MCSO: Hiker missing in Superstition Mountains

APACHE JUNCTION, AZ - Search and rescue crews returned Tuesday morning to continue the search for a missing hiker in the Superstition Mountains, east of the Valley.

Kenny Clark of Gilbert is in his late 50s and has been missing since 6:30 a.m. Sunday.

Search crews returned to base camp around 5 a.m. Tuesday after ending the overnight search around 2:30 a.m.

Clark is described as an experienced hiker and went out hiking by himself with a gallon of water on his back.

He was supposed to pick up his grandson later in the afternoon. His family told ABC15 they knew something was wrong when he didn't return from what was supposed to be a four to five-hour hike.

There are about 50 search and rescue crews scouring 260 square miles of desert looking for Clark.

The biggest challenge for search and rescue teams at night is not being able to use their thermal and infrared cameras to find the hiker because the ground is too hot in July for them to work properly.

The Pinal and Maricopa County Sheriff's offices have a lot of resources including helicopters and search dogs, which will play a big part in night time searches.

Desert terrain can be pretty rough, even on dogs, which is why the little guys get special booties to protect them from things like cacti.

Search and rescue crews went all night and plan to go until Tuesday afternoon to find Kenny Clark. His family is very worried.