Just over two months ago, 38-year-old Middletown woman Goldie Lee Morse picked blackberries with a roommate in the Lake County town of Cobb. For an unexplained reason, Morse left her friend behind, walking towards an unknown destination without a wallet, cell phone, and or shoes.
Other than a series of sightings and encounters in the subsequent twelve hours, Morse has not been seen or heard from since. Authorities are actively investigating her disappearance. After over one thousand hours of searching, reviewing surveillance footage, accessing Morse’s phone and social media, conducting interviews, and more, there are no leads into Morse’s disappearance.
Where did you go Goldie Lee Morse?
The area Morse was last seen lies within the southeast community of Cobb, Lake County’s least densely populated region. The Mayacama Mountains define the landscape. Highway 175 is single-lane, twisting and turning through ravines, hillsides, and watersheds etched into the landscape.
On the evening of August 12, 2022, Morse and her roommate were picking blackberries at the Black Rock Golf Course. The roommate reportedly separated from Morse for a brief period when descending a hill. When he climbed back up, Morse was gone leaving behind her shoes.
Around 10:00 p.m., witnesses saw Morse in the parking lot of Hardester’s Market, a rural grocery store a three-quarter mile walk from the golf course.
Early the following morning between 2:00 and 4:00, a construction crew working on the Kelsey Creek Bridge spotted Morse walking along Highway 175 a quarter-mile south of Hardester’s. She reportedly asked them to sit in their vehicle. Due to company policy, they declined but offered her food instead.
At 7:30 a.m., Morse had walked 1.25 miles south on Highway 175. She knocked on the door of Maple Shadows Drive residence and asked the homeowner to use their phone. The resident obliged, Morse called someone, left a message, and asked the homeowner for a pair of shoes. Happy to help, the homeowner left the room to grab a pair. Upon returning, Morse was gone.
The last reported sighting of her was along Highway 175 not far from Maple Shadows Drive where she appeared to be heading south toward Middletown.
From what we could gather, Morse walked two miles in twelve hours. Her intended destination remains unknown. The logic of her chosen route is unclear. Now, over two months have gone by since her trail has gone cold.
Lauren Berlinn, the Public Information Officer for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, told us Goldie Lee Morse’s disappearance is an active investigation and has been so since she was reported missing on August 13, 2022.
Berlinn said investigators have conducted extensive searches of the area examining “construction sites, neighboring businesses, and residences.” LCSO’s Search and Rescue team contributed to these efforts. Surveillance footage from various vantage points of her route that night has been collected and reviewed. Investigators filed search warrants to examine Morse’s social media activity and phone records.
On September 22, 2022, LCSO’s Major Crimes Unit investigated a home near the 11000 block of Gifford Springs Road which Berlinn said was “related to the disappearance of Goldie Morse.” Berlin pressed that the investigation did not indicate anyone at the residence as a suspect in Morse’s disappearance.
Berlinn told us Morse lived a “free lifestyle” where it was not uncommon for her to disappear for several days at a time. But, Berlinn said a two-month absence with no contact was “abnormal” behavior.
Investigators have followed up on reported sightings of Morse across multiple jurisdictions. Berlinn said, “The Major Crimes Unit is taking all factors into consideration as we conduct a full and comprehensive investigation.”
Despite these efforts, two months after Morse walked away, law enforcement has no leads. Having not found anything to indicate foul play, Morse’s case is being treated as a missing person investigation.
Carol Lynn Anderson, a long-time friend of Goldie Lee Morse, told us “With no new developments, things are looking meek, sadly.” She added that the lack of investigatory leads has resulted in a “feeling of hopelessness after 62 days with no answers.”
Anderson said, “Growing up, you watch the news and hear of people going missing every day. You never think it will be someone you love and cherish.”
Speaking directly to her friend, Anderson said, “To our beautiful Goldie Lou, we all love you more than you could ever imagine. We will never give up hope and we will never stop searching for you, searching for answers.”
Berlinn said that the Major Crime Unit will continue to follow every lead that comes forward. If any member of the public has additional information or leads about Goldie Lee Morse, please contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707- 263-2690 or contact Detective Castellanos at 707-262-4223 or via email antonio.castellanos@lakecountyca.gov.
This map displays the last known locations Goldie Lee Morse was seen before she disappeared two months ago
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I’d reinterview the guy she was last seen with picking berries.
She was seen by three other groups of people after the berry picking friend reported her missing.
That guy is a very upstanding guy. I know him well. He had nothing to do with her disappearance. He had given her a place to stay.Friends .I’ve picked berries with him and many others . He didn’t do nothing to harm her!
It is possible that she may not want to be found, ?
People who want to disappear wear their shoes.
I would like to know what her phone message was.
This is so sad. Her family is obviously devastated. They know what is out of character for her. I pray that she’s alive and well somewhere, but IF not that she be located so her family can have some closure.
Goldie, if you’re out there somewhere please call 911 or phone home! Praying ?.
Pretty Name. God may have had other plans for her. Was she mentally challenged? Why all this allusive actions on her part. Sad, weird story. Wish she returned. As well as Khadijah Britton. Both kinda wandered off and vanished.
I would reinvestigate the residence where she used the phone. Something may have transpired involving someone from there.