The bodies of two missing hikers last seen climbing California’s highest peak have been found and identified, authorities said.
Tulare County Sheriff’s Office officials told the Fresno Bee that the couple, identified as Andrew Niziol, 28, and Patti Bolan, 29, of South Lake Tahoe, were on a long hiking trip across California. He said he was inside.
On Monday, May 7, at approximately 8:30 p.m., Inyo County Sheriff’s dispatch received a report of two hikers past their estimated arrival time on Mt. Whitney.
Officials said the hikers were planning to descend to the Notch with the intention of skiing, snowboarding and returning to Upper Boy Scout Lake, where they had set up camp. But when Bolan and Niziol did not return to camp several hours later, other hikers in the group alerted authorities.
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The bodies of two hikers who went missing after hiking Mount Whitney have been found after a 24-hour search and rescue operation. (iStock/Andrew Nizior Facebook)
Search and rescue teams then sent a helicopter and a team on foot to search for the missing hikers.
The Fresno Bee reported that the couple’s bodies were discovered five days later on the north face of Mount Whitney after searchers found two “fall victims” at an altitude of 13,200 feet.
Six days before their trip to Mount Whitney, the couple hiked and snowboarded around Mount Shasta, but high winds prevented them from summiting the Northern California peak, according to social media posts made by Nzior and Bolan.
“Even though I may not have been able to get to the top because of the weather, I still had a great time at Shasta! I can’t believe that there are people out there who do all these amazing things with me on a whim.” No, you make me so happy.” Well, I’m going to Mt. Whitney in a few days! ” Nizior wrote in his Facebook post on May 2nd.
A Tulare County Coroner’s Office spokesperson told the Fresno Bee that Tulare County Sheriff’s Office detectives were dispatched to Lone Pine, Inyo Thursday morning to recover the body.
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The couple’s bodies were found on the north face of Mount Whitney five days after they went missing. (iStock/Andrew Nizior Facebook)
Officials told FOX News Digital they did not have any further details about the circumstances surrounding the hiker’s death, but said the Tulare County Medical Examiner will be taking over the investigation.
“If I could go back in time and show my 12-year-old self my life now, I would be so proud. This is the life I have dreamed of for 15 years. “I couldn’t be more grateful to have met people who share this experience with me,” Nizior wrote in a Facebook post five days ago. “So thank you to @type2kyle for choosing and planning the route and @p.bolan for being the most fun person I’ve ever met.”
Mount Whitney, whose highest peak reaches an elevation of 14,494, is located within Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. The mountain is considered the tallest mountain in the “Lower 48 states,” according to the National Park Service website.
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As the most frequently climbed peak in the Sierra Nevada, the National Park Service says it has a permit system in place to minimize the impact of day hikers on Mount Whitney’s interior. All hikers entering the Mt Whitney zone, including day hikers, must also obtain a permit.
Fox News Digital contacted the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office but did not receive a response.
