Latest news with #ColeHenderson
Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Daily Mail
US hiker disappears in Spanish Pyrenees mountains sparking frantic search
Spanish authorities are frantically searching for an American hiker who went missing in the Pyrenees mountain range more than a week ago. Cole Henderson, 27, vanished nine days ago in the Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park in northern Spain long the country's border with France. The last time anyone heard from the Rhodes College alumni was on July 9 around 2pm, just before he embarked on his precipitous solo hike. He texted his friend that he parked his car in Torla, the town near the entrance of the national park. Henderson noted he was going to put his phone on airplane mode to save its battery before starting his mountainous trek, according to a statement from his friend, Max Senoff. Henderson was believed to have been wearing a bright orange backpack when he went missing. His phone's last ping was in Torla, likely because this is where he turned on airplane mode. His loved ones realized something was wrong when he never boarded his return flight to the Netherlands, where he had been living and working, on July 12. Henderson was officially reported missing on July 14, sparking a rampant search for the lone traveler the same day. Rescue teams and Air Service helicopters have been scouring the area, looking for signs of the man, who is believed to have been hiking up Mount Perdido, according to The New York Times. His car was also found in Torla, as he told his friend. Mount Perdido is the third highest peak in the Pyrenees. The hike up the mountain is known to be a strenuous one, but is typically able to be completed in a day. Senoff told the New York Times at the time Henderson disappeared, he was approaching the end of his Spain vacation and was previously visiting Pamplona for the Running of the Bulls Festival. He described Henderson as an avid traveler and a meticulous planner, having shared his Spain trip itinerary with his friends before he left. 'He is great at bringing people together and very social guy,' Senoff told the outlet. A website has been established, detailing the latest updates in the search for Henderson. On social media, his friends and family members have been sharing photos of the frequent tourist. 'My nephew, Cole Henderson, a 27-year-old American, has gone missing while hiking in the Pyrenees,' his aunt, Lisa Henderson, shared on Facebook. 'Search efforts are underway, but we're desperate to spread the word. If you or someone you know is in the area—or recently hiked near Ordesa—please share this or reach out with any info. Even the smallest detail could help.' It is unclear when Henderson moved to the Netherlands, but based on his social media pages, he went to high school in Delaware and studied computer science at Rhodes College, which is in Tennessee.
New York Times
17-07-2025
- New York Times
Rescuers Seek American Hiker Missing for Days in the Pyrenees
Spanish search and rescue teams are scouring the Pyrenees for an American man who set off for a hike on July 9 and has not been heard from since. Cole Henderson, 27, texted friends around 2 p.m. from near Mount Perdido in northeastern Spain, according to posts from friends and family on social media. He had said he was putting his phone on airplane mode and had parked his car in Torla, a village near the entrance to Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park, the posts said. 'We don't know his exact route, but we believe he may have entered the park from the Torla side,' Max Senoff, a friend of Mr. Henderson, wrote on Facebook. Mr. Henderson, who had been living and working in Amsterdam, was on the final leg of a vacation in Spain, and had previously been in Pamplona for the Running of the Bulls festival, Mr. Senoff said. Mount Perdido is the third-highest peak in the Pyrenees. The hike is challenging and steep, particularly on the summit ascent, but is not a technical climb and can be completed in a day. Friends reported Mr. Henderson missing after he failed to return home to the Netherlands on a flight last weekend. The Guarda Civil, the Spanish police, said a search began on July 14 in the Huesca province, which includes areas of the Pyrenees and the national park. Officials deployed helicopters and members of the Civil Guard's specialty search and rescue teams. Mr. Henderson's car was discovered at a parking lot in Torla. Many visitors start hikes there in the summer months, when private traffic in and out of the park is restricted. A receipt for camping fuel, commonly used to power small stoves for trips in the wilderness, was found inside, Mr. Senoff said. The park, located along Spain's northeast border with France, is known for its lush meadows, steep canyons and rugged peaks, including Mount Perdido. A frequent traveler, Mr. Henderson is known among friends for arranging group trips and sharing outdoors and hiking gear. Mr. Henderson's social media profiles are plastered with images of trips to mountains, national parks and ski slopes, and in the Netherlands, he is the captain of a group soccer team and a dedicated member of a running club. He is also an 'avid planner,' Mr. Senoff said, and shared an itinerary for his trip to Spain with friends before departing. 'He is great at bringing people together and very social guy,' Mr. Senoff said.
