Searchers at Baxter State Park located the body of missing hiker Esther Keiderling Wednesday afternoon, after a three-day search on Mount Katahdin.
Search teams found 28-year-old Esther Keiderling's body in a boulder area between the Cathedral and Saddle trails off the Katahdin Tablelands, roughly 1,000 feet from where a Maine Warden Service K9 team found the body of her father, Tim Keiderling, 58, near the summit of Katahdin on Tuesday.
Baxter State Park Director Kevin Adam said the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine the cause of death.
The father and daughter, from Ulster Park, New York, were last seen Sunday morning near the summit of Katahdin. The pair had departed from Abol Campground.
Tim Keiderling's brother, Joe Keiderling, said in a statement that the family is reeling from the tragedy, but are lifted by the outpouring of support from people who knew and loved Tim and Esther Keiderling. Joe Keiderling said that his brother was a devoted father to his six children and two grandchildren, a lifelong beekeeper and a memorable elementary school teacher in the Hudson Valley of New York.
"At church gatherings Tim was a regular contributor, not only as a lay pastor but as a gifted storyteller, bringing life and vitality to familiar Bible stories and making them relevant to the issues of the day," Joe Keiderling said. "At home he was the consummate host and loved nothing more than lively conversation and a great laugh. Though not possessed of a great singing voice, he would still unabashedly belt out favorite songs at all occasions, some written entirely himself or with his wife Annemarie."
He added that Tim and Esther were particularly close.
"Esther, while quieter than her father, was a deeply sensitive, thinking young woman," Joe Keiderling said. "Always aware of the people around her, she was notably attentive to their needs. She loved reading and writing, with a particular fondness for the poets Gerard Manley Hopkins and Edna St. Vincent Millay."
Park Rangers began searching Monday after finding the Keiderlings' car still in the day-use parking lot. They were assisted by the Maine Warden Service, Maine Forest Service and Maine Army National Guard using helicopters and K9 teams.
The National Weather Service forecast for Sunday predicted the Katahdin summit would be in and out of clouds with scattered rain showers, said Louise Fode, warning coordination meteorologist. The service does not have weather observation equipment on the summit, but the temperature Sunday was expected to be in the mid-30s, with winds of up to 40 miles per hour. Fode said the cold temperatures and strong winds are not uncommon for this time of year.
Tori Jofery, vice president of the Maine Appalachian Trail Club, said Katahdin is the most difficult mountain in Maine, and one of the most challenging on the East Coast. Jofery said she has climbed Katahdin four times, and other notable mountains in Baxter State Park.
She said that every route to Katahdin's summit is challenging, comparing it to the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire.
"These peaks are not to be underestimated for their strenuous, rocky, and steep nature, or distance, which can be difficult to ascend and descend even in your best shape," Jofery said. "Weather above tree line can change quickly and dramatically. Temperatures due to change in elevation, wind speed/chill, and types of precipitation can be drastically different than the conditions in lower elevations."
Baxter State Park Director Kevin Adam said lost hikers are uncommon at the park, and more often rangers see rescue operations for broken ankles, dehydration and other injuries. He estimated that there have been around 15 searches since he began working at the park in 2020. There have not been any recent deaths at the park, although there were two deaths in 2020, and a search in 2021 for Paul Collucci, who is still missing and presumed dead.
Katahdin has an elevation gain of about four thousand feet from the trailhead, and the Baxter State Park website states that hiking any trail to the summit will be a very strenuous climb, with an average round trip hike taking between 8 and 12 hours.
