Missing Massachusetts Hiker Found Dead on NH Mountain

[sl8]

https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/search-for-missing-hiker-in-nh-now-a-recovery-operation-officials-say/2902276/

Missing Massachusetts Hiker Found Dead on NH Mountain

Emily Sotelo, 19, of Westford, was dropped off Sunday morning at a Franconia Notch State Park campground but never returned

By Marc Fortier • Published November 23, 2022 • Updated on November 24, 2022 at 12:21 am

A hiker who went missing in New Hampshire last weekend was found dead on Wednesday morning, officials said.

Emily Sotelo, 19, of Westford, Massachusetts, was dropped off Sunday morning at a Franconia Notch State Park campground, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said. Her hiking route included Mount Lafayette, Haystack, and Flume. The Boston Globe said she was attempting to finish hiking all 48 of the 4,000-foot mountains in New Hampshire before her 20th birthday this week.

Capt. Michael Eastman of New Hampshire Fish and Game's Law Enforcement Division said Sotelo was found around 11 a.m. by Fish and Game conservation officers on Mount Lafayette and was taken off the mountain by the New Hampshire National Guard.

He said she was located between Lafayette Brook and the mountain's summit. Search crews had found some indication Tuesday that she had gone into that area but ran out of daylight and resumed their search on Wednesday.

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[GPV]

1. I'm so sorry for her and her family.

[Otto_Harper]

2. As i read some of the details about this incident

I suspect she got caught out in the dark, without adequate equipment and/or training. Temperatures would have been low teens or even single digits with winds in the 30 - 40 mph range. Subzero wind chill. If she wasn't equipped and prepared to stay out overnight, that would have been the end.

[Sneederbunk]

3. Never hike alone.

[twodogsbarking]

6. Put that on a shirt.

[dem4decades]

4. Horrible, so many things that should have been done to protect her.

[Ford_Prefect]

5. That's very tough terrain in high winds and snow, especially the trail going up.

[Mopar151]

7. White Mountains are no joke.

World class trouble, an easy walk from a paved road. Worst observed weather on earth @ Mt. Washington! The closest thing that high in the weather tracks to the west are the Canadian Rockies- They ship the weather in by refrigerated freight!