Search for missing hiker near Elko shifting to recovery mode

Jacob Beetler, 20, went missing in the Ruby Mountains near Elko, Nevada. (Facebook)

ELKO — Efforts to find a 20-year-old hiker reported missing since the last week of July in the rugged Ruby Mountains of northeast Nevada are scaling back and shifting from search to recovery mode, a sheriff’s official said.

After looking for almost two weeks, Elko County Undersheriff Ron Supp told the Elko Daily Free Press that searchers with dogs are now looking for the body of Jacob Beetler of Spring Creek.

Beetler has been missing since July 27. Officials thought he might have headed toward Ruby Dome to scout for deer.

The mountain is the highest in the scenic mountains east of Elko.