It seems a 19-year-old told the best story she could think of to defend her mom, and the cover-up kept getting bigger and bigger until the Sheriff, knowledgeable in HC's rescue, called them (daughter and hiker's sister) out on the nonsense they were pushing.
The daughter must have been beside herself during this ordeal, and she should not have been the spokesperson over which so much scrutiny resulted. Personally, I think mom's life was/is probably upside down and HC returned to the park to escape -- perhaps not ever wanting to be found.
HC left home in the middle of the night under strange circumstances. We learned that she'd been to Zion only a couple of weeks earlier with her daughter to celebrate the daughter's 19th birthday. The daughter stated she last talked to her mom on Oct 2.
According to the National Park Service, Courtier, 38, was last seen at 1:30 p.m. (Oct 6) when she was dropped off by a shuttle bus at the Grotto parking area. She never made it onto the return shuttle later that day.
I'm happy HC is safe at home and hope gets the help she obviously needs. It seems HC is usually the leader of the sister pack and they did the best they could when their fearless leader was not functioning.
MOO
Daughter of Calif. Woman Who Disappeared During Hike at National Park in Utah Speaks Out