Found Deceased Bryce Evans, 23, pre-med student traveling from TN to NC, Cherokee, 30 July 2022

[WingsOverTX]

I can't find it now. Maybe I was mistaken that the car was stuck. The ladies who came accross his car I think maybe had the same thing happen to them possibly they got lost I've seen that mentioned in news reports. Its possible all three of them didn't realize that this trail or path was not going anywhere and eventually would have to abandon thier vehicles because their cars couldn't go any farther? JMO.

When I look at this road on Google Maps, it is very curvy & remote leading to and from Pin Oak Gap which I would venture could be the midpoint of this road or close to it. It has two names on it (Balsam Mountain Road & Heintooga Round Bottom Rd most or all the way) which I don't understand.

@aimeea has been on trail around there. Maybe she can tell us more about this road.

I wonder if the area where he was found had special meaning to Bryce? Maybe it was familiar to him? Lots of trailheads & campgrounds in that area. The road doesn't look like a dead-end destination to me.

MOO

 

[aimeea]

He almost certainly was on the Balsam Mountain Trail itself if his car was parked at the trailhead--there's no intersecting trails that early on. The location of that trailhead is definitely pretty remote--some parts of the GSMNP will close seasonally because the road conditions get really messy in the winter time... this is one of those areas, lots of one-way gravel roads. You would never just end up here lost... there's tons of signage... but if you're coming out to those trails, you likely have done your research beforehand.

It's a shame we don't have timing info for when he was there. The Balsam Mountain Trail eventually intersects with the Appalachian Trail (a LONG way in, no one is going out to that trailhead for the sole purpose of getting on the AT), but halfway into it is Balsam Mountain itself which is a good place to see the sunset.

If we assume he parked at BMT Trailhead and hiked in, it would be a largely uphill hike. JMO MOO I wouldn't be shocked if he lost his footing on one of the edge of a ridge--whether to slippery ground or just loose rock/debris thanks to the terrain--and fell--hence him being 20 yards from the trail... most of that just tumbling downhill.

In all the time I spent out in this area, there were SO many spots with memorials for people who died exactly this way.

 

[caradana]

Let’s rewind back - to how he arrived at such a place, when he was supposed to be at his internship. Let’s look at the full picture.
BTW raising a glass to the people who found that car and reported it. It could‘ve been months, at which point his remains would‘ve been more difficult to find.

 

[aimeea]

Let’s rewind back - to how he arrived at such a place, when he was supposed to be at his internship. Let’s look at the full picture.
BTW raising a glass to the people who found that car and reported it. It could‘ve been months, at which point his remains would‘ve been more difficult to find.

One of the articles mentioned he was last seen by his family on a Sunday when he left. It seemed like he probably was stopping to hike on a weekend with the intent of going to his internship on Monday.

 

[WingsOverTX]

Let’s rewind back - to how he arrived at such a place, when he was supposed to be at his internship. Let’s look at the full picture.
BTW raising a glass to the people who found that car and reported it. It could‘ve been months, at which point his remains would‘ve been more difficult to find.

I am under the impression that he planned to return to his internship on time, that this was a weekend getaway on his way back & that while remote, the area has hikers & campers during summer, including a campground in walkable distance from this trail.

I think the impression given that he was in backcountry where few venture is wrong. Yes, it is remote & perhaps feels like "nowhere" to some people. I think it's a matter of perspective. Where some people would not feel comfortable venturing on their on to the area, other people might find it very appealing.

RIP, Bryce, whatever the reason you were there & whatever happened in that beautiful & wild area.

JMO

 

[rsd1200]

When I look at this road on Google Maps, it is very curvy & remote leading to and from Pin Oak Gap which I would venture could be the midpoint of this road or close to it. It has two names on it (Balsam Mountain Road & Heintooga Round Bottom Rd most or all the way) which I don't understand.

@aimeea has been on trail around there. Maybe she can tell us more about this road.

I wonder if the area where he was found had special meaning to Bryce? Maybe it was familiar to him? Lots of trailheads & campgrounds in that area. The road doesn't look like a dead-end destination to me.

MOO

Is this the correct place where he was found. Familiar with the area but never hiked there.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/north-carolina/balsam-mountain-loop-from-pine-oak-gap

 

[rsd1200]

"Rangers said they found his vehicle parked at 7:45 p.m. on Thursday at the Balsam Mountain Trailhead near Pin Oak Gap on Heintooga Ridge Road."
"Body of missing Tennessee man found off remote trail in GSMNP, officials say
Park Rangers located his vehicle parked at the Balsam Mountain Trailhead near Pin Oak Gap on Heintooga Ridge Road"
"The Evans family said Bryce is an Eagle Scout as well as a member of the Tennessee National Guard.
According to Evans’ sister, he is an avid outdoorsman. He hikes and camps often and is a licensed EMT."

