AN IRISH family has appealed for information for missing lone hiker David O'Sullivan who was last seen four months ago.
David O'Sullivan, 25 and from Midleton in Co. Cork, was last seen on April 7 in Idyllwild, California where he emailed his parents and posted a package from the local post office.
Mr O'Sullivan was due to meet a friend in Santa Barbara in early May, but he didn't show up.
The missing poster circulated by US police for David O'Sullivan. (Picture: Missing Person -David O'Sullivan/Facebook)The former UCC student embarked on the lone trip in March this year, hiking the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mexican border to Canada along the west coast of the US.
Mr O'Sullivan had his hiking gear, a non-smart phone and his tablet.
He had no data plan and was reliant on WiFi in towns to contact his family.
As he is a novice hiker with no experience in alpine conditions, Mr O'Sullivan was intent on avoiding deep snow and ice along the route.
In a Facebook appeal for Mr O'Sullivan, his family said: "This was our last contact with him. We knew that weeks might pass without contact but no more than 2 or 3.
"After 3.5 weeks, we took to Facebook and asked if anyone had met him on the trail. People were very helpful, sharing the post multiple times, messaging me with support, etc.
"However, there was a lot of misinformation and he was even 'found' a few times, even to the point where we rang hostels to speak with 'him.'"
But none of these sightings were David O'Sullivan and on May 31, his family went to gardaí in Ireland, and inquiries made led the family to believe his bank account had recently been active.
"While not happy, this satisfied us that he was OK, spending money on food and that he was simply unable to charge his tablet or get WiFi access. We waited for an email from him.
"On June 30, after more weeks without contact, we went back to our local police, asking them to officially report him as a missing person."
David O'Sullivan has been reported missing with An Garda Síochána, both the American and Irish Embassies, Interpol and US police departments as well as search and rescue departments throughout California.
Mr O'Sullivan is described as 5'10'', 154lbs, with black hair and blue eyes.
