A missing hiker who sparked a huge search operation when he checked into a luxury hotel rather than returning home is facing a bill of thousands of dollars for wasting rescuers' time.
Christophe Chamley, 70, an economics professor at Boston University in the US, planned a solo hike over two mountains in New Hampshire last month but failed to return home once he had completed the trek.
The 70-year-old opted to rest his legs at a luxury hotel and sent his wife a message at 1am to let her know he was fine and well.
However, the message failed to send - prompting his panicked wife to call mountain rescue services and report him missing.
![Christopher Chamley faces a bill from authorities for the rescue operation that was launched after his wife reported him as missing.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/M5KRGZANHZTZQYRLW5MWJH4W5Q.jpg?auth=37f43eacffb0778dd437ecdcc71037683770f9c48a3c5df61c04f7f8eec8f88d&width=16&height=11&quality=70&smart=true)