With the search now several days old, law enforcement officials are losing hope that an Oskaloosa native and Kansas University graduate who is apparently missing somewhere in Great Sand Dunes National Monument will be found before winter weather prohibits further investigation.

Jason D. Loving, 29, was reported missing Wednesday, Oct. 23, after failing to show for the second straight day at a Denver-based firm where he is employed as an engineer.

Loving told co-workers he was going backpacking to get away from some of the stress at work and would be back Oct. 22, sources said.

His absence was linked to the sand dunes in southern Colorado when a ranger noticed a car had been left in the monument’s parking lot overnight. The ranger checked the car’s plates and came up with Loving’s name and the missing persons report, said Chief Ranger Jim Bowman.

Loving apparently had registered and paid to camp in the area but never returned to his car, said Capt. Phil Spence of the Arapahoe (Colo.) Sheriff’s Department, which took the initial report.

On Thursday, officials started the search for Loving with ground teams, aircraft, dogs and a helicopter in the dunes, which cover 30 square miles. But “so far the search has been fruitless,” Bowman said.

Weather held up the search on Saturday, and it has since been scaled back. Dogs specially trained to look for bodies will search the area this weekend, Bowman said.

“Bad weather is setting in, and if he’s not found soon we probably won’t be able to find anything until next spring,” he said.

The possibility of Loving being lost or in trouble in the dunes is puzzling to officials, who have been told he was an experienced outdoorsman.

Loving

Loving’s friends and co-workers said it was not unusual for him to take off for a couple of days on a solo backpacking trip.

“He is an avid camper and has taken a lot of survival classes,” said Tammy Fowler, an Oskaloosa resident who used to baby-sit for the family.

Loving’s parents, who still live in Oskaloosa, were in Colorado and could not be reached Monday afternoon for comment. Sources said one of Loving’s two brothers lived in Lawrence.

The Littleton, Colo., resident began work at S.A. Miro Inc. upon graduation from KU in 1999, said business manager Sue Zen.

Loving is bright and dedicated and was close to many of his co-workers, for whom the past few days have been difficult, she said.

Zen said Loving’s family members were doing as well as could be expected, and were hoping for clues to his disappearance.

Those clues have been hard to come by.

Although officials do not suspect foul play, they can only speculate as to what happened.

Said Zen: “There’s nothing worse than not knowing.”