Two months passed without any word. No trace, no clue. On December 29, José Antonio Martínez, then 45, disappeared while pursuing a long‑held dream. A native of Catalonia, he used the Christmas break to visit his partner in Ceclavín, Cáceres, and chase the ascent he always imagined. The plan was to reach El Calvitero, a ridge that marks the border between Cáceres and Salamanca, a route offering a dramatic panorama at about 2,400 meters. Prepared and focused, he left the house with a smile and a message for his partner: I’m starting the route, everything is fine. He tucked his phone away and began the climb. That message would be the last signal anyone would receive. His trail vanished in the Sierra de Béjar and has not reappeared since.
“The area where the dog tracks is a possible one, but we face an almost impassable ice wall”
His partner of 17 years, Merche, recalls that his phone stopped signaling. The first night of search began with urgency but was hampered by worsening weather. The storm slowed progress, and the operation was gradually reduced to a standstill until a volunteer team restarted on February 11. A dog became the key indicator, guiding teams through a field of ice and snow. José Ángel Sánchez, chief of the Guadalix Local Police and lead of the QSDglobal Foundation’s BGA team, explains the challenge and the turn in the investigation as CASO ABIERTO — the Iberian press events and investigations portal — documents the moment.
Researchers estimated the area to lie around 1,912 meters above El Calvitero, near the peak José Antonio hoped to reach. A scent line from a dog suggested a potential path, but the terrain remained treacherous and the group could not advance. A wall of ice proved too high to scale, leaving the search at a standstill for days.
Family and friends remember him as a master mountaineer, an avid diver, a lover of astronomy, and a devoted guardian. He had not been home for 60 days and his absence weighed on everyone who knew him.
“I’m here. Everything is fine”
On December 29 at 9:11 in the morning, José Antonio parked on the second platform of Torreón near La Covatilla. He checked his gear, studied the route he had memorized, and began the ascent. A voice message was left on WhatsApp for Mercedes, saying that the climb had begun and that everything was fine. He repeated the same sentiment through his en route notes.
Merche explains that he had long desired this challenge and that the Christmas break allowed him to gift himself the ascent. She admits she worried about him taking on El Calvitero given the risks of winter sport but respected his determination. Hours later, the expected check-in did not arrive, and the cell phone stayed dark.
warning
He carried the necessary gear: an ice axe, crampons, warm clothing, snow pants, a bright red jacket, plus a phone charger and a spare battery. He prepared the night before and left with a calm, almost ceremonial routine. To reassure Mercedes, he mentioned a hiking group he might join. He walked with confidence, his knowledge guiding every step. When she replied to his messages, the response never came back. He had planned a route that would take six to eight hours, but the afternoon wore on and there was no word.
Merche recalls the moment of silence after she replied with questions that went unanswered. The phone remained off, and fear began to take hold as the day turned to night.
Research
Repeated calls produced the same mechanical tone. The family sought solace in small rituals and kept hope as long as possible. Merche remembers her daughter trying to comfort her, saying the battery would die and that José would eventually return to the car thanks to his charger. The clock kept ticking and the search widened.
The Béjar Civil Guard located the point identified earlier on El Travieso and mounted a rigorous night operation. Winds and snowfall limited visibility, delaying helicopters and drones for days. The search persisted with ground teams and, as conditions allowed, a broader technical response was planned. The goal remained clear: determine the most probable location and, if possible, retrieve José Antonio.
Accident or disorientation
José Antonio’s phone rang as authorities reestablished coverage in the Torreón area. The two-cell signal made precise triangulation difficult, and Merche lamented the narrowing of the search area. She believed a misstep or accident might have occurred, forcing him to remain where he landed rather than moving beyond.
In the first days, the weather stifled aerial efforts. Safety remained the primary concern, even as friends and volunteers wished for a chance to search higher. The question persisted: did he attempt to retreat from a perilous spot or was he trapped by the storm in a higher bowl of ice and fog?
What if the search had happened sooner or the weather allowed earlier flights? The family clung to the possibility that he was alive, sheltering somewhere, trying to navigate back down. Yet the reality of winter conditions made that hope increasingly fragile. The search was framed as a recovery operation from the outset, and time pressed on as the days slipped into weeks.
“Don’t put yourselves in our place,” a plea from the family. They urged authorities to probe every natural outlet of the range. The initial 48 to 72 hours are crucial when aerial reconnaissance is possible. If he was alive, a path down or a sign might have appeared in those early periods. Still, the mountain held its own stubborn secrets, and José’s resolve remained a defining trait.
thaw
January 7 brought a suspension of the search. Mercedes and her family fought to restart the effort, only to see it paused again on the 16th. The family felt the countdown of uncertainty, believing that officials waited for the conditions to improve rather than for new information. The family retained hope while reframing the situation as a long-term effort.
On February 11, a team of nine guides and six BGA dogs from the QSDglobal foundation resumed search efforts in El Calvitero’s subregion. A dog mark offered a glimmer of possibility, but the ice still slowed progress. Plans were announced to expand the technical unit to eight to ten specialists who could push higher and farther. The dog’s point remained a potential lead tied to José Antonio’s last known location.
She was going to marry. Two weeks before he disappeared, he proposed to his partner with whom he had shared seventeen years
Mercedes reflects on the rupture the disappearance created, yet her focus remains fixed on finding him. The couple had a lifetime of plans and adventures. The idea of marriage, a shared dream, sustained them through the hardest days. Volunteers from climbers to search teams arrived, as did trail dogs and support from UCAS, all standing ready to help.
The family acknowledges the efforts of the Civil Guard and other responders who persisted despite the inevitable pauses. Mercedes recalls a night spent in a rural house arranged by local locals who showed them kindness and hospitality. In her words, those acts of humanity are what she will never forget as she continues to hold onto the hope that José will be found.
Meticulous and determined, José studied every move, charting a route from start to finish. Loved by many, he shared big dreams with Merche in their seventeen years together. One such goal was a future together, a life they planned to begin with a wedding given the moment they shared just weeks before his disappearance.