From Shoshone County Sheriff Mitch Alexander:

On Saturday at approximately 1:08 am dispatchers with the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office were notified of a lost hiker from Bonner County, Idaho who was lost somewhere near the Shoshone County/Bonner County border, South of Lake Pend Oreille. The lost hiker was identified as Kyle Morhardt, 23, of Savanna, Illinois. Morhardt was able to contact Bonner County Sheriff’s Office 911 with information on his condition and his approximate location. His cell phone was pinged, which provided additional information about his general area.

Dispatch called Two Bear Air out of Flathead County, Montana due to the extended time needed to search the area by ground. Two Bear Air located Morhardt shortly after 6:00 about a quarter-mile inside the northern tip of Shoshone County. Two Bear Air was able pick up Morhardt and deliver him to the Sandpoint Airport where he was checked out by medical personnel.

In the last year Two Bear Air has assisted Shoshone County six times with Search & Rescue, training, or other services. This service comes at no cost to the tax payers of Shoshone County and has been a valuable resource for our operations.

This time of the year mountain roads have long stretches of open dirt surface with other areas that are still covered by deep snow. The Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office has ATV’s that are equipped with tracks, but those are limited to operation on snow and extended use on dirt surfaces will disable the tracks and leave the machines stranded. The conditions in the early fall and spring also limit the use of snowmobiles and traditional tracked ATV’s. The Sheriff’s Office is currently seeking funding to purchase more versatile all terrain tracks that will allow the machines to operate on both dirt and snow.

About Two Bear Air

Based in Whitefish, Montana, Two Bear Air provides world-class aviation support for search and rescue teams in Flathead County and other agencies across the region. Using the most advanced technology available…..the ultimate mission of Two Bear Air is saving lives. Whitefish philanthropist Mike Goguen supports all costs of this program leaving zero cost to the taxpayers.

Two Bear Air works in close partnership with the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and Kalispell Regional Medical Center’s A.L.E.R.T. helicopter, adding to the rich history of rural aviation support across the rugged and vast landscape near Glacier National Park.