Wife of missing Highland man Finn Creaney one year on from their last embrace: 'You either crumble or you rise'
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
THE wife of missing Highland man Finn Creaney clings to the hope he will hold the son born months after his disappearance a year ago today – and spoken of her determination to leave no stone unturned in her search for answers.
It was one year ago today that Lucy Creaney (28) last embraced her husband Finn (33) ahead of his planned hike in Sutherland.
The experienced bushcraft expert and father-of-two was last seen around 2.15pm on Friday, March 25 last year at Altnaharra in Sutherland near Loch Naver.
Film footage shared by his family show him to be the doting dad of Luna (5) and soul mate of Lucy, who he married in August 2021. Lucy, who first met Finn over 13 years ago, spoke of her determination "to do everything possible" to find answers to his disappearance.
"It's like he literally vanished. It's almost like he has been sucked into a vortex.We have chosen to be positive. We have chosen to keep looking for him. I could never live with myself if it was otherwise.You are supposed to be there for them in sickness and in health until death do you part." - Lucy Creaney
Despite a number of possible sightings since then – the most recent just a few weeks ago from Gorthleck in Inverness-shire – no hard evidence has been found as to what happened to a man described by family as "the happiest he had ever been" at the time of his disappearance.
Lucy, based in Easter Ross near Nigg, said: "I just want to find Finn. We are stuck in limbo and everything is on hold. There's not much joy in anything at the moment. We are always thinking about Finn."
Yet the resilient mother and wife added: "I'm really big on mindset and Finn is too. It helps us to be successful people. I can't really tell you how I keep it together. I just get on with it. At the end of the day we don't know what happened. The only thing I can do is get on with it.
"You either crumble or you rise. I hate pity parties."
She has reviewed dash-cam footage of one recent possible sighting near Gorthleck but says a year on there has been no hard evidence to indicate what happened.
On the family's ongoing search – which includes "a fine-tooth comb" hunt of the area in which he was last seen; awareness raising via social media and cooperation with two television series seeking to shed fresh light on the mystery – she said: "It's about sharing the posts and the pictures. If you see someone you think looks like him, tap him on the shoulder and say: 'Are you Finn Creaney?' I know that can be a scary thing to do but it could make all the difference and save a lot of time."
RELATED: Poster plea: 'It could be what ends this nightmare'
TV show 'well out of my comfort zone but I'll do anything to get Finn back home'
Highland YouTuber throws film spotlight on disappearance of a kindred spirit
'We miss our boy and we want him home'
She acknowledges there are a variety of possibilities including that he was the victim of a hit and run, trapped by somebody or hit his head and became confused.
She said: "There is no evidence of anything at all. There's no evidence of a first campfire. I say that to my daughter: 'I can't tell you'. We are trying everything we can and open to all outcomes."
Lucy was pregnant when Finn went missing and their son Bran is now 10 months old, born on May 29 last year.
Their wedding in August 2021 was "magical" and it was shortly after that she fell pregnant with Bran.
He discovered two weeks before he went missing that the eagerly sought new baby would be a boy.
"I want to make sure my children are as happy as they can be. He is an amazing child."
She had hoped Finn would be the first person to meet his son and recalled how excited he had been at the birth of their daughter, Luna. She said of her pregnancy: "I held on every second I could waiting for Finn."
At the time of his disappearance he had set up his own business following his passion for the great outdoors. Wildcat Bushcraft was "booming" with Easter classes booked out and a contract with charity Action for Children in the pipeline.
His magnetic personality made him a natural with children who loved learning the arts of bushcraft from him. One such session involved children from The Place in Alness and photographs show smiles and laughter all round.
Lucy said: "His life was sweet. Everything was going great. He was so in demand."
On speculation that he might have chosen to disappear she said: "I don't think he has deliberately done that. He would not abandon his family and friends."
As we spoke, she said, his dad Mark was up in the hills continuing the search for him.
She said: "There's only so far he could have walked. It was 2.15pm when he was dropped off and we think some bikers spotted him an hour down the road. We can't find any trace of his first camp fire. He had meat with him, it was a hot day and it would have gone rancid if he held on to it. Yet there is no sign of the camp fire."
She said: "The thing is he is just so capable."
