Where was the missing 13-year-old from Baraboo WI last seen? Search for James Yoblonski intensifies 

James Yoblonski, a 13-year-old boy from Baraboo, Wisconsin, was reported missing on June 12, 2023. He left his house early Monday morning in the family’s vehicle, which was found abandoned along U.S. Highway 12 near the park on the same day.

In the days that followed, authorities geared up the search for the teen, who was last seen at his rural Sauk County home by his parents on Sunday, June 11, 2023.

Nearly a week after James Yoblonski was reported missing from his home, authorities, who are still scouring the area for the missing boy, announced over the weekend that they are scaling back the manpower to look for the teen since they believe he is willfully evading search efforts.

Authorities said that during their search for the teen, who is believed to be in a rural area near Devil's Lake State Park, they uncovered several clues, including multiple campsites and items like socks and a knife sheath that may belong to Yoblonski. The discovery supposedly indicates he did not want to be found.

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James Yoblonski is allegedly trying to live as a survivalist in the wilderness

As the search for James Yoblonski continues, authorities revealed that on Friday, June 16, a second campsite was found in the Baxter's Hollow area of the Baraboo Bluffs, near Devil's Lake State Park. Officers noted that he is now trying to live off the grid and is purposefully eluding searchers.

Lt. Steven Schram from the Sauk County Sheriff's Office said they have reason to believe that the teen was trying to live as a survivalist in the wilderness since in the days leading up to his disappearance Yoblonski asked his friends:

"How long do you think I can survive in the woods by myself for?"

Investigators, who believe the teen is alive and well, said that they are scaling back the resources to avoid spooking the boy and pushing him further into dangerous terrain.

Schram said that they will stop flooding the area with hundreds of searches and instead shift their focus onto a few targeted spots and dispatch dozens of officers in search of the missing teen.

“We’re scaling back the resources that we have here right now, but by no means is the investigation over. You may see teams of deputies out on foot, they’ll be smaller groups. Generally what we’re trying to work toward now is a more targeted approach."

He added:

“Rather than flooding the area with hundreds of officers and deputies, we’re going to try to find more unique pieces of evidence and unique items of interest and then put officers in those areas to see if we can come up with something, and if we get something like that triggers that we believe we’ve located James or we’ve located an area that needs our attention, we have officers and deputies on the ready this entire weekend to respond if need be.”

Scharm added that he does not believe James Yoblonski is a danger to himself or others adding that he has access to food and water in the area.