Missing mushroom picker found in Skamania County

Search and rescue teams on Tuesday located a 75-year-old Vancouver woman who went missing over the weekend while mushroom picking in Skamania County.

Jung C. VanAtta was found at 3:35 p.m. in the Woodard Creek Drainage, according to a Skamania County Sheriff’s Office news release. Rescue teams were in the process of extricating her from the location, and her condition was stable.

She “appears weak but uninjured,” Skamania County Sheriff Pat Bond said in an email. Members of the U.S. Air Force 304th Rescue Squadron from the Portland Air National Guard Base and North Country EMS Volcano Rescue Team first spotted her.

Additional information was expected later, the news release said.

VanAtta was last seen around 10 a.m. Saturday near 572 Beacon Highlands Road, about 15 miles northwest of Stevenson, according to the sheriff’s office. She had been picking mushrooms with Donald E. Bergseng, 87, of Vancouver before reportedly deciding to go pick more and return within the hour.

Friends and family then searched for VanAtta, who had never picked in the area, the sheriff’s office said. They alerted authorities later that afternoon.

After searching until 2:45 a.m. Sunday, search and rescue personnel continued later that day.

Several ground teams, dog teams, three aerial drones and a contracted helicopter from JL Aviation were involved, and a Reverse 911 alert was initiated for nearby homeowners, according to the sheriff’s office.