THE dad accused of viciously killing his three young daughters in cold blood could potentially be miles away from the Canadian border, a survival expert believes.
The extensive search effort for Travis Decker has entered its third week as law enforcement officials continue to comb through the rugged terrain in northern Washington state.
Decker, an ex-Army Ranger, is accused of killing his daughters, Olivia, 5, Evelyn, 8, and Paityn, 9, during a court-ordered three-hour custody visit before dumping their bodies at a rural campsite near the Rock Island Campground in Chelan County, an hour outside of Wenatchee.
The young girls were reported missing on May 30 by their mother, Whitney, after Decker, 32, failed to drop them home.
The girls’ wrists were zip-tied, or appeared to be zip-tied, and each had a bag over their heads, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said.
Their bodies were found on June 2 near Decker’s pick-up truck that had bloody handprints on the tailgate, according to investigators.
An autopsy determined the girls died of suffocation.
Since the grisly discovery, local and federal authorities have continued to hunt for Decker, who is said to have experience living off-grid, in the mountainous and rugged terrain.
However, throughout the weeks-long search, investigators have struggled to pinpoint Decker’s whereabouts in the remote landscape.
Dave Canterbury – a veteran survival expert and owner of Pathfinder School in Ohio, an outdoor self-reliance and survival school – believes there’s a good chance Decker is near the Canadian border by now.
“He’s had enough time to get close to if not in Canada by now if he was really working,” Canterbury, who is not involved in the search effort for Decker, told The U.S. Sun.
Investigators said that four days before his disappearance, Decker made several Google searches related to Canada.
Decker made online searches for “how does a person move to Canada,” “how to relocate to Canada” and “jobs Canada.”
Decker’s truck and his daughters’ remains were found less than a dozen miles from the Pacific Crest Trail – a 2,650-mile path that runs to the Canadian border.
Canterbury believes Decker’s chances of making it to Canada within the next day or two are high
“So, a hiker that’s walking on the trail can move 20 miles a day,” the survival expert said.
“A hiker who is not the trail can move probably 12 to 15 [miles]. I would say at least within the next few days it’s definitely high [that he’s by Canada].
“If he’s still out there, I would say it’s high. I would say within the next two to three days, if he’s moving everyday and he hasn’t sustained some kind of mechanical injury already, then I would say the chances are high that he can make it to Canada within the next day or two.”
RUGGED TERRAIN
Canterbury, who is familiar with the trail where authorities are searching for Decker, described the terrain as rocky and hazardous.
“It’s damp a lot of the time, it’s rocky. It’s definitely got a lot of moss, a lot of trip hazards, mechanical injury issues that could happen,” he added.
“You’ve got a lot of dead logs around. So, unless you’re on a beaten trail, like the Pacific Crest Trail, or something like that, or it’s kept clear for hikers, if you’re not on that trail, you probably got a pretty good chance to get a mechanical injury if you get in a hurry.
“It would make it more difficult for both directions, it’s more difficult for him to move more, difficult for them [police] to move.”
Since the manhunt for Decker began in early June, investigators have repeatedly said they believe the suspected murderer is still alive.
On June 11, authorities received a tip from a hiking party who said they saw a man hiking alone near the Enchantments, a region within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area of Washington state’s Cascade Mountain Range.
The region is a popular backpacking area that is frequently visited by amateur and experienced hikers.
The group described the man to the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office as being “ill prepared for trail and weather conditions, and appeared to be avoiding others.”
When investigators sent a helicopter to the area they spotted the hiker near a remote lake called Colchuck Lake.
’50/50 CHANCE’
The off-trail hiker sprinted out of sight as the helicopter passed, the sheriff’s office said.
Authorities believe the man was Decker.
Canterbury, the survival expert, believes there’s a 50/50 chance Decker is still alive and hiding.
“I kind of wondered, and I’ve kind of wondered for a few days in my mind – They located his dog, it’s pretty difficult to drive your dog off,” Canterbury told The U.S. Sun.
“So, I wondered to myself why that dog would wander away unless he was deceased, in which case [the dog] probably would’ve led you to the body.
“But knowing dogs, I have several dogs your dog is gonna come and find you sooner or later.
“He’s not gonna just run off and be gone if he’s been your dog for very long. Now, that’s another questions I don’t know the answer to, but I think it can go either way.
“He could be alive and on the run or could be dead. I’d say it’s 50/50.”
Canterbury suspects, if Decker is still alive, he’s moving during the night to avoid being seen.
“Evading capture is probably taking a toll on him because he probably is trying to move more in evenings than during the day,” the survival expert said.
“If he’s moving along the Pacific Crest Trail toward Canada, he’s not moving on the trail because he’s not gonna want to be seen, so he’s using as a handrail and moving off the trail somewhere to keep it either left or right of his position while he moves north.
“That’s probably gonna take a toll on him mechanically moving through an area. That’s not cleared for a trail.
“So, I think he’s got a lot of obstacles. He can’t move too much at night because of the obstacles and because he’s gonna have to have light to do that, which is gonna attract attention.
“But I think he’s had plenty of time at this point; he’s been moving 10 to 12 miles a day on rugged terrain.
“A fit person could do that easy enough. He’s had enough time to get close to, if not, in Canada by now if he was really moving.”
Decker suffers from PTSD after his time in the military, and his mental instability led to his divorce with his ex-wife in 2022, Whitney previously said.
However, despite his mental struggles, Whitney insisted Decker was a good dad who had never failed to return their children after each scheduled visit until the recent tragedy.
Timeline of the missing Decker girls
Paityn Decker, 9, Evelyn Decker, 8, and Olivia Decker, 5, were found dead at a campground after they were last seen on a custody visit to their dad.
Below is a timeline of events:
Thursday, May 29
Cell phone activity shows that the girls’ dad, Travis Decker, drove to the Rock Island Campground and left.
Friday, May 30
5 pm – Travis Decker picks the three girls up from their mom, Whitney Decker.
8 pm – Travis Decker is supposed to return the girls but doesn’t. Whitney Decker calls him and it goes to voicemail.
9:45 pm – Whitney Decker calls the Wenatchee Police Department to report her daughters missing.
Travis Decker’s truck is seen driving westbound on Highway 2.
Washington State Patrol is contacted for an Amber Alert but said the situation didn’t match their criteria.
Saturday, May 31
WPD issues an Endangered Missing Persons Alert.
Monday, June 2
3:45 pm – Travis Decker’s truck is found empty at Rock Island Campground with two bloody handprints and items inside.
5 pm – Cops search the area and find the bodies of the three girls.
Tuesday, June 3
9:30 am – Cops notify the public that they are still searching for Decker.
2 pm – WPD tells the public that the three girls were found dead and that Travis Decker is still on the loose.
