Tim Keiderling, one of two hikers who died on Katahdin earlier this month, died of complications from hypothermia, according to autopsy results.
The Maine Office of the Chief Medical Examiner released the cause of Tim Keiderling’s death on Thursday, June 26.
On June 12, the medical examiner said the cause of death of Tim Keiderling’s daughter, Esther, who he was hiking with, was blunt force injuries.
Baxter State Park officials said it appeared Esther Keiderling had slid downhill, striking large boulders.
The bodies of Esther Keiderling, 28, and her father Tim Keiderling, 58, both of Ulster Park, New York, were found atop Katahdin in early June.
The two hikers had reportedly left Abol Campground on Sunday, June 1, to hike to the summit of Katahdin. They were last seen at approximately 10:15 a.m. on the Katahdin Tablelands heading towards the summit.
On Tuesday, June 3, Baxter State Park officials announced they were closing the Abol and Hunt Trails to look for the missing hikers.
The body of Tim Keiderling was discovered that Tuesday afternoon. A Maine Warden Service K9 search team located his body on the Tablelands near the summit of Katahdin.
The body of Esther Keiderling was found the following afternoon between the Cathedral and Saddle Trails off the Tablelands, approximately 1000 feet from where her father was found.
Park rangers said it appeared Esther had continued off trail and attempted to climb a boulder area, but she slid downhill until she hit large boulders.
The area was steep, covered in snow, and icy, according to park rangers.
Recorded weather conditions from the area on June 1 and accounts from hikers on Katahdin that day suggest the hikers likely encountered rain, snow, strong winds, and freezing temperatures.
