# Missing hiker's body found after 21 years

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [August 31, 2010, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125 "2010-08-31T13:41:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2010, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125/1 "2010-08-31T13:41:41Z")

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[Link here](http://www.wgme.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wgme_vid_4842.shtml)

What fascinates me is it was covered by a glacier and is apparently in pretty good shape for a dead body.

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**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2010, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125/2 "2010-08-31T13:54:35Z")

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He’s a hometown boy - Sorta - for me. More detail [here](http://www.kjonline.com/news/maine-climbers-body-found-in-canada_2010-08-30.html).

> [@](#):
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> In April 1989, William Holland, a 39-year-old geologist form Gorham, was ice climbing in Jasper National Park in Alberta. He and his climbing partner had reached the summit of the treacherous Slipstream alpine climb on Snow Dome, an 11,339-foot mountain, when a cornice beneath Holland collapsed.

Holland’s body had moved about a kilometer from the site of his fall over the course of 20-odd years. Still in a high degree of preservation. Freaky.

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**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125/3 "2010-09-01T13:22:33Z")

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I’m glad for the family they found him. The earth gave him back and intact. Amazing!

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125/4 "2010-09-01T13:30:31Z")

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I have some friends who hiked and climbed with Bill, and in fact were planning a trip right when he would have returned from the climb where he died. Glaciers are usually pretty good a preserving bodies intact so this isn’t really unusual in that respect.

He was a good climber and a good companion from all reports. It’s good that his family has closure.

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**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-hikers-body-found-after-21-years/552125/5 "2010-09-01T14:26:14Z")

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Have revival efforts been started? What about the galvanic battery?  
This guy has some good stories to tell, I’ll bet!