Having only read this article, is there somewhere else that you've read about the case to conclude that he has no family or friends who've been looking for him? It could be that they've been looking in the wrong place, or are older and not on the FB and other fora where this case is being discussed to connect the dots. And similarly, how can you conclude he hadn't contacted them in years (though it's obviously been years at this point), we know nothing of him prior to starting the hike in 2017.