Missing Montana woman's phone and horse found as cops reveal she sent Snapchat hours after vanishing

A Montana woman's phone and horse have been discovered by authorities after the 27-year-old vanished while horseback riding.

Meghan Rouns was last seen at the McMaster Hills Recreation Area in Helena, Montana around 2 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 4 where she went to go horseback riding. When she did not return home at around 8 p.m. that day her family began to grow concerned. Her father contacted the Lewis and Clark County Sheriffs Office to report his daughter missing.

The sheriff's office launched a search for the 27-year-old at the spot that her phone was last pinged. Authorities say that her social media accounts were active as of 4:20 p.m. on Friday when she uploaded a picture to her Snapchat account. Her truck was soon found at the trail head of the McMaster Hills Recreation Area, according to Sheriff Captain Brian Robinson.

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Police made a break in the case when they located Roun's horse on Saturday up the hill from Hauser Lake, the U.S Sun reported. Her cell phone and tracker were also found in the saddle bag that was still on the horse. Lewis and County Sheriff Leo Dutton told the Sun they'd be focusing their search efforts around the lake as they believe she could've fallen off her horse due to strong winds reported in the area on the day of her disappearance.

"We believe something happened that spooked the horse to get it into the waters. We just don't know what yet," Dutton told The U.S. Sun.

The sheriff added that they have ruled out foul play as the possible cause of her disappearance

"Her horse was found just up the hill from the lake, so this has become our primary area to search from the evidence we have gathered," Willy Wegner, the operations lieutenant of Lewis and Clark County Search and Rescue, told NBC affiliate KTVH-TV . "As we search areas, the more we search it, the lower probability the area becomes, so then we will move to another area."

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Several law enforcement agencies have joined in the search for Rouns Both local police in Helena as well as Malmstrom Air Force Base have launched drones and helicopters in the area. Robotic vehicles and divers were seen searching the waters of the nearby lake according to KTVH-TV. In social media posts family members of Rouns expressed their appreciation for the sheriffs department efforts in searching for their missing loved one.

"We can't express enough appreciation for the search efforts and resources out at the site," a relative of Rouns wrote on Facebook.

"A huge thank you to Lewis & County Sheriff's Office, Leo Dutton, and Lewis & Clark Search & Rescue for the coordination of the search. It has been a non stop effort to find Meghan. We also want to say thank to members of the community who have brought food and drinks out or offered their help in any way. The love and support shows how incredible our community is."

Rouns was last seen wearing a black shirt, blue jeans and possibly a gray hoodie and baseball cap.