The remains of a 53-year-missing Idaho hunter found by another hunter

The remains of a hunter who disappeared more than half a century ago in the Idaho wilderness were discovered by another hunter on Friday, officials said.

Raymond Jones, 39, was last seen on September 7, 1968, while arching mountain goats near the East Fork of Hayden Creek near the town of Salmon at around 160 miles northwest of Idaho Falls.

His remains were found on September 17, 2021, 53 years later – by another man who arched mountain goats.

Lemhi County Sheriff Steven Penner told NBC News his office received a report from the bow hunter of the remains found on Friday afternoon, but said his deputies were only able to recover the remains until Saturday morning.

ID was still intact in a wallet found with the remains, identifying them as Jones’s.

“It’s a really rocky and steep area, and we don’t really know what happened,” said Penner. “He was in the land of goats, and it can be quite tricky.”

Jones was pronounced dead in 1970, Penner said, and his family no longer lives in Salmon, where he lived in 1968.

“The family will claim it and it will be handed over to them,” Penner said. “It’s still pretty cool, so they probably need a little time to figure things out.”

More than 70 people, a dog, and a helicopter helped search for Jones in 1968, but snowy weather ultimately canceled the search, according to an archived Associate Press article published by East Idaho News.