Mount Hood searchers give up, return to bases

Story Highlights

• NEW: Air search continues after ground search proves fruitless
• NEW: Teams approach summit but find no trace of missing men
• Teams set out before dawn on north, south faces of mountain
• Rescuers were encouraged by break in weather, but it didn't help

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HOOD RIVER, Oregon (CNN) -- Weary searchers scouring Mount Hood for three missing climbers had no luck Saturday and returned to their bases, said Capt. Mike Braibish of the Oregon National Guard.

"As of now, they have not found any sign of the missing climbers," Braibish told reporters.

Air searches with two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and a C-130 cargo plane from Nevada were to continue around the clock, with crews working 12-hour shifts, he said. The C-130 has infrared imaging equipment that can sense body heat. (Watch officials describe Saturday's search )

The ground search was to resume early Sunday, weather permitting. Saturday's search began at 4 a.m. (7 a.m. ET) from lodges located at 6,000 feet. Braibish said the overall search would continue as long as possible, although during the week, the volunteer searchers would return to their jobs.

"There is a degree of frustration that we haven't found them yet," Braibish said. "But the fact of the matter is that the search continues right now. We're optimistic and we're going to continue to approach this with a great deal of determination no matter what that weather is."

Although Saturday's weather was the best in days, the higher the searchers climbed, the worse it got, with wind gusts to 50 mph, he said.

"There are times when visibility is just dozens of feet, with the snow blowing up there," Braibish said. Searchers came down to avoid being trapped high on the mountain.

Hood River County Sheriff Joe Wampler said Saturday the temperature at 6,000 feet was 14 degrees, decreasing to about 3 degrees at the peak.

Saturday's goal had been to reach the summit of the 11,239-foot mountain.

A team of about 30 searchers climbed the south side of Mount Hood in Clackamas County, and another group scaled the north side, located in Hood River County. In addition, groups of avalanche experts fanned out to assess climbing risks. Authorities said the avalanche danger is "extreme."

Sgt. Sean Collinson of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office said the south side team was able to reach 10,600 feet, the highest altitude since the search began Monday. The Hood River group climbed to about 10,000 feet.

At one point Saturday, sheriff's officials dispatched a Chinook helicopter to an area where searchers believed they saw two figures at an elevation of about 8,800 feet. The sighting turned out to be false.

The U.S. Forest Service closed Mount Hood above the Timberline Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail to everyone except search-and-rescue teams, and all but rescue aircraft are banned in a 3-mile radius of the mountain.

The missing men -- Kelly James, 48, of Dallas, Texas; Brian Hall, 37, of Dallas; and Jerry Cooke, 36, of Brooklyn, New York -- began their climb of the north side of Mount Hood in earnest on December 8.

Last Sunday, James called his family from his cell phone, and told them he was holed up in a snow cave. He said the other men had moved on, presumably down the mountain.

Nothing has been heard from the men since.

Mothers of the men spoke at a news conference held earlier Saturday with Wampler.

"I just want to thank everyone for all the support they've given us. It's just been incredible. The whole world has turned out for us, has supported us, been praying for us," said Lou Ann Cameron, James' mother.

"I know my son's coming down today. It's my birthday, and he wouldn't miss my birthday, I know."

On Friday, authorities said they had found another note from the climbers, saying they were well-prepared for the venture with "food, fuel, ropes, shovel, bivouac sacks, heavy parkas, etc." (Watch how a note gave rescuers hope)

Wampler said they may have stashed some items before the climb so they could move faster, but no one has found anything. (Full story)

"We had people that actually saw them along the route that are climbers and outdoorsmen and said, 'Hey, they had all the best stuff.' These guys were prepared to climb the advanced route that they did climb on the north side of Mount Hood," the sheriff said.

"But nobody ever saw them above the timberline," he added.

If the men are found, the plan is to airlift them to a trauma center in Portland, Wampler said.