In Colombia, there is a long history of searching for the disappeared and records of forced disappearance date back to the 1950s. Several actors have focused on these searches. On the one hand, the Colombian state looks for those missing, through judicial institutions and the police. On the other hand, the families of disappeared persons, who suffer deeply from the absence of their loved ones and the injustice of it, lead their own initiatives for encountering them. In both cases, searches are founded on chasing down leads, and following clues and intuitions. For the state this means implementing a systematic search with logistical and technical support. In the case of relatives, searches are more erratic, marked by deep loneliness, uncertainty and risk, but families also have the ability to imagine new forms of encounters. This snapshot analyses the commitment of transitional institutions to putting family members at the centre of their work.