Terrence Woods Vanished From Penman Mine
On October 5th, 2018, 27‑year‑old Terrence Woods vanished while working with a Raw TV film crew on location at Penman Mine in Idaho. The crew was shooting material for an episode of Gold Rush: Dave Turin’s Lost Mine. As a long‑time Gold Rush fan myself—Grandpa, we loved you—this was the season before Jessie tragically suffered a heart attack and died on set.
What’s striking is what the show didn’t do. They never dramatised Terrence’s disappearance. They never mentioned it in any season. Not even a title card. They didn’t use a single frame of footage from that day.
Yet they did dramatise Jessie’s death. That contrast is… interesting.
Terrence had been hired as a production assistant, a role that essentially supports the director and keeps the shoot running smoothly. He wasn’t new to the industry—he’d previously worked on shows like The Voice UK. He’d also volunteered in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. By all accounts, Terrence Woods was a decent, grounded human being with his whole life ahead of him.
For the shoot, the production crew had established their base in Elk City, roughly 17 miles north of Penman Mine.
Timeline
Before looking at the evidence, it’s important to remember that Terrence was in Idaho and his father was in Washington. There is a two‑hour time difference. Every message received by Terrence Sr. is therefore two hours ahead of the time Terrence Jr. actually sent it.
Terrence Sr. dropped his son off at Reagan National Airport on September 30th, 2018. As Terrence got out of the car, he called back, “See you later, Dad,” and his father replied, “No—see you sooner.” It would be the last time he ever saw his son.
The next contact came four days later.
October 4th, 2018
Terrence Sr. received a message at 10:18 PM (which would have been 8:18 PM for Terrence Jr.):
“Hey dad just got to the hotel in Idaho.”
This immediately raises a question: Does it really take five days to get to a hotel?
There is also a clear discrepancy. On Dr. Phil, Terrence Sr. stated he had spoken to his son on October 1st. But the messages shown on‑screen during the interview are clearly dated October 4th. Vanished.us is reaching out to the family to clarify this inconsistency.
October 5th, 2018 – Early Morning
At 12:38 AM (10:38 PM Idaho time), Terrence Sr. received a short video of a creek with the caption:
“Idaho.”
We assume this was filmed near Penman Mine, where the crew was working.
October 5th, 2018 – Morning
A few hours later, at 8:44 AM (6:44 AM Idaho time), Terrence sent another message:
“I’ll be coming back on the 10th now Dad.”
This is the last confirmed communication from Terrence Woods.
Area Terrence Vanished From
The Family’s Account
According to the family, the crew had wrapped for the day and were packing up around 5:30 PM. Terrence told someone he needed to relieve himself and walked toward the edge of an embankment (the family refers to this as a cliff). There were twelve people on the crew.
The family says:
“Terrence looked up, had a funny look on his face, and ran down the cliff.”
The production lead reportedly saw Terrence from a Jeep and initially thought he had fallen. When he reached the edge, he saw Terrence running down the embankment “like a hare.” Terrence reached the tree line below and vanished from sight.
Raw TV flew the Woods family to Idaho to assist in the search. When they entered Terrence’s hotel room, they found his clothes neatly folded in his suitcase. Terrence had been in Idaho for five days. That leaves only three possibilities:
- He never unpacked — so where are the clothes he wore for five days?
- He repacked before leaving for the shoot — so where are the dirty clothes, and why pack if he wasn’t due home until the 10th?
- Someone else packed his belongings after he went missing.
None of these options sit comfortably.
The Film Crew’s Account
The crew maintains that nothing seemed unusual about Terrence that day. A local ATV driver—personally known to the sheriff—spoke with Terrence shortly before he vanished and said he seemed completely normal. He talked about his life, his past, and gave no indication of distress.
Crew members say Terrence walked to the embankment, dropped his radio, and went over the side. Multiple crew members and local contractors witnessed this. Police reports confirm the same.
By the time the crew reached the edge, Terrence was already running downhill at speed into the trees. Several crew members chased after him, sustaining scratches from the brush, but they couldn’t catch him. They were able to descend the slope without falling—just not as fast as Terrence.
The Search for Terrence
After Terrence vanished, local authorities deployed:
- Search and rescue teams
- Canine units
- Helicopters equipped with FLIR
The search lasted over a week. The film crew also searched, and Raw TV provided additional resources.
Police later released an update summarising the initial 911 call.
The 911 Call Log
6:41 PM, October 5th, 2018:
“Advise that a male, Terrance Woods, from London, works for a TV company producing a movie in the area of Penman Mine. Never been in the woods. No guns. Terrance has been having a really hard time emotionally and had a mental breakdown earlier today. Dark complexion and light clothes. Terrance is not going to respond back to responders per reporter. Terrance does not have communication. There are people searching for him now.”
This is the only place the phrase “mental breakdown” appears. No crew member has ever publicly supported that claim.
Vanished.us Says
Just like Sammy and Stacy, here is another person who simply vanished into the night and was never seen again.
I don’t buy the “mental breakdown” narrative. None of the crew mentioned it. The ATV driver—trusted locally—said Terrence was fine. And nothing in Terrence’s messages to his father suggests a crisis.
I also don’t believe the film crew harmed him. A PA is the person who keeps the shoot running smoothly—fetching, carrying, problem‑solving. I can imagine the crew being demanding, even unpleasant, but not murderous. The family is grieving, confused, and desperate for answers. Their statements must be weighed with compassion, but also with caution.
Where the family and crew overlap is where the truth likely sits:
- Terrence walked to the edge
- Terrence went over the side
- Terrence ran
People don’t drop their gear and sprint downhill for no reason. Something triggered a pure self‑preservation response.
What did he see?
Predator? Animal? Human threat? Something else entirely?
Whatever it was, it was behind him or beside him, pushing him in the opposite direction.
Let’s look at the terrain. [cspm_main_map id="2627"]
The black area marks the slope Terrence likely ran down. The mine sits beside the creek—standard for washing paydirt. Some speculate that Terrence reached the road and was picked up. That theory collapses immediately:
- The only direction a vehicle could go without passing the crew is away from the mine.
- The nearest turn‑off is 5.9 miles away.
- Any vehicle on those roads would kick up a massive dust cloud visible (and tasteable) for minutes.
No one picked him up.
Once Terrence hit that point of separation, his fate was sealed. The terrain is brutal. The distances are unforgiving. And if he kept running, he could have been miles away before anyone reached the bottom.
Connie Johnson
We also can’t ignore that Connie Johnson vanished the same day, roughly 40 miles north of Penman Mine.
Two disappearances. Same region. Same date.
Are they connected? We can’t say. But it’s a detail that refuses to sit quietly.