CHELAN COUNTY, Wash. – Authorities are still searching for Travis Decker, wanted for the murder of his three daughters. The search is now approaching one week.
Decker is known to be an outdoorsman, adding complexity to the search efforts. Travis Decker has a background in outdoor survival, with reports suggesting he could live off-grid for extended periods.
“He is well versed in outdoor survival… In talking with his father it sounds at times he would go out and be living off grid for up to two months,” Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison said.
William Hunsaker, the Director of Operations at Sigma 3 Survival School, highlighted the challenges faced by authorities. He noted, “We’re getting more confirmation that he may have gone to survival school,” emphasizing the difficulty of tracking someone with such skills.
Hunsaker explained that Washington’s terrain complicates tracking efforts. “Forested areas, soft areas that are mushy and stuff… tracks tend to disappear in stuff like that,” he said.
He referred to the two major challenges of tracking in wooded areas as “heaven and earth,” which are water and terrain.
According to Hunsaker, tracking is detective work that involves piecing together clues to profile Decker’s movements.
“You have to take all these clues, all these little details, and put them together… and you’re basically compiling a profile of the individual you’re after,” Hunsaker explained.
Training could also play a critical role in Decker’s ability to evade capture. “If they’re highly trained, who trained them?” Hunsaker asked, noting that trained individuals can support themselves and think clearly when on the run.
The urgency in finding Decker is high, as even untrained individuals are difficult to track.
“If they are two or three days ahead of you… that could make it quite difficult,” Hunsaker emphasized.
Hunsaker also mentioned the possibility of Decker leaving no trail if he uses natural elements like rivers. “If he’s an avid outdoorsman and he knows how to jump on one of those rivers or anything out there that moves quickly, you won’t have a trail,” he said.
Regarding Decker’s potential travel distance, Hunsaker stated, “In good condition, I can travel 12 miles in 3 hours…. if he is not weighed down and in decent shape… he can maybe cover twice that.”
The Chelan County Sheriff’s Office continues its search, but Hunsaker noted, time is critical to picking up Decker’s trail.