Update: Body of missing Tennessee man found off remote trail in GSMNP, officials say


Here is where the road splits, the trailhead, and Pin Oak Gap. He likely took Exit 20 off I-40 toward Maggie Valley.

 

[aimeea]

Is this the correct place where he was found. Familiar with the area but never hiked there.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/north-carolina/balsam-mountain-loop-from-pine-oak-gap

I think the loop is a combination of two separate trails, Balsam Mountain Trail and Beech Gap Trail. I assume he never got to the Beech Gap Trail part if he was found within a couple of miles of the trailhead area... Balsam Mountain Trail by itself is is 10 mile out and back trail if you don't end up on the AT. But yeah, that's the right area.

 

[rsd1200]

I think the loop is a combination of two separate trails, Balsam Mountain Trail and Beech Gap Trail. I assume he never got to the Beech Gap Trail part if he was found within a couple of miles of the trailhead area... Balsam Mountain Trail by itself is is 10 mile out and back trail if you don't end up on the AT. But yeah, that's the right area.

Yes, two different trail names that merge at the Trailhead. It's a long hike all the way around, so I think he drove to the parking area at the Trailhead, and then something went south.

Park rangers located his vehicle parked at the Balsam Mountain Trailhead near Pin Oak Gap on Heintooga Ridge. Views without tree cover.

 

[sluther2377]

As he was an avid hiker, misadventure is a real possibility. The location of the vehicle and the body give me pause. But we don't know how unusual it would be for him to explore in this manner. Going off trail is a red flag in my view, based on my personal hiking experience.

Upthread an OP mentioned it can be very wet in that area. He was young & presumably healthy so an injury leading to death is plausible, if not probable. It did take several days to find him. What if he got bitten by a poisonous snake?

Until we hear something that makes the weight of the evidence lean toward suicide, I am not persuaded. YMMV!

MOO

<modsnip - sleuthing someone who has not been named a suspect/POI in this case> I sincerely hope that it was misadventure, but being an Eagle Scout and avid hiker make it less likely that he was unaware of his surroundings/the trail. Very curious that he was found 20 yards from the trail, but the details surrounding that have not been released. It very well could have been that those 20 yards were at the bottom of a very steep grade. It is entirely possible that he was despondent after these accusations and decided to take his own life. Just complete theory here, police said his card was not swiped at the gym, it's possible that he encountered someone <modsnip> on his way to the gym and they decided to go on a spontaneous hike where an argument occured. Although, i'm sure there are much closer, less remote places to embark on an impromtu hike.

 

[caradana]

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/legacyremembers/bryce-evans-obituary?id=36206589

 

[WingsOverTX]

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/legacyremembers/bryce-evans-obituary?id=36206589

Such an accomplished young man! RIP, Bryce.

 

[ThoughtFox]

"Rangers said they found his vehicle parked at 7:45 p.m. on Thursday at the Balsam Mountain Trailhead near Pin Oak Gap on Heintooga Ridge Road."
"Body of missing Tennessee man found off remote trail in GSMNP, officials say
Park Rangers located his vehicle parked at the Balsam Mountain Trailhead near Pin Oak Gap on Heintooga Ridge Road"
"The Evans family said Bryce is an Eagle Scout as well as a member of the Tennessee National Guard.
According to Evans’ sister, he is an avid outdoorsman. He hikes and camps often and is a licensed EMT."

Update: Body of missing Tennessee man found off remote trail in GSMNP, officials say


Here is where the road splits, the trailhead, and Pin Oak Gap. He likely took Exit 20 off I-40 toward Maggie Valley.View attachment 358293View attachment 358290
View attachment 358292

RIP, very sorry for the family. What a shame. This sounds like a simple hike gone wrong for the victim.

I live in E. TN near the Smokies and while the map shows how close this trail was to Cherokee and Maggie Valley N.C., that doesn't mean it wasn't remote. Even on the Tennessee side, you can be just outside the Gatlinburg city limits yet be standing alone in a mountain wilderness full of wild animals. Sadly this reminds me of something I might have done when I was younger. I was never scared of hiking or visiting parks alone when I was young. I'm an old lady now and think no one should ever hike alone - too many unforeseen things can go wrong, even for someone physically fit who knows the area.

He was found quite a ways from the trail which is disturbing. Was he chased by bears/boars/hornets? Or was he trying a shortcut? Beyond the trail itself the hiking would be very rough indeed, it seems to me. We all wish this had ended differently.

 

[StJohn]

Just posting an update to the conclusion of this sad story. From the Asheville Citizen-Times:

“A death investigation by the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner found that the cause of death of a man found Aug. 5, 2022, in the Balsam Mountain area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park was suicide.”

NC Medical Examiner: Great Smoky Mountains cause of 2022 death revealed for Bryce Evans

A NC Medical Examiner's report reveals the cause of death of Bryce Evans, Knoxville man found in 2022 in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

www.citizen-times.com