A hiker was found dead and his daughter remains missing after the duo attempted to hike to the summit of Maine’s highest mountain, officials said Wednesday. Search efforts are continuing in hopes of finding her — most recently, at and around the summit.
Tim Keiderling, 58, and Esther Keiderling, 28, left their campground in Baxter State Park at around 10:15 a.m. local time on Sunday, intending to hike to the 5,269-foot summit of Mount Katahdin, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife.
Park rangers launched a search for the Keiderlings Monday morning, after discovering their car still parked in a day-use lot on the grounds, according to the department. The rangers searched multiple hiking trails, including the Katahdin Tablelands where the hikers were last seen, but found no signs of the father or daughter.
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife
Officials said their probe expanded Tuesday to include 25 game wardens, the Maine Army National Guard, multiple search and rescue teams and K-9 crews, which joined three state Forest Service helicopters surveying the area from above and ferrying ground crews up and down the mountain. Park rangers also helped with the ground search.
The K-9 search team found Tim Keiderling’s body at around 2:45 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Baxter State Park said in a social media post.
“We know that many of our social media followers share in our deep sadness for the family and friends of Tim Keiderling, and appreciate your support as a teams continue the search for Esther,” the post said.
The search for Esther Keiderling resumed early Wednesday, according to the director of Baxter State Park, after even a thermal imaging device failed to detect any trace of her on the mountain the previous night.
The park’s website describes the Katahdin Trails, which end at the summit of the mountain, as “a very strenuous climb,” regardless of the trail hikers choose to follow in order to get there. It also warns that 80% of search and rescues in the park happen on hikers’ descents rather than their ascents, and more than 75% of the most serious incidents, including deaths, happen because hikers left their trail.
