Injured Motorcyclist Survives off Creek Water for 5 Days After Crash in Idaho Mountains: 'True Grit'

Mar. 15, 2025

Zachary DeMoss with his motorcycle.Photo:Missoula County Sheriff’s Office

Missoula County Sheriff’s Office

A motorcyclist has been found alive but “in bad shape” five days after he went missing in Idaho.

The Idaho County Sheriff’s Officerevealed last week that Zachary DeMoss — a then-missing 24-year-old man — was discovered on Aug. 16 around the local Lost Creek Campground, near milepost 136 on Highway 12.

According to theAssociated Press, DeMoss was reported missing to authorities on Aug. 12 after crashing his motorcycle along Highway 12 the day before while traveling with two others.

“Sheriff Ulmer wants to thank everyone who helped in the search for Zachary, and we wish him the best on his recovery.”

Zachary DeMoss in the hospital.Finding Zachary Demoss Facebook

Finding Zachary Demoss Facebook

The search for DeMoss came amid aGoFundMe campaignlaunched for recovery efforts and a Facebook pagededicated to locating him. Per the AP, DeMoss was riding a 2000 Kawasaki Vulcan on Aug. 11 alongside two other people, who later saw his motorcycle parked on the side of the highway.

The other riders waited for him further down the road and when he didn’t show up they eventually went back to check on him and found that both he and his bike were not visible, the AP noted. The duo then searched the area until 4 a.m., the outlet added, citing a Facebook post from one of the other riders.

The following day, the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office took over the search using drones and a helicopter. The search was later scaled back, before DeMoss was discovered on Aug. 16.

Zachary DeMoss with his motorcycle.Missoula County Sheriff’s Office

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“He has been found! He’s badly hurt though so we are keeping this open for anyone who is willing to help with medical bills,” DeMoss' mother Ruth Rickenbacher wrote in a later GoFundMe update. The campaign has since raised over $15,300 toward his recovery.

“It’s going to be a long and expensive recovery for him but we are so grateful he is alive. God bless you all!”

Rickenbacher wrote onFacebookthat she and DeMoss' father “never stopped believing he would be found in any other way than alive. My son is just one of those men that have true grit.” She also revealed that he suffered broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and may need potential surgery on his shoulder, ankle and a replacement for a hip.

“It’s like he was shaken like a rag doll,” his mother wrote in a recent update. “Rehab is going to be long term for now. He is healing so keep praying it’s working.”

source: people.com