DRY CREEK CANYON — The shelter in which kidnap victim Elizabeth Smart is believed to have been held captive for four months by Brian David Mitchell and Wanda Barzee was not only well-concealed but well-built.
The Deseret News visited the site Tuesday, the day police finished processing the area as a crime scene. Cut into a hillside deep within the foothills near Dry Creek Canyon and well above the Smarts' Federal Heights home, the sturdy shelter is constructed of tree branches, plastic and dirt and does not appear to be thrown together on the spur of the moment.
The approximately 24-foot-long shelter is part dugout, part lean-to. Eight posts made from trees hold the roof. Some of those posts are notched in a jigsaw pattern to interlock with the roof supports. Nails were driven in several of the posts for extra support. The bases of the posts are wrapped with plastic and duct tape, most likely to prevent the bases from rotting. The roof is made of 3-inch diameter tree limbs, a silver tarp, thick black plastic and dirt. The trees and dirt used for the roofing of the shelter reportedly prevented helicopters with heat-seeking sensors from finding Elizabeth or her abductors.
According to court documents, Elizabeth was abducted from her bedroom and taken to the shelter the night of June 5 and stayed there until Oct. 8. At times she was tethered to a tree with a cable to prevent her escape, according to the documents.
The tallest point of the shelter is about seven feet high. The roof slopes at a 45-degree angle to the shortest point of the shelter, which is only about a foot high.
Outside the shelter is a "patio" area of dirt and supported by a retaining wall made of tree branches. Up the hill to the east is a cooking area with the remains of a fire pit and blocks for a stove. Farther down the hill to the south is another contraption that looks like a second cooking area. A burner-like device is set up under a rusted 55-gallon drum with five apparent flues made with plastic piping sticking out the top.
Several trees in the area appeared to have been freshly cut, reportedly by investigators looking for evidence. One of those trees may have been the one used to hold Elizabeth.
Making the trek to the campsite, reporters and photographers from the Deseret News, KSL-TV and Fox 13 learned firsthand how well it was hidden. The group wandered on several wrong trails for three hours before finally finding the right trailhead.
The more than hourlong hike to the campsite begins at the Bonneville Shoreline Trail near the University of Utah. About a half-mile down the trail, the real trailhead to the campsite branches off to the east. The trail itself is faint and hardly traveled. It may even be a stretch to call it a "trail." Reporters passed members of the Salt Lake City police department and the Utah State Crime Lab just as they were leaving.
The group followed the trail through the rough, rocky terrain, covered with thick brush. They agreed the hike would have been extremely difficult for a 14-year-old girl dressed only in her pajamas and running shoes in the middle of the night.
Mitchell reportedly had several campsites throughout the foothills in addition to the main camp. About 30 minutes into the hike a campsite area with a rusted old stove was found. The area looked like it had been abandoned for a couple of months.
About an hour into the hike the group came into a clearing. To the left was a lower camp, which may have been base site No. 2. A ladder made out of tree branches was lying on the ground. Farther up the hill is a round clearing, reportedly the area where Mitchell constructed a teepee.
Long, straight trees stripped of their branches lay next to the camp area. They were reportedly used to make the tepee. The area cleared out for the tepee was cushioned with leaves on the ground.
The main campsite is reached via a steep, grueling hike in thick brush about 10 to 15 minutes northeast of campsite No. 2. Even though reporters knew they were in the right area, it still took a good half-hour before the main campsite was found securely hidden away in the foothills.
It's at the campsite where Elizabeth was allegedly married to Mitchell in a some sort of ceremony the night she was kidnapped, according to police sources. Investigators later found the knife used to kidnap Elizabeth at the campsite, according to sources. Elizabeth's red pajamas were also reportedly burned at the campsite.
Mitchell and Barzee are charged with felony kidnapping, sexual assault and burglary.
A scheduled court hearing Tuesday was postponed for three weeks while each defendant undergoes mental health evaluations. Bail for the defendants has been set at $10 million each.
E-MAIL: preavy@desnews.com