Search underway for missing California hiker

The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help locating a 35-year-old man who disappeared while hiking west of Redding.

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Investigators said Gerrad Esnault was believed to be hiking in the area of Middletown Park Drive and the Swasey Park trail system on the evening of Sunday, June 21, and has not been heard from since. 

Esnault is described as a white man standing 6 feet tall and weighing about 155 pounds, with long brown hair. Authorities said he was last seen wearing a black baseball cap, a tan or black hooded sweatshirt, and gray shorts. Esnault is a Redding resident, records show.

Esnault’s disappearance is the latest in a string of missing-hiker cases across Northern California. Earlier this month, searchers suspended a large-scale effort to find 60-year-old Jason Coughran, who vanished while hiking in Desolation Wilderness near Lake Tahoe over Memorial Day weekend and has not been found. In April, Robert Jamieson, a Florida man, disappeared after walking into a remote area near Burnt Ranch in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, leaving behind his phone, vehicle and dog. His whereabouts remain unknown.

SFGATE asked the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office for updates but had not heard back by publication time. 

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Anyone who has seen Esnault or has information about his whereabouts is asked to contact the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office at 530-245-6540.