After four days, missing hiker Caroline Meister found dead at base of steep cliff and waterfall
On the afternoon of March 22, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office held a press conference to share the tragic news that 30-year-old Caroline Meister, a hiker who had been missing for four days, had been found deceased. Sheriff Tina Nieto announced during the news briefing that search and rescue personnel were performing a high angle search off of the “Cut Off” trail in coastal California where a waterfall drops off of the trail. Search and rescue personnel rappelled down the steep drop off and located Caroline Meister’s body at the base of the waterfall.
Sheriff Nieto said there were no signs of foul play. She added that she had spoken to Caroline’s mother, Jean Mesiter, earlier in the day. Jean Meister wished to express her gratitude to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue and the many volunteers that helped search for Caroline to bring her home.
On March 18th, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office received a report that Caroline left the Zen Center at Tassajara in the Ventana Wilderness at 10:00 a.m. for what was supposed to be a day hike. She left with food for the day and the clothing she was wearing. She was not prepared for an overnight hike. When she failed to return that evening, staff and friends at the Zen Center began to search for her and then contacted the Sheriff’s Office. Search efforts continued for four days until her discovery yesterday.
ABC News reported that Meister had been living and working at the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in Carmel Valley for the last year and a half, her parents told told Monterey Bay affiliate KSBW. “She’s very familiar with the area. She’s also an avid hiker,” her father, John Meister, told KSBW on Tuesday.
For more on this tragic story, see the video below.
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(Source: Monterey County Sheriff’s Office)
(Cover photo of Caroline Meister, Image credit: ABC News / Twitter)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
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