In the police report, he is called Norbert J. and comes from Speyer in the Palatinate. He told his wife that he wanted to climb the Alpspitze (2628 m above sea level) near Garmisch-Partenkirchen and spend the night in the mountains. On a Wednesday, he calls his wife for the last time. He was an experienced hiker and alpinist, writes the ARD Tagesschau.

Around 24 hours later, she reports him missing. The search begins. Specialists try to find the 86-year-old on foot and from the air. He must have already lost his cell phone. Norbert J. wanders through the mountainous area east of the Zugspitze, drinking from streams. He has no provisions with him. After four days, at the end of his strength, he lies down on a forest road below the Stuibenhütte and hopes that someone will discover him.

This someone is an Austrian mountain biker who is traveling in the border region. Norbert J. asks him to make an emergency call and to call his wife. A short time later, a rescue team picks up the hiker and takes him to hospital. He cannot say where and how he spent the night.