Photo courtesy Marion County Sheriff's Office

This is a press release from the Marion County Sheriff's Office.

Late Saturday afternoon the Marion County Sheriff's Office responded to Breitenbush Lake regarding the report of a family who had been reported missing in that area. Members of the Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team responded and began searching for the family. 

At 9:15 p.m. the search was suspended for the night and resumed first thing Sunday morning. 

Search and Rescue members used snowmobiles to search for the family and at 7:23 a.m. Sunday the family was located and all were found to be in good condition. According to deputies and searchers on scene, there was at least 16 inches of snow in the area and the Shaver's Astro van got stuck in the snow and was unable to drive out of the area. 

The following is an account of the events that led up to the search:

On Saturday, Paul Schlamp of Oregon City contacted the sheriff's office indicating his brother-in-law, 43-year-old Mark Shaver of Eagle Creek and his seven children (ages 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 14) failed to return home from a camping trip. 

Mark Shaver and his children left on Tuesday, Nov. 3, and Schlamp said he thought they were scheduled to return on Thursday, Nov. 5. Contact was made with Shaver's wife, Hanna Shaver, who indicated she was expecting them to return on Friday, Nov. 6, or Saturday, Nov. 7. She said her husband frequently takes the children camping and they were well prepared for the trip. 

Shaver's wife said he had completed training in wilderness survival and first aid, and that he is an avid backpacker and hiker. She said Shaver and the kids were generally in good health and good physical condition. 

The Marion County Sheriff's Office would like to thank the Search and Rescue volunteers who assisted in the safe return of the Shaver family as well as the Warm Springs Police Department and Clackamas County Sheriff's Office. Warm Spring Police searched for the Shavers on their side of the Mountain and the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office offered their assistance if needed.