Found Deceased AZ - Diana Zacarias, 22, Grand Canyon, 2 April 2016

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los2188

los2188

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MISSING PERSON: Diana Zacarias
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Grand Canyon National Park and the Investigative Services Branch request your assistance in locating this person.
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https://www.facebook.com/diana.zacarias.9803

https://www.facebook.com/InvestigativeServicesNPS/​
 
Not much info here, but I tracked down a cousin's post on Facebook. She was hiking in Arizona. It looks like she has been missing since 4/2/16. She apparently missed her flight home. Family members are traveling to Arizona.I hope she is safe.
 
Alone hiking? Ugh.

Too many terrible reasons she's gone.
 
Has her information been posted on back packing or hiking forums?

Though I have never been to the Grand Canyon (hoping to change that this summer), alot of national park trails are roughly divided into the "casual tourist" type trails and the more remote or difficult trails used by dedicated out doors types.

Needless to say, the more remote or difficult the trail gets, the more danger- but the more individuals and small groups stand out. Somebody may well remember seeing her if she was on a non tourist trail.
 
According to her aunt on Facebook they think she was hiking the Hermit Trail on Saturday, April 2 between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. Here it is on a map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/H...2!3m1!1s0x873317cb11277cdb:0x17540b71c0dfca39

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermit_Trail

There is also an unconfirmed report that she took a shuttle to Flagstaff on Friday.

See visitor posts on this page: https://www.facebook.com/Missing-Person-Alert-Page-247088125340367/

The family has done some posting on Arizona hiking pages. https://www.facebook.com/Arizona.Trail.Association/?pnref=lhc
 
How scary, I hope this young lady is found very soon.
 
ClaireNC said:
According to her aunt on Facebook they think she was hiking the Hermit Trail on Saturday, April 2 between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. Here it is on a map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/H...2!3m1!1s0x873317cb11277cdb:0x17540b71c0dfca39
Click to expand...

Thanks for the good information. The Hermit trail is listed for experienced hikers and goes all the way to the Colorado river. Another source I read said that attempting to hike down to the river and back up in one day is extremely difficult for anybody not an amateur athelete (I can't remember if this admonishment was for a specific trail, or any trail in general going down from the rim). The missing girl does not appear to have a back pack which would indicate plans to stay over night on the trail.
ClaireNC said:
There is also an unconfirmed report that she took a shuttle to Flagstaff on Friday.
Click to expand...
She is said to have left Friday and not stayed the weekend? When did she arrive at the Canyon?

She seems to be an outdoorsy type girl who had plans to hike. This would seem to make it more likely that she took the trail (on the weekend?) rather than say: Go to the Grand Canyon, get some standard photos at the main tourist over look, then jump back on the shuttle and head to a shopping mall type plans.
 
Cryptic said:
Thanks for the good information. The Hermit trail is listed for experienced hikers and goes all the way to the Colorado river. Another source I read said that attempting to hike down to the river and back up in one day is extremely difficult for anybody not an amateur athelete (I can't remember if this admonishment was for a specific trail, or any trail in general going down from the rim). The missing girl does not appear to have a back pack which would indicate plans to stay over night on the trail.

She is said to have left Friday and not stayed the weekend? When did she arrive at the Canyon?

She seems to be an outdoorsy type girl who had plans to hike. This would seem to make it more likely that she took the trail (on the weekend?) rather than say: Go to the Grand Canyon, get some standard photos at the main tourist over look, then jump back on the shuttle and head to a shopping mall type plans.
Click to expand...

There was more info released after I made that post. http://www.katc.com/story/31660886/search-continues-for-missing-louisiana-woman-at-grand-canyon and https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1563/missing-person-at-grand-canyon.htm

It looks like she went to Flagstaff on Friday and then took the Arizona Shuttle to the "South Rim on Saturday and was dropped off at the Maswick Lodge". Once there "she's believed to have visited Yaki Point and Lookout Studio". It was her aunt that reported that she was hiking the Hermit Trail, apparently because that is what she told somebody she was doing via telephone or text message.

