Bikers Find Woman Wandering Around in Her Underwear with Bloody Feet, Then Realize She’s a Missing Hiker

A group of bikers are being praised for helping locate and rescue a missing hiker in the Idaho wilderness.

Heather Wayment was reported missing by her family on Wednesday, Sept. 17, a day after she was last seen, according to a news release shared on Facebook by the Blaine County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO). Authorities later found her vehicle in the Prairie Creek area of Blaine County, but Wayment was not with it.

She was ultimately discovered more than 17 miles away from her last known location on Thursday, Sept. 18, by three mountain bikers from Pocatello — brothers Tommy and Vinton Gwinn and their friend Shelton Robinson, East Idaho News reported.

The group said Wayment appeared disoriented, wearing only underwear with visible injuries to her feet.

“We stopped as she was obviously in bad shape,” Tommy told the outlet. “She didn’t want help at first. She was scared and very guarded. It took about a half hour before she would talk.”

Robinson added that once she began to trust them, she revealed her name and said she was lost. Unaware of the ongoing search efforts, the bikers did not immediately realize she was the missing hiker authorities had been looking for.

Soon after, three dirt bikers also came across the group and recognized Wayment. They provided her with food and worked to pinpoint their location in the mountains, according to East Idaho News.

Tommy was later able to reach his wife, who contacted the BCSO with the group’s information. But officials noted that Wayment’s rescue was challenging due to the “remote location” where she had been found.

An air ambulance was eventually dispatched, transporting Wayment to St. Alphonsus Medical Center in Boise, Idaho. While waiting for medical crews, the mountain bikers remained with her. One of the dirt bike riders ultimately carried Wayment on the back of his bike down to a helicopter landing site, helping speed up her evacuation.

In a statement, the Blaine County Sheriff’s Office thanked multiple rescue agencies and volunteers for their coordinated efforts.

“We especially want to thank our Blaine County Sheriff’s Office deputies for their incredible efforts over the past two days, and the mountain bikers who were able to contact law enforcement, guide the Life Flight crew to Heather, and remain by Heather’s side offering aid until medical assistance could arrive,” the agency said.