USA Today
17-07-2025
- USA Today
American hiker missing in rugged Spanish mountains for a week: 'A kind and curious soul'
Twenty-seven-year-old Cole Henderson is a world traveler and adventurer who is working as an engineer in Amsterdam after graduating from Rhodes College in Tennessee. He was last heard from on July 9. A young American man has been missing in Spain's rugged Pyrenees mountains for more than a week, setting off a frantic search by Spanish authorities and desperate social media posts from his loved ones. Cole Henderson, 27, was last heard from on Wednesday, July 9, when he texted a friend that he was about to go on a solo hike in Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park and would put his phone on airplane mode to conserve power, according to a website dedicated to finding him and updating the search efforts. Although it's unclear where Henderson grew up, he has strong ties in Delaware, where he went to high school, and Tennessee, where he graduated from the Rhodes College, according to his social media profiles. His former employers include software companies in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and San Francisco. "Cole is an experienced traveler, a kind and curious soul, and someone who means the world to me," friend Eric Simon said in a Facebook post asking for help finding Henderson. Here's what to know about Henderson, the area where he was hiking and what's being done to find him. Where was Cole Henderson hiking? Henderson parked his car in Torla, Spain, before he was to embark on a long hike from there, through the Ordesa Valley, to a mountain hut known as Refugio de Pineta, where friends believe he was going to catch a ride back to his car. It's unclear how long Henderson expected the hike to take or whether he was planning on attempting any peaks in the area along the way. But friends said he had planned to do some camping while in the Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park, located in the Pyrenees Mountains on the border between northern Spain and France. Hikers reported dangerous weather in the area on Thursday, July 10, the day after Henderson began his hike. Hikers said there was rain and severe thunder, and reported that they re-routed from the possible route Henderson was on, where there is limited to no cell service. Loved ones realized Henderson was missing after he missed a flight on July 13 to Amsterdam, where he has been living, according to Simon. What do the search efforts entail? The Guardia Civil of Huesca launched a search for Henderson. The Mountain Rescue and Intervention Group (known as GREIM for its initials in Spanish) and an air unit have joined, according to the local newspaper El Diario de Huesca. Henderson's loved ones are also asking people to share his photo and the details of his disappearance on social media, in hopes that someone in the area recognizes him and may have a better idea of what his last location was. "We're coordinating with the mountain rescue patrol, American embassy, Spanish authorities and local search and rescue teams," Simon wrote. "But we're also asking for help online — from travelers, hikers, locals, or anyone who might have been in the area or seen Cole in the last week." What do we know about Cole Henderson? Henderson's social media posts show he was a world traveler and adventurer, from trekking along the famed Tour du Mont Blanc through Switzerland, Italy, and France, and skiing in Breckenridge, Colorado, to hiking in South Dakota's Badlands National Park and volunteering in Costa Rica. His LinkedIn profile says he's an engineer "building today's AI for tomorrow's power" at Dexter Energy and that he graduated from Rhodes College with honors with a degree in computer science. He describes himself as an avid backpacker.
CNN
16-07-2025
- CNN
Spanish mountain rescue teams search for American hiker missing in Pyrenees
Spanish rescue teams are searching for an American hiker who has been missing in the Pyrenees for eight days. Specialist mountain rescue teams and helicopters from the Air Service are searching for Cole Henderson, 27, in the Ordesa y Monte Perdido national park in northern Spain, the Guardia Civil told CNN on Wednesday. Henderson was last heard from on July 9, said Henderson's friend Max Senoff in a Facebook post published Tuesday. He sent a text saying that he had parked his car, turned his phone on airplane mode and was beginning his hike. He has not been heard from since. Henderson was reported missing on July 14, after he missed his flight home to the Netherlands on July 12, said the Guardia Civil. Authorities found Henderson's car in Torla, a town to the west of the national park, said the Guardia Civil. Senoff believes he may have been attempting to climb Monte Perdido, the third-highest peak in the Pyrenees, standing at 11,007 feet (3,355 meters). Social media footage shows the normal route from Torla, where Henderson's car was parked, still covered in snow in early July. The route is rated as 'Peu Difficile' (PD), meaning 'somewhat difficult' by the climbing community. While PD routes are often climbed without ropes, they might involve steep sections of climbing, or crevassed glaciers, and often require specialized equipment, such as ice axs or crampons. According to his social media profiles, Henderson attended St. Andrews School in Middletown, Delaware, before studying Computer Science at Rhodes College, Tennessee. CNN's Jack Guy contributed reporting.
