(Willamette Week) – It’s the phone call every parent dreads. On Oct. 15, 2017, Dan Nichols, an engineer at Boeing in Gresham, raked leaves at his Lake Oswego home. His wife, Kathryn, was inside, preparing to make dinner.
The couple were empty-nesters, except for their Labradoodle, Sage. Their daughter Laura, a recent Gonzaga University graduate, lived in Seattle; their son Dave also worked as an engineer at Boeing, in Washington state.
Earlier that day, Dave, then 24, had journeyed to a rock-climbing hot spot in the Alpine Lakes region called “the Enchantments” about 15 miles south of Leavenworth and 160 miles northeast of Portland. CONTINUE