The search continues this morning: Search continues for Natchitoches woman missing at Grand Canyon

Here is the link to the map I made. I don't know why some people were having problems accessing it.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z2VLvG6QAl8U.kOIhVyVzMfrQ&usp=sharing
 
ClaireNC said:
It looks like she went to Flagstaff on Friday and then took the Arizona Shuttle to the "South Rim on Saturday and was dropped off at the Maswick Lodge". Once there "she's believed to have visited Yaki Point and Lookout Studio". It was her aunt that reported that she was hiking the Hermit Trail, apparently because that is what she told somebody she was doing via telephone or text message.
Click to expand...

I am getting more worried as every source I have read says the Hermit trail, though not a "primitive" trail, is "unmaintained" and probably not the trail someone needs to be hiking alone unless they are very experienced and plan to spend the night on the trail.

One good thing about the terrain is that it limits access for perpetrators. Evidently the only way to many of the trail heads into the canyon is by a designated shuttle (better chance of being recognized). Once on a trail into the Canyon, it is for all practical purposes, one way up, one way down unless somebody plans on spending several days in hiking the area. This is in contrast to other trails where perpetrators can cruise to the area in their car, access portions of the trail easily, then leave.
 
ClaireNC said:
There was more info released after I made that post. http://www.katc.com/story/31660886/search-continues-for-missing-louisiana-woman-at-grand-canyon and https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1563/missing-person-at-grand-canyon.htm

It looks like she went to Flagstaff on Friday and then took the Arizona Shuttle to the "South Rim on Saturday and was dropped off at the Maswick Lodge". Once there "she's believed to have visited Yaki Point and Lookout Studio". It was her aunt that reported that she was hiking the Hermit Trail, apparently because that is what she told somebody she was doing via telephone or text message.

The search continues this morning: Search continues for Natchitoches woman missing at Grand Canyon

Here is the link to the map I made. I don't know why some people were having problems accessing it.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z2VLvG6QAl8U.kOIhVyVzMfrQ&usp=sharing
Click to expand...

This link I can see your google map. Thanks! :)
 
Here is a trail map and lengths for day hikes on the Hermit trail. I have been to the Canyon a couple times. Took mules down once and hiked down some trails another time. Those trails that she could have gone on were fine to go by herself and certainly are day hikes so she wouldn't need to bring gear with her. There is enough traffic on those south rim trails that someone would have seen her. This time of year there are much less people there, but still, a huge amount of people visit there. The stats that the guide told us is 1% of visitors actually go down into the canyon, everyone else goes to the edge and takes pictures.

Of course the normal things, water...and knowing that it is much easier to go down then come up.When we took the mules down they told us story after story of people that needed to be rescued because they were hiking in sandals...didn't bring water...or didn't plan that it was harder to climb out of the trail then descend into it.

I hope she hasn't slipped off the trail somewhere :(
 
Cryptic said:
I am getting more worried as every source I have read says the Hermit trail, though not a "primitive" trail, is "unmaintained" and probably not the trail someone needs to be hiking alone unless they are very experienced and plan to spend the night on the trail.

One good thing about the terrain is that it limits access for perpetrators. Evidently the only way to many of the trail heads into the canyon is by a designated shuttle (better chance of being recognized). Once on a trail into the Canyon, it is for all practical purposes, one way up, one way down unless somebody plans on spending several days in hiking the area. This is in contrast to other trails where perpetrators can cruise to the area in their car, access portions of the trail easily, then leave.
Click to expand...

From her FB profile, I don't get the impression that she is an avid hiker, but there aren't many pictures that are viewable to the public. Also her outfit sounds more like something one would wear for sightseeing rather than serious hiking. Maybe she was only planning to do a portion of the trail, not necessarily the whole thing.

I agree that access would be limited for a perp to snatch her off the trail. On the other hand, she might stick out around the area as being inexperienced in the outdoors, which could have made her an easy target for some unsavory individual.
 
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