The Jacket That Shouldn't Exist: Alone, Cold, Three Miles Lost Cold, alone, and dressed in trail runners in four-degree weather, a woman walked out of unmapped backcountry three and a half miles from where search dogs lost the trail - wearing a men's olive canvas jacket with the name "Tom Fleming" stitched inside, while the identical jacket hung in a closet forty-one miles away. How did Kathleen Fleming cross that distance in those conditions and leave behind a jacket that should not have existed at the scene? In this episode, we tell the events of a single night and the hours that followed, following search teams, a dog handler, and a county investigator as they try to account for impossible movements and conflicting evidence. What really happened between Tolliver Creek Trailhead and Millburn Pass Road that night? Person: Kathleen Fleming Date: November 14, 2017 Location: Millburn Pass Road / Tolliver Creek Trailhead Status: Alive Case: Missing-and-found with conflicting clothing evidence - Kathleen Fleming left work at approximately 4:30 PM on November 13, 2017 and drove to Tolliver Creek Trailhead. - Pocket, her ten-year-old Alaskan husky, missed scheduled feeding at 7:00 AM, prompting concern. - Tom Fleming called the sheriff’s department at 9:17 PM on November 13, 2017 to report Kathleen missing. - Search-and-rescue teams arrived at Tolliver Creek Trailhead by 10:45 PM and found Kathleen’s truck and phone locked inside. - At 6:15 AM on November 14, 2017, Alice Simmons found Kathleen seated against a rock on Millburn Pass Road wearing an extra-large olive canvas jacket labeled "Tom Fleming" while an identical jacket hung in a closet in Dunbar, forty-one miles away. To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com. © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved. This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
