John Knoefler, 57, made a 911 cell phone call around 9 p.m. on June 9th to report that he was stranded on the south side of Split Mountain on the Utah side of the park. Knoefler was unsure of his exact location, but reported that he’d parked his van at “Petroglyph Eleven” in Dinosaur National Monument and told the Uintah County dispatcher that he could see sheep below him. Ranger Pete Duncan responded and located Knoefler’s vehicle parked at a pull-out along Cub Creek Road near a private ranch. Duncan and members of the Uintah County SAR team began a foot search in the area for Knoefler, finally locating him by voice. A member of the SAR team managed to reach a point about 150 yards across a canyon from Knoefler and remained there overnight, yelling back and forth to reassure him. At daybreak, rangers and the SAR team resumed their attempt to reach Knoefler. He was located at about 10:00 a.m. and successfully walked off the mountain with minimal technical assistance. He reported that he’d begun walking along the base of Split Mountain, a highly-dissected rock formation, the previous afternoon, with no clear goal and taking only a 14-ounce bottle of water with him. He realized he was stranded about 9:00 p.m. when it became dark and made the decision to call 911. Good weather helped Knoefler remain warm and he was in good shape when rescuers reached him.
