“We must not be too scared to take risks, and most of all, we must live life to the fullest.” These were the words of Matthew Greene, an adventurer, a teacher, and a man whose disappearance in California’s Sierra Nevada has baffled experts and those who have sought out his whereabouts for over a decade.
Matthew’s story is one that has been in my mind since I first heard about it, and I think the reason for that is that was about the same time I started to re-approach the outdoors. At that time I was learning more about the Sierra Nevada, about California’s mountains, about specifically the Eastern Sierra, the great mountain towns of Bishop and Mammoth Lakes, and it was just a story that that stuck with me. He seemed like just a really solidly good person by all accounts, and so I hope this video shines a little bit of light on Matthew’s case again, on his disappearance, and keeps him in mind of all those who adventure in the Eastern Sierra who might have occasion to pass through those areas where he might have gone on his last trip.
About Matthew
Matthew Greene was born in Pennsylvania in 1974. He grew up in Layton, a small town among the Appalachian Hills. He excelled in academics and later graduated from Penn State University. In 1998 he joined the Peace Corps, spending four years in Papua New Guinea. As a career, he taught high school math, but his true passion was the outdoors. Every summer Matthew packed up his Subaru, drove west, and headed into the mountains. Matthew was a skilled and cautious climber. He documented hundreds of summits, many solo, including peaks in Colorado, Utah, and the Adriondacks. He was not reckless. He was methodical, experienced, and well-prepared.
Disappearance
In June of 2013, Matthew arrived in Mammoth Lakes, California, with two climbing partners. They camped at Shady Rest campground, which was just minutes from some of the most dramatic alpine terrain in the lower 48 states. Over the next two weeks, Greene summited several peaks, including Riegelhuth Minaret and Unicorn Peak. Then things happened. His car broke down. He took it to a local repair shop, but parts were delayed. His climbing partners had to return home, and so Matthew decided to stay and wait for the repairs to finish.
He was alone during that time. On July 16th, 2013 Matthew called his parents. He said he planned to do one final hike before retrieving his car. That was the last time anyone heard from him. His campsite was later found intact. His car remained untouched at the shop, and his phone stopped ringing, and no one reported seeing him leave. Seven days passed. On July 21st a campground host reported him overdue. Eight days after that, a missing persons report was officially filed. Matthew Greene had vanished.
Search and rescue teams scoured the Sierra Nevada. Helicopters flew over peaks and valleys. Ground crews hiked dangerous ridges. Cadaver dogs were deployed. Climbers checked summit logs and guidebooks, but there were no signs of a fall. No gear, no tracks, and no remains. There was a clue. Several pages were torn from Matthew’s guidebook, specifically those covering the Minarets, Ansel Adams wilderness, and the June Lake Loop. It suggested he had selected a new objective. It’s not uncommon for long-distance hikers or climbers to only take those pages for the area they’re going to so they don’t have to carry the weight of the entire book. That’s the presumption here. At one point after Matthew’s disappearance, a pair of glasses was found in the wilderness and for a moment there was hope, but the prescription didn’t match Matthew’s, so that was another dead end.
Matthew hasn’t been seen since. A number of notices were put out at the time. A lot of people searched. There’s one individual in particular who had a very strong and deep background in search and rescue in the area who has contributed extensive time of his own to searching. Also no success there.
What Happened to Matthew Greene?
So what happened to Matthew Greene? What do we think? There are a few theories. I think I will start with the ones that are least likely. First, I would say would be voluntary disappearance. It seems like the authorities considered this, but those who knew Matthew said it was impossible. He clearly loved teaching. He had no history of instability in his life, and he left behind everything: his car and his gear and all of the hopes and dreams that he had for his future. And so that I think is very unlikely.
The second theory: foul play. There’s no evidence of a struggle or criminal activity. Nobody suspicious was seen at the campground. And this theory probably is the least likely out of all the theories. The wilderness is not a safe place. It has its dangers. It’s a very rewarding place to be, but it is impersonal and it doesn’t take a bad actor for something to go bad in the wilderness.
So that takes us to, I think, two of the theories that are more likely. One would be an accidental fall. And I think this is probably the most likely one. Matthew was an avid climber. Some of the gear he took would have been appropriate to a climbing outing to a certain degree of difficulty, something that one might attempt on their own without a partner or without a rope. And so you see throughout history in that area and other climbing areas that falls, frankly, are the most common reason for casualties in mountain climbing. Falls one way or another—and you could slip or sometimes even your footing or a handhold or rock handhold can give way. And so it’s not a judgment on the skill of an individual, but you can be the best climber of the world, but if the rock that you’re hanging onto falls off the mountain, then you’re probably going to go with it. And so that is one of the most likely scenarios. And I think the reason for that is that it’s one of the scenarios where somebody could be climbing on a route that is a traveled route or a known route, but if one were to fall at a certain place, you could fall into an area where other people just don’t go because it’s not on a route or it’s difficult to access. And it might be very difficult to see down into that area anyway. And so, just based off of the extensive search that went on and the really high professionalism of search and rescue teams, especially in the Sierra Nevada, especially around Mammoth, the easy answers are all taken care of there. It’s the more challenging spots or the spots where you just you’d have to get right down in there to see if there was any sign of anybody. And so I think that’s probably the most likely scenario.
There’s kind of a linked scenario in that maybe a medical emergency occurred. Matthew may have suffered some sort of medical emergency, like a heart attack or heat stroke. Something like that happens in the back country, and if there’s not some way to communicate or to get help, and no other hikers or anything, then that could be an issue too. That said, it’s not like the areas in the Sierra Nevada around Mammoth where Matthew likely would have been going are untraveled. They’re quite popular, super popular with through hikers, climbers, day hikers. And of course, lots of lakes. It’s called Mammoth Lakes, with beautiful lakes there for kayaking and canoeing and whatnot. So there’s a lot of activity around there. And even in some of the more remote spots, one can run into other humans, also taking advantage of the wilderness. And so although it’s a possibility, I feel like there would have been a higher likelihood of finding Matthew should something like that have happened. Of course, there are scenarios much like the accidental fall one, where he could have had an emergency and then fallen or dropped someplace where he wasn’t found. But I think the fall is most likely.
Current Status
In January 2014, Matthew Greene was declared legally dead in Pennsylvania. His family never stopped searching. They created a Facebook page titled Find Matthew Greene, which continues to serve as a tribute and an appeal for information. It’s also the source of most of the images in this video, certainly the images of Matthew. It’s more than 10 years on now, but his students still remember him. And they say that they recall his humor, his drive, and his love for life and learning. So I think, you know, the wilderness is an amazing place. The area around Mammoth Lakes and the Sierra Nevada there are some of the most beautiful landscapes in the United States, really in the world. For Matthew, it offered peace, beauty and challenge.
We may never know exactly what happened to Matthew Greene, but what we do know is that he was committed to his community, to his family. He loved the outdoors. He was a skilled climber, and he participated in activities that brought him personal reward. Really, the reason for this video is to, again, shine the light on Matthew Greene, to remind people who are traveling through those areas where he might still be, to keep in mind, to keep their eyes out. In the history of the Sierras, there are individuals who have gone missing after climbing alone, and it was only through really deep searching—and I’m talking by people who essentially lived in the mountains as mountain guides—to finally find these individuals. And so it’s absolutely possible. He’s out there somewhere. Please keep your eyes open and keep a lookout for Matthew or anything that might lead to him. This is a case of one individual who experienced, I think, some sort of misadventure. And because of that, there’s mystery. And it is my hope that someday we’re able to solve that mystery and close the book on this one.