Curtis Austin Holmen was a nature-loving elementary school teacher who vanished in 1984.

Curtis Austin Holmen grew up in North Dakota and graduated from Jamestown College with honors with a degree in elementary education. At the time of his disappearance, Curtis worked as a math teacher at Target Range Elementary School. He taught fifth and sixth graders and also worked for the National Park Service. Prior to his disappearance, Curtis stockpiled food and survival equipment and traveled for a year, hiking as far as Canada down to the southwestern part of the U.S.

Curtis vanished after making plans with his girlfriend.

On July 22, 1984, Curtis left his home in Missoula, MT to change the battery in his 1976 Toyota pickup truck. After leaving his home, he called his girlfriend to confirm plans to meet at a local movie theater the next day. Curtis never arrived at the theater and has not been seen or heard from since.

Twelve days later, Curtis’ truck was found abandoned on an old logging road near Placid Lake in Missoula County, MT. Inside, authorities find his wallet, a map of the state forest sprawled across the front seat, and his glasses. The truck keys are not found and there are no clear signs of foul play in the immediate area of his truck. Extensive searches of the area revealed no sign of Curtis, other than shoe prints that matched his size, which had been overlapped by grizzly bear tracks.

Where the case stands today.

Authorities believe that Curtis either ended his own life, or that he suffered a mishap in the forest that led to his death. According to reports, a grizzly bear had been seen in the area where Curtis’ truck was found, leading authorities to believe he may have been attacked by a bear. There have been no signs or evidence leading to Curtis’ whereabouts or what happened to him have been found in the past 38 years that he has remained missing.

At the time of his disappearance in 1984, Curtis was described as a 31 year old caucasian man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was 6’5” tall and weighed approximately 210 lbs. Curtis' nickname is Curt. He wears size 15 shoes. He had a beard and mustache at the time of his disappearance. If you have any information regarding Curtis' disappearance or his whereabouts, please contact the Missoula Police Department at (406) 552-6303.