'Up & Vanished' Follows Kristal Reisinger's Disappearance, But When Did She Go Missing?

Few things have ignited public interest in the last few years like true crime podcasts. This format into the genre was met with widespread following, and the most intriguing of them quickly became water-cooler talk. Now one of the most popular of these podcasts, Up and Vanished, is back for Season 2. But before you start downloading and listening, it might be good to know just when its subject, Kristal Anne Reisinger, went missing.

Reisinger’s case is centered on the small town of Crestone, Colorado, where the 29-year-old moved in search of spiritual enlightenment, according to The Denver Post. What’s widely accepted is that Reisinger hasn’t been seen in more than two years; what’s not as clear is the exact date that she disappeared.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, funded by the Department of Justice, lists the last date of contact with Reisinger as July 13, 2016. It does not identify who the last person to have contact with her was, but the website for Up and Vanished said she was reported to have disappeared from a full-moon drum circle. A quick check on Space.com says that the full moon in July 2016 fell on the 19th of that year.

Regardless, sometime within a small window of time in July, Reisinger up and vanished from the town of 143 people, as KDVR reported.

What really tipped off friends and family was her lack of contact with the 4-year-old daughter she shared with her ex-boyfriend, Elijah Guana, as KDVR reported. Previously, she called the little girl every day or night. On the podcast, host Payne Lindsay interviewed Reisinger’s former landlord who said she saw the woman the day after the full moon drum circle, according to The Denver Post, and said that Reisinger "appeared disoriented" and told her "she was fed a cocktail of drugs and believes someone sexually assaulted her."

The town of Crestone is called the New Age Religious Capital of the world, according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution. The podcast's website notes that it was developed by a businessman and his wife, who underwrote land grants that allowed a Hindu temple, a Zen center, a monastery, multiple Tibetan Buddhist centers, and other New Age organizations to flourish. The area around Crestone is also considered sacred by the Navajo Nation, according to the podcast's site.

But it is wild and untamed land. So did Reisinger perhaps wander off and lose her way? Or is there a more sinister story? As KDVR reported, the latter explanation is the one the Saguache County Sheriff’s Department is exploring. Freshly purchased food was in the refrigerator, unused bottles of shampoo and conditioner were in the shower, and medication was found in the apartment along with her cell phone, the news outlet reported. It simply didn’t look like she was preparing for any kind of absence.

Up and Vanished follows all these leads and the unusual town of Crestone on Season 2 on the podcast, and hoping for the kind of success that came from Season 1. Rolling Stone reported that thanks to last season, two men were arrested for the murder of Georgia resident Tara Grinstead.

You can look for the podcast on streaming outlets such as iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify.