Found Deceased NH - Hiker Emily Sotelo, from MA, dropped off in Franconia, Lafayette trailhead, Hiking Mounts Lafayette, Haystack & Flume, 20 Nov 2022

[Hap]

Emily Sotelo, 19, of Westford, Massachusetts, was dropped off Sunday morning at Lafayette Place Campground in Franconia. She intended to hike Mount Lafayette, Mount Haystack and Mount Flume.

Her parents told News 9 that Sotelo is an experienced hiker but does not have much winter hiking experience.

New Hampshire search crews continue to look for missing 19-year-old hiker

The search continued Monday for a missing hiker in northern New Hampshire.

www.wmur.com

 

[moonriverfarm]

ANOTHER missing hiker - horrible.

 

[Curiousobserver]

It is so easy to get lost and when you're out in the weather that mistake can be deadly if you're unprepared.

 

[cenazoic]

“Fish and Game officials said the teen's mother dropped her off at the trailhead just before 5 a.m. Sunday morning.
…

Officials said Sunday that the temperature along the ridge was near zero, with 30-40 mph winds making the wind-chill factor in the minus-30 range. Stewart said Sotelo wasn't dressed for the cold.”

What the what?

 

[GraceG]

Hiking in late November wearing exercise pants, sneakers, and a jacket? The temps for the month in Franconia are prime for hypothermia day OR night and have been for over a week before she set out. https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/franconia/03580/november-weather/2174569

 

[bettyboop]

@RickshawFan I'm tagging you for this thread. I thought you might be interested. For those that aren't familiar with this poster, they have been helpful in similar threads. MOO

 

[NeverPersonal]

Hiker Emily Sotelo, 20, missing on New Hampshire trail (nypost.com)



Sotelo, from Westford, Massachusetts, is 5 feet 3 inches tall and 115 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a brown jacket and exercise pants.
A New Hampshire hiker has disappeared after she set out on a popular trail in bone-chilling weather, authorities said.

Emily Sotelo, 20, was dropped off Sunday morning at Lafayette Place Campground in Franconia, with the intended hiking route of Mount Lafayette, Haystack and Flume, according to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Law Enforcement Division.

As temperatures in the area dropped to near zero, with 30- to 40-mph winds making the chill factor a frigid -30 degrees, Sotelo failed to return from the hike at the expected hour, and there have been no sightings of the woman.

Search and rescue crews scoured the ridge for the missing hiker throughout Sunday and continued looking for her Monday.

New Hampshire authorities seek public’s help in finding missing 20-year-old hiker (msn.com)

Among those shares was a post by the Pemigewasset Valley Search and Rescue Team, an all-volunteer group that helps New Hampshire Fish and Game with search and rescue efforts, which said they were assisting in the search.

“Pemi has three teams out tonight looking for this missing hiker,” the team wrote Sunday. “Temperature along the ridge is about zero, 30-40 mph winds make the chill factor -30. Please call State Police if you have any information, including any hikers who saw her today.”

Facebook
She is now overdue and any hikers who may have encountered Sotelo along the intended route should notify NH State Police Dispatch at (603)271-1170.

 

[Herat]

It seems so preposterous for her mother to drop her off in unsuitable clothing, more dressed for a walk to the mall than in winter snow conditions. Were there arrangements to pick her up or check in at any specific time?

I wonder if she was meeting someone instead of actually hiking and gave her mother a big story.

 

[AmandaSkis]

Ohhhhh, maybe. I actually hope she DID go off somewhere else and is safe.

 

[Countem]

Using localconditions.com, the temperature in Fredonia, NH at the time of drop-off (5:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 20) was approximately 25 degrees F on a day with an expected high of 25 degrees F and an expected low of 15 degrees F.

These conditions cause me to wonder the reasoning behind an outfit that consisted of a “brown jacket, sneakers and exercise pants.”

Was she truly planning to hike on a trail in adverse conditions described by a Fish and Game officer as “high winds, temperatures, varied conditions -- you have, in the higher elevations, snow up to your chest”?

Her mother has stated that she was an experienced hiker but not a winter hiker, so it may have just been a gross underestimation of the conditions. The Fish and Game officer does say in the below article that, in warm weather conditions, the hike can be done in a day, so she may simply have failed to take into account winter reviews of the trail.

I hope that she is found safe soon.

New Hampshire search crews continue to look for missing 19-year-old hiker

The search continued Monday for a missing hiker in northern New Hampshire.

www.wmur.com

 

[meanmaryjean]

I can't believe I'm saying this but when is the last time anyone other than mom saw her? 5am it's still dark for at LEAST another hour.

 

[not.a.muggle]

Just saw this story on the local news (Burlington, VT).

A petite young woman in sneakers and wind pants . Bears are still active as well.

MSN

Edited to add that the local news said she is 19.

 

[Alethea]

This is just awful. I saw this on the local news. Yesterday we had snow squalls and it was 10 degrees overnight.

This is the White Mountains National Forest. There are no towns to walk to. Take a look at the map - it is completely forested with no interruption. There's one N/S highway (I-93) and one or two E/W roads from the highway exit. So it's not like a normal hike that maybe you walked off to find a town for a snack. It's winter wilderness.

 

[caradana]

Franconia is a solid two hours by car from Westford. Unless they were staying up there, theoretically on vacation or something, Mom was in the car en route at 3 AM for this 5 AM dropoff.
Would be very curious to hear an interview with Mom.

 

[Hap]

No sign of her. Can't imagine being out there in this weather two nights in a row. She needs a miracle.

 

[JerseyGirl]

New Hampshire search crews continue to look for missing 19-year-old hiker

The search continued Monday for a missing hiker in northern New Hampshire.

www.wmur.com

A National Guard Blackhawk helicopter has joined the search, and other hikers were helping out.
By 6 p.m., crews had started to make their way back to the command post for the night.

Officials said anyone who has information or who might have seen Sotelo along the route is asked to call New Hampshire Fish and Game at 603-271-3361.

 

[Alethea]

I can't believe I'm saying this but when is the last time anyone other than mom saw her? 5am it's still dark for at LEAST another hour.

I am very curious about this too. It was very cold Sunday morning - wool coats and mittens. I can't imagine going hiking in such light gear. There is snow on the ground even in the foothills. This is really the "off season" - summer and foliage is done and the ski mountains are just starting up.

 

[not.a.muggle]

Her birthday is Wednesday!

MSN

 

[caradana]

I am very curious about this too. It was very cold Sunday morning - wool coats and mittens. I can't imagine going hiking in such light gear. There is snow on the ground even in the foothills. This is really the "off season" - summer and foliage is done and the ski mountains are just starting up.

Agree. I spent a few past winter weeks at the Balsams, which was a winter resort a couple of counties away from Franconia (imagine Dirty Dancing with big snowbanks) and I cannot even describe to you the cold up there. For anyone less familiar with New Hampshire, this is way way up there, far closer to Canada than to the state capital, actually north of a few of the most populated areas of Maine. It is otherworldly. The wind in the mountains - I cannot fathom what was going on here in the conversations leading up to this drop off/hike - but let us all pray for some miraculous outcome. Credit to the rescuers, the hardy stock who are locally geographically familiar, because - imagine this - it was a low of 9 degrees in Franconia today, and that’s at town center. That’s not ascending the mountain. Whoa.

 

[mainemom376]

This literally makes zero sense. All those resources. JMO