Chicago-area native found dead after going missing during hike in California
CARMEL VALLEY, Calif. (CBS) — A Chicago-area native who went missing while hiking in California has been found dead.
Caroline Meister, 30, left for a four-day hike on Monday, but never returned. Police said Meister had left only carrying snacks for the day and had not been dressed or equipped for an overnight stay.
More than 100 people joined the vast search for Meister – navigating thick wooded forests and steep cliffs. Investigators said there is no cell service where she was hiking, and the terrain can be dangerous.
"It is very, very rural," said Monterey County, California Sheriff's Office Cmdr. Andy Rosas. "There is nothing in this area."
Meister was originally from west suburban River Forest. She left for the hike Monday morning.
She lived and worked at the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in the Ventura Wilderness – a remote area along the Central Coast of California.
Meister was described by her parents as an experienced hiker.
"I would say she's very familiar with the area," said Meister's mother, John Meister. "She's also an avid hiker."
But Meister never returned from the hike.
"She brought a lunch, I understand, and light clothes," said Meister's mother, Jean Meister, "so she didn't expect to be out overnight - and so something happened."
Caroline Meister's body was found Friday near the bottom of a waterfall – about a 150-foot drop from the nearest hiking path.
"Where the water crosses over the trail, it's very slick — and so our search teams recognize this is an area where somebody could potentially fall," said Rosas. "We do not suspect that there was any foul play whatsoever."
Heather Ianrusso is the director of the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, where Meister lived. She said hiking the nearby trails alone is not uncommon.
"Many of us have lived here for a while, and we're familiar with these trials. She was not out there doing anything risky," Ianrusso said. "She's just a lovely human being, and we all – we already miss her deeply. She was an amazingly sweet, bright spirit – very gentle and kind and helpful."