Two Israeli men in their 20s have been declared missing in Chile, after failing to return from a hike in the country's lake region. They are currently being sought after by local search and rescue teams equipped with a chopper.
The two left the city of Pukon for the 'Villarrica Traverse' hike last Tuesday. The famous hike, which traverses the Villarrica national park, is generally made to last anywhere between three and five days.
The young men planned to return within this span of time, but ran into unfortunate weather. The park, in which hiking season officially ended two months ago, is currently covered in snow and nearly empty.
After five days, when the two hikers failed to return to their hostel in Pukon, their friends became concerned and phoned the Foreign Ministry to report their absence.
The ministry has confirmed that there was currently no "communication with the young men", but that technically they were still within the time frame it takes to complete the hike.
Ministry officials assume the two, upon encountering heavy snowfall during the hike, took cover somewhere along the trail and were waiting for the weather to improve. The Israeli consul in Santiago attempted to travel to the area, but returned home because the weather would not permit him to land.
The Israeli Consulate then alerted a police chopper, which made circles over the park but could find no trace of the hikers. A search party is also in the area, and the consulate has said that the helicopter will make additional rounds in the morning.
Barak, an Israeli who traveled in the area a few months ago, told Ynet the two young men's timing was surprising. "This is an area to which people stopped traveling in March, now it's the height of winter," he said.
Barak added that the area was not dangerous, but that there are a number of unmarked turns in the trail that hikers should be familiar with in order to keep from losing their way.