Missing Hiker Headed To Yosemite Found Deceased
Inyo County, CA — A man from Washington was found dead by search and rescue teams after he had gone missing while attempting to hike the John Muir Trail from Whitney Portal in Inyo County to Yosemite National Park.
The Inyo County Search and Rescue Team reports that 61-year-old Harris Levinson departed on June 23. Prior to the hike, he had placed a food resupply cache at Onion Valley that he planned to pick up on June 29. By July 8, the food had not been picked up, prompting a friend to contact Sequoia Kings National Park. A search and rescue effort was initiated using ground crews and a CHP helicopter.
Aided by data from Levinson’s satellite messaging device, he was found dead in the North Fork of Lone Pine Creek, apparently the victim of a fatal fall.
The sheriff’s office reports, “The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office and Inyo County Search and Rescue extend our sincere condolences to Mr. Levinson’s family and friends, and we thank Sequoia-Kings National Park, Inyo National Forest, and the California Highway Patrol Office of Air Operations for their cooperation and assistance in this mission.”
Levinson was a teacher from the Tacoma, Washington area.
