UPDATED: Body of missing Missoula mountain climber found

Search and rescue crews found the body of a Missoula mountain climber who had been missing since Sunday south of Hamilton, according to Ravalli County Sheriff's Office.

Jeffrey McGowan, 30, was found Tuesday evening in the area near Sleeping Child Creek, on the east side of the Bitterroot Valley, according to a social media post from the sheriff's office.

"Searchers located the victim at the base of a rock face and the preliminary investigation indicates that tragically, Mr. McGowan was the victim of an accidental fall while rock climbing," the post stated.

The sheriff's office, Ravalli County Search and Rescue and Bitterroot National Forest law enforcement had been searching for McGowan since he was reported missing and failed to show up for a work shift Sunday night. Forest Service officials located his vehicle Monday, Sheriff Steve Holton said previously. Malmstrom Air Force Base also assisted in the search with a National Guard Helicopter.

In social media posts over the past day, friends and family offered remembrances of McGowan as a talented climber and great company on mountain adventures. One of his climbing partners, Mark Thomas, described McGowan as "happy-go-lucky," "humble" and a strong climber on rock or ice.

"I was surprised on some of our climbing trips, when things got really difficult or stressful, he could still keep a cheery mood, confident but not braggadocious," Thomas said in a phone interview Wednesday. "He wasn't saying, 'Oh I climbed this hard level, look at this amazing thing I did.'"

But Thomas said his friend had serious climbing chops, that he saw in action over around 10 climbing trips in the past several years. They met just a few years ago through a mutual friend, he said, and quickly bonded over a love of outdoor adventuring and "Weird Al" Yankovic jokes.

On one trip to the famed Price Glacier on North Cascades National Park's Mount Shuksan, he described being blown away as McGowan navigated an extremely technical challenge that would have proved a dead end for most ice climbers.

"He was game to see if we could pick a way up this multi-story, vertical wall of ice" with an overhang at the top, Thomas said, noting this friend sought out challenges but was never reckless. "It can be a rare skill to both have the capability to deal with a tough situation, but even if the situation is unclear, to at least approach it measuredly, calmly."

McGowan was an emergency medical technician with Missoula Emergency Services, Inc., a local ambulance service. Regional manager Don Whalen confirmed McGowan's employment in a phone call Tuesday morning. Whalen said he was also enrolled in a paramedic course at the University of Montana, but declined to say more until he had spoken with the family.

Attempts to reach his family Wednesday were unsuccessful. But McGowan's parents offered gratitude to the local climbing community in a public Facebook post.

"Thank you to so many of you in the climbing community for all you meant to our son," they wrote. "AND for how so many rallied to help us find and recover him. It’s times like these that remind how important others are to us. Even those we have never met."