Julian Sands missing: Actor ‘knows Mount Baldy backwards’ as phone pings reveal

Missing actor Julian Sands is “always prepared” and knows the mountain where he was last traced “backwards”, a fellow actor has said.

Irish star Kevin Ryan described Sands, who is missing in a mountainous area in southern California, as a “powerful hiker”, adding: “If anyone can get through this, he can.”

Sands, 65, was reported missing one week ago. He was thought to have been somewhere on the popular Baldy Bowl Trail, which climbs 3,900 feet over 4.5 miles to the highest summit in the San Gabriel Mountains.

Police revealed on Friday that Sands, best known for films such as A Room With a View and Arachnophobia, appeared to be on the move two days later.

Data from his mobile phone showed Sands was “heading to the Mount Baldy area”. Pings attempted since then have failed, police said, likely due to the actor’s phone running out of battery.

It comes after The Independent revealed images sent from Sands to his grandson Billy in September, which show the father-of-three mountaineering.

Search and rescue crews looking for Sands were initially forced to suspend the search over the weekend because of an avalanche threat. Snow and fog has continued to hinder the search in the days since.

The Independent understands that Sands’ son Henry joined the search, retracing the route his father took, with the assistance of an experienced climber.