Autistic Hiker Back With Family in W.Va.

By VICKI SMITH and KELLEY SCHOONOVER

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – It was the wilderness – a cascade of mountain laurel and rhododendron flowing over loose rock and steep cliffs – that posed the greatest danger to a missing autistic hiker. But in the end, that dense foliage kept Jacob Allen safe.

After four cold days and four nearly freezing nights, searchers spotted the 18-year-old sleeping under a thicket of laurel in the Dolly Sods Wilderness Area, part of the Monongahela National Forest.

"It made sort of like an umbrella, but underneath it was bare and open," State Police 1st Sgt. Jim Wise said. "It made some type of shelter."

Though Allen was less than a mile from the spot where searchers had found his hat Monday, the brush kept his location hidden until Thursday afternoon. Wise believes it also may have kept the teen, who is nonverbal, from wandering toward 20- to 30-foot cliffs.

Allen opened his eyes, then rolled over to meet his rescuers when Jeremy Reneau called his name.

"He was very quiet," said Reneau, 25, the first to spot Allen. "But you could tell by his body language he was hungry."

After a quick meal of candy bars and peanut butter sandwiches, Allen tried to walk with rescuers but tired quickly. Reneau, Wise and others carried him on a litter to a trailhead where 50 people, including his parents, awaited.

"There were tears. There was clapping. I was crying. Other people were crying," said Tiffany Curran, a volunteer firefighter.

Allen was in good condition Thursday night at Davis Memorial Hospital in Elkins, where officials said he remained under observation. His parents, brother Micah and sister Brittany were with him, declining interview requests.

Allen wandered away from his parents Sunday afternoon on the Boar’s Nest Trail in Randolph County. Hundreds of volunteers and trained professionals had been combing the woods, calling for him to come to them for candy bars, ice cream and other food. After each shout, they listened closely for rustling brush.

But hopes began to dim after overnight temperatures dropped to as low as 38 degrees. Allen had been wearing only a wind jacket and wind pants over his T-shirt and hiking boots. He had no food or water with him.

When word of the rescue reached the Allens’ neighbors in Morgantown, the joy was unconstrained.

"My eyes are full of tears," Don Davis said. "We were just overjoyed the Lord answered our prayers."

"There’s really no word to describe the feeling you get to hear something like this," said Pauline Morris, bursting into tears.

"I think the whole state’s relieved," said Lara Ramsburg, spokeswoman for Gov. Joe Manchin, who had visited the Allen family Wednesday night.

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Schoonover reported from Charleston. Associated Press writers Tom Breen and April Vitello in Charleston also contributed to this report.