The father of missing hillwalker Finn Creaney says they are “preparing for the worst” after their son’s backpack is found on the banks of Loch Naver.
Mark Creaney posted a short video on TikTok this evening to update followers on the latest developments; 18-month on from his son’s disappearance.
Finn was last seen in March 2022 as he embarked on a hike from Loch Naver to Golspie.
His family have vowed to never give up hope as they remain determined to “bring our boy home.”
However, his father says they are fearing the worst in light of recent developments.
‘We fear that he may not have made the swim’
In his latest address, his father confirmed his son’s rucksack had been found on the banks of the Highland loch two weeks ago.
The family now believes the 33-year-old survival instructor attempted to swim in the loch but fear he didn’t make it.
In the one-minute 54-second clip, he said: “As you know Finn went missing 18 months ago on his hike from Loch Naver to Golspie and despite searching the hills for all that time, we found no clues to him being there.
“That was until two weeks ago when a couple of deer stalkers on their way to Altnaharra came across Finn’s rucksack at the side of Loch Naver.
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“Upon closer inspection of the rucksack and its belongings and a few other items, that I can’t really get into, we now believe that Finn attempted to swim the loch, in order to cut his journey time somewhat to the coast.
“Finn is a really strong swimmer and a good wild swimmer but for some reasons, we don’t know about, we fear that he may not have made the swim.
“Police divers were down last week searching the area where the rucksack was found, as a possible start point, and they came up with nothing.”
Finn was last seen on March 25 last year after being dropped off to begin a walk around Loch Naver.
He was spotted on the B873 public road in Sutherland, where it is believed he began his trek around the loch before heading south to Golspie.
A multi-agency search operation was launched to locate him however, their efforts proved unsuccessful.
‘We need him home’
Since his disappearance, his father has repeatedly hiked into the Highlands wilderness in an effort to trace him.
Mr Creaney has vowed to continue searching until he finds out what happened.
He says the latest news has come as a real shock to Finn’s family and loved ones.
He added: “This is just a real blow to Finn’s family and everybody that cares about Finn and everybody that loves him. Unfortunately, we are preparing ourselves for the worst, but I’ll keep you updated, hopefully, as things go along.
“As always, we are determined to bring our boy home to us. We need him home.”
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