She has spoken to new Channel 5 series, Vanished: The Hunt for Britain's Missing People, which is fronted by Dan Walker. Admitting this was "well outside my comfort zone", she remains determined to do everything possible to find out what happened to her husband.
She said the Missing People charity had contacted her about the series and suggested her possible involvement in it. It has also helped get billboards in train stations and been a source of support. She said: "They have been so helpful and supportive. I'd recommend anyone to them.
"They understand in a way that most people don't understand. Most people treat it like grieving. What are we grieving? He has gone missing but we don't know what has happened. We live in a weird world where people do all sorts of things to each other. With them, I feel heard."
She hopes the TV series will help her to reach a new audience. She said: "I think the Nicola Bulley case made people think that those who have been missing for a long time can get forgotten. One piece of information could be the key so I keep getting his face out there. With his dad Mark and I, we'd feel awful not doing anything. I'd feel utter guilt not doing anything."
She said the lady speaking to her for the Channel 5 programme had clearly felt emotional looking at her with her with her son, Bran. But she stressed: "I'm not wanting pity. I just want to find Finn. I just want to get my husband home. We have to keep putting all the little bits together."
She describes their marriage as a magical event for very close friends and family. While the paperwork was done at a registry office, a ceremony later at Migdale in Sutherland was perfect: "It's a magical place. Everything about that day was so personal."
They are both huge Lord of the Rings fans. She made food and prepared flowers at their home and they wore custom made outfits by the people who make the costumes for the fantasy TV series The Witcher.
Finn was wearing an outfit similar to that worn by Aragorn when he was last seen.
Lucy describes herself as "a bit of a tomboy" but wore a dress the day they were married: "I said this day I will look like a girl!"
With the year anniversary of his disappearance, she remains open to all possibilities but says: "If someone sees him it's really important they let us know. There is a domino effect when one new person hears about the case and then mentions it to someone else. I know through the Missing People charity that one woman found her son after 17 months in Russia. He had somehow ended up there without a passport."
Speaking of her own determination despite the heartache, she said: "My daughter watches all of this. She needs to know we don't give up on loved ones. If she asks 'did we do enough?' I need to be able to say 'yes'. I don't know how it will pan out but I want to cover all the bases and know I have done everything I can. If she asks me as a teenager about it, I want to be able to say we did everything that we could. Finn is a damn good father."
With Finn's dad and another friend, she is looking through 2500 drone images of the area where Finn was last seen to see if they have missed anything by looking at it from a fresh angle. With no trace of his jacket, belt, knives or canteen, there's simply no evidence: "You have to be open to the idea of someone taking him; of the possibility of a hit and run or maybe he slipped.We are very determined people and we will keep looking."
She said of the March 25 anniversary: "This is the day a year ago that we last saw him. It was the last time I cuddled him. I can't really get my head around the fact it is a year."
She admits that when she called the police on March 28 last year to report him missing "I felt ridiculous". She said: "Finn always comes out okay. I felt I was being silly."
Of the continued hill searches in Sutherland, she admitted: "We don't really want to find him up there. If we do it's not going to be a nice thing. His dad said that every day he doesn't find him there feels like a good day and I completely understand that. Every day we don't find Finn up there is a good day. It leaves open a possibility.
"It's like he literally vanished. It's almost like he has been sucked into a vortex. We have chosen to be positive. We have chosen to keep looking for him. I could never live with myself if it was otherwise.You are supposed to be there for them in sickness and in health until death do you part."
She says of his father: "Mark is such a wonderful dad. He is fuelled by so much love. He is absolute inspiration."
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Finn Creaney, from the Tain area, has not been seen since he set off for a planned walk in Sutherland last March. The last sighting of him was on the B873 at Loch Naver at 2.15pm on March 25, 2022.
Anyone who thinks they may have seen something, or has any information they feel relevant is asked to make contact with Police Scotland on 101, quoting reference number 0912 of March 28, 2022.
Local efforts meanwhile continue with an appeal to well-wishers to distribute packs of posters for shop windows, cars and homes.
These can be picked up at Tain Post Office or requested via the Search for Finn Creaney Facebook page.
A search of the area Finn was last seen has been maintained via a Justgiving page
