Mystery: Man’s Dog Returned To CA Camp Without Owner 28 Yrs Ago

Camping has its risks. A California man who went camping with his dog and was waiting for friends to join him went missing nearly 30 years ago near a popular lake resort community. What happened to Michael Madden?

People disappear while spending time in the outdoors frequently. Some get temporarily lost, others require help finding their way back to their campsite, and some are just never heard from again. Animal attacks, drownings, and accidents make up a large percentage of these types of cases.

Madden had a surgical scar on his left collarbone and was 6'2" and weighed 200 pounds at the time he went missing. It's presumed by many that he suffered some sort of life-ending accident.

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In 1996, a 20-year-old man named Michael Madden went camping with his hound "Matilda" near Pinecrest Lake in central California and disappeared just hours before friends were to join him, according to the California Department of Justice. His case has been discussed in articles,  podcasts and video uploads, and there have been persons of interest interviewed in the matter but no one has ever been arrested.

Madden's dog limped back into the campsite days later but there was no sign of Michael. Several theories have been raised regarding the case.

Did he suffer an accident? Was he killed by an animal? Did another human being have something to do with Madden's disappearance?

Madden had a surgical scar on his left collarbone and was 6'2" and weighed 200 pounds at the time he went missing. It's presumed by many that he suffered some sort of life-ending accident. Sand Bar Flat Campground is approximately 35 miles northeast of Sonora, and was the last place Madden was seen.