Houston woman missing at Big Bend National Park found after a week, park rangers say

KTRK logo
Saturday, November 18, 2023
Houston woman missing for a week at 1,200-sq.-mile Big Bend now found
Christy Perry, 25, of Houston, has been found alive at Big Bend National Park and is being treated at an Odessa, Texas, hospital.

BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, Texas (KTRK) -- Eyewitness News obtained video Friday evening showing search crewmembers helping a missing Houston hiker off of a helicopter and out to an awaiting ambulance.

The hiker, 25-year-old Christy Perry, was found alive earlier in the day at Big Bend National Park after rangers said she vanished a week prior.

In a video taken by Jeremy Hillary, the woman wearing a yellow helmet appears slow to move as she's helped by a person on each side of her.

A Big Bend parkgoer from Houston captured a helicopter arriving with missing hiker Christy Perry, who vanished a week prior.

The National Park Service said she was being taken to an Odessa, Texas, hospital for observation.

Authorities did not specify where in the 1,200-square-mile national park she was located, but NPS photos show crews on a steep incline as part of the search Friday.

National Park Service

PREVIOUS STORY: 25-year-old Houston woman fails to return from Big Bend, rangers say

According to the NPS, Perry's family reported that she did not return home from her trip.

A close family friend confirmed with ABC13's Jiovanni Lieggi on Thursday that Perry didn't tell anyone the details of her itinerary but did appear to be there on a planned vacation.

The NPS added Perry picked up a rental car in Midland, Texas, and arrived in Big Bend National Park on Nov. 9.

The park service said she never showed up for her camping reservation that night at the Chisos Basin Campground.

Perry's vehicle was later located at the trailhead for the Lost Mine Trail.

According to the park service, this trail climbs steeply through the woodlands of the Chisos Mountains.

Park Rangers and U.S. Border Patrol agents searched the trail, with multiple airplanes utilized from above.

The Texas Game Wardens, Los Diablos fire crew, and other agencies are assisting in search efforts.

The trail is currently closed until further notice.