruce forests. Yet, not a single footprint or water bottle was found. Only a torn piece of fabric, later linked to Selene’s jacket, turned up. It led nowhere.

For weeks, families camped outside the ranger station waiting for updates, but the case grew cold. Rumors swirled—some suggested a fatal fall, others whispered about animal attacks. None of it explained the complete absence of evidence.

A Chilling Discovery in 2006

In the summer of 2006, a new ranger, Naomi Reed, stumbled upon something alarming near Flattop Mountain. Beneath a log lay a circle of sharpened wooden stakes lashed with vines—an intentional trap designed to impale.

Ranger Gideon Holt, who had carried the case file for seven years, was called in. The trap was weathered, suggesting it had been there since around the time of the disappearance. Nearby, a rusted carabiner and a frayed belt buckle were found, both consistent with hiking gear.

The discovery reignited the investigation. Theories swirled: had the hikers wandered off course and built the trap to ward off predators? Or had someone else set it, luring them into danger?

Bones, Caves, and Desperation

The search around the trap unearthed a shallow depression containing small bones—later confirmed as human. Forensics linked them to one of the missing hikers, but identification took weeks.

Even more disturbing was the discovery of a cave nearby. Inside were a cracked canteen, a broken tent pole, and a photo of the four smiling hikers from 1999. On the wall were frantic scratch marks. A journal page, written in Leora’s neat hand, read: “Lost. Trap set. Help us.”

The evidence suggested they had survived for days or weeks after vanishing, struggling to defend themselves in the wilderness. But from what?

A Hidden History of Traps

As rangers expanded their search, they uncovered more eerie sites: a second cave with a blood-stained shirt belonging to Torren, a collapsed lean-to in a ravine with Selene’s boot, and finally, a shallow grave containing two skulls. DNA confirmed them as Leora and Selene.

At this point, investigators believed the group had split up under duress, building makeshift defenses against either wildlife or human threat. But the booby trap’s sophistication suggested it wasn’t just improvised—it had a history.

That history surfaced when searchers unearthed a decayed wooden crate buried under a rockslide. Inside was a journal belonging to Calder Voss, a prospector who vanished in 1985. His writings spoke of “protecting the gold” and described building traps to ward off thieves.

Suddenly, the hikers’ tragedy had a sinister predecessor.

Calder Voss: The Prospector’s Curse

Voss’s journal painted him as paranoid and reclusive. He had staked a mining claim in the Rockies and, fearing rivals, filled the forest with deadly snares. Among his last notes were the words: “They’re coming. Must protect the gold.”

The trap that Naomi Reed discovered matched sketches found in Voss’s journal. Rangers also uncovered a rifle engraved with his initials, CV1982, near a collapsed mine shaft where skeletal remains—later confirmed as Voss and a woman companion named Ara—were found.

The chilling implication: the four young hikers had unknowingly wandered into a decades-old minefield of paranoia, built by a man who died long before they ever set foot on the trail.

Reconstructing the Final Days

Based on forensic evidence, investigators pieced together a likely scenario:

A storm or animal encounter forced the hikers off their intended trail.
They stumbled into the territory once occupied by Calder Voss.
Triggering one of his traps, they panicked and tried to defend themselves.
Injuries, starvation, and the harsh terrain splintered the group.
Over days or weeks, they perished—some from falls, others from exhaustion or malnutrition.

The caves and graves told a story of desperate survival, but also of a deadly inheritance left behind by a forgotten prospector.

Families Find Bittersweet Closure

For the families, the discovery ended years of limbo. Mara’s mother, Elise Kensington, described standing at the ravine where her daughter’s remains were found as “both unbearable and strangely peaceful.”

The recovered gold nuggets, maps, and locket belonging to Ara Voss were eventually placed in a Colorado museum. The booby trap itself, dismantled and displayed, serves as a cautionary reminder of the wilderness’s hidden dangers.

Yet questions linger. Did all four hikers die purely from accident and exposure, or did someone else—perhaps a poacher or rival of Voss—still play a role? The bullet casing found near the shafts suggests there may be a chapter of this story still untold.

The Rocky Mountains: Beauty and Peril

The tragedy underscores a dual truth about the Rockies. Their beauty attracts millions each year, but their vast, rugged terrain can conceal secrets for decades. The disappearance of four vibrant hikers and the revelation of a prospector’s deadly legacy highlight the razor-thin line between adventure and disaster.

For search-and-rescue teams, it also reinforces the importance of continuous vigilance, updated maps of dangerous sites, and education for hikers about straying off established trails.

The saga of the four hikers who vanished in 1999, and the sinister booby trap discovered seven years later, remains one of the most haunting wilderness mysteries in Colorado history. It is a story of friendship, survival, and tragedy—but also of how history’s ghosts can reach across decades to claim new victims.

The Rockies, with their jagged peaks and hidden ravines, continue to stand as both guardians of beauty and keepers of secrets. For the families of Mara, Leora, Selene, and Torren, the mountains will always echo with loss—but also with the bravery of four young lives that fought desperately until the end.