Melbourne family of hiker Jordan Yap hires private rescue team to scour Peru trail for signs of 30-year-old

The anxious loved ones of an Australian hiker missing in South America have hired a private rescue team in their quest to find him. Family and friends have not heard from 30-year-old Jordan Yap since September 14 as he prepared to tackle a solo 10-day trek along the remote Cordillera Huayhuash circuit in Peru.

He was scheduled to finish the adventure, described as “one of the most spectacular trekking circuits in the Andes”, and return to the northern city of Huaraz on Wednesday to pick up his things from the Krusty Hostel. But he never returned, missed an overnight bus to Lima and a Thursday flight, and has failed to make contact with family or friends in Melbourne.

His best friend Kevin Nguyen said Yap had been planning the trip for almost a year, was experienced, and to not hear him was “just so out of character”. “It’s been incredibly difficult for family and friends,” Nguyen told 7NEWS.

“Jordan is someone in the community that has always given his time to people, given his time to speak to anyone in need and I’ve been inseparable from him for almost 15 years now. “This is heartbreaking not to hear from him. I’m distraught.” Nguyen said he knows Yap made it to the start of the trek because he was filmed there in a video with other travellers.

Friends have been trawling Facebook for more clues about where he might be, while other hikers have been scouring the trail for signs of him. Family have also hired a specialist mountain rescue organisation to look for him. “It is a lot of money and I want to just say that it’s helped us get someone on the ground there and speak to someone almost 24-7 and utilise the resources that they have because it is a popular hike,” Nguyen said.

It is believed Yap was wearing a white jacket and green sunshade sweater. He is also thought to have been carrying a 40L hiking pack, a Durston dome tent and hiking poles. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to the family.