Body of missing hiker found in Wyoming’s Bighorn National Forest

The body of 38-year-old Grant Gardner was discovered late last week, nearly a month after he disappeared while hiking in Wyoming’s Bighorn National Forest. After weeks of searches by rescue teams, a professional climbing team on Tuesday spotted what they believed was a backpack beneath a ledge a few hundred feet above them, according to a statement from the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Department. It was too dangerous for them to investigate, due to encroaching darkness, but they immediately notified the sheriff’s department and agreed to abandon their planned climb in order to lead search and recovery teams to the site.

How was he ultimately found? Search and recovery teams were flown via helicopter to the climbers’ high-altitude camp. The teams and the climbers subsequently made their way to the site, where they found Gardner’s remains near the backpack. He was wearing clothing appropriate for the terrain he was in, according to the sheriff’s department.

How did he die? Investigators are still trying to determine his cause of death, but believe he succumbed to what the sheriff’s office characterized as a tragic accident. The Big Horn County Coroner’s Office is expected to determine the exact time, manner, and cause of death.

Who was Grant Gardner? Gardner, a Minnesota resident, was on a three-day hike in late July to summit Cloud Peak in the Misty Moon Lake area of the Bighorn National Forest. His wife last heard from him when he summited the peak, sometime around 7 p.m. local time, according to the sheriff’s department. He sent his wife a text message saying the climb was taxing than he expected and that he was tired. He was not heard from since. The Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office called off rescue operations for Gardner on Aug. 20, citing weather conditions and search models indicating that he did not survive.