The body of William Standish, a 28-year-old Australian hiker, was recovered on Wednesday morning in the Wigwams, a series of rocky peaks on the west slope of the Teton mountain range in Wyoming, according to the Teton County coroner. Investigators believe he likely suffered a fatal fall.
Standish disappeared while attempting a thru-hike of the Continental Divide Trail between Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, after last contacting his family on 23 July, Teton County rescuers said in a statement. Evidence indicates he may have fallen from a steep ridgeline that separates Grand Teton from the Jedediah Smith wilderness.
A helicopter search team found him after spotting an orange backpack and then seeing his remains below the ridge.
Trail and disappearance
The Continental Divide Trail spans 3,100 miles from Canada to New Mexico, passing through Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. Standish had reportedly been following the route as a thru-hike, or end-to-end hike.
His family said they stopped receiving updates from him on 23 July, when he had been using a Garmin GPS device and Facebook Messenger. On 19 July, he had sent an update from near Old Faithful, outlining his planned route through the Tetons, the Gros Ventre wilderness, the Wind River range and the Divide Basin.
Four days after that update, the family received a Garmin check-in without coordinates or a message, plus a Facebook Messenger video that they believed placed him in the Wigwams.
Rescuers respond
The Teton County search and rescue team said it “sends its sincere condolences to the family and friends of the deceased” and thanked federal agencies that assisted in the search.
Recent US hiking deaths
In Colorado, a 15-year-old boy, Levi Strobel, died after being struck by lightning on Mount Blue Sky on Monday; four other people were seriously injured, including his younger brother, the Colorado Sun reported.
In Arizona, Richard Fletcher, 61, died during a hike on Phoenix’s South Mountain. He left home early on Saturday morning, and investigators later said his death was consistent with a heat-related or medical event, according to local media.
In New Hampshire, a 62-year-old man suffered a medical emergency on the Welch-Dickey trail in the White Mountains and died after being evacuated by a National Guard helicopter, New Hampshire Public Radio reported.
Canada hiking deaths
Two hikers also died in Canada’s Banff National Park. A woman in her 20s died after falling from a mountain near Marvel Peak on Tuesday, and three days earlier a 65-year-old from Calgary fell from Mount Temple, according to the CBC.
