Barbara Bolick

Case background and investigation

Barbara Assunta Bolick was 55 years old when she disappeared during a day hike in the Bitterroot Mountains of western Montana on July 18, 2007. According to the case summary published by Solve the Case, she and her husband had moved to Corvallis, in the Bitterroot Valley, in 2001. The Charley Project describes her as an experienced hiker who knew the area well.

That morning she set out for Bear Creek Overlook, a viewpoint above the valley outside Victor in Ravalli County, with a friend of the family who was visiting from California. Solve the Case says they left her home at about 9 a.m. According to the Charley Project, the companion told investigators that some time between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. he stopped to take in a view while Bolick was 20 to 30 feet from him, and that when he turned around roughly a minute later she was no longer there. She was reported missing that afternoon.

She was wearing a pastel-colored shirt and tan shorts and carrying a black day pack, which the Charley Project says contained a .357 Magnum handgun. Search and rescue teams, dogs and aircraft fitted with infrared and thermal imaging equipment covered the area, according to Solve the Case. Neither Bolick nor the pack was found, and NBC Montana reported in 2023 that nothing connected to her had turned up in the sixteen years since.

Investigators asked for help locating two young men with a black mixed-breed dog who were seen hiking nearby around the time of the disappearance and who may have been driving a light-colored, older Chevrolet S-10 with Missoula County plates. The Charley Project stresses that the two are regarded as possible witnesses, not suspects. It also reports that the hiking companion cooperated with the investigation and has not been named a suspect.

The Charley Project lists the case as 'Lost/Injured Missing' and notes that Bolick left behind her pets, wallet, identification and passport, which investigators took as a sign that she did not leave voluntarily. Her husband said she was afraid of heights and would not have approached a cliff edge or left the trail.

The Ravalli County Sheriff's Office is listed as the investigating agency by the Charley Project, while Solve the Case lists the Missoula County Sheriff's Office cold case unit; a 2023 NBC Montana report said law enforcement had issued a fresh appeal for information. No arrest has been made, no remains have been found, and officials quoted by NBC Montana said all possibilities remain open.