Killer sought in trail deaths

VERLOT -- Two women found dead along a popular trail off the Mountain Loop Highway were a mother and daughter who investigators believe were slain while hiking, law enforcement sources said Wednesday.

Snohomish County sheriff's investigators said they still had no suspects Wednesday, one day after the women were found along the trail in the Mount Pilchuck area in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, about 20 miles east of Granite Falls.

One victim was in her 40s and the other in her 20s. Their gear suggested they had planned a day hike on the 1.9-mile Pinnacle Lake trail, said Deputy Rich Niebusch, a Sheriff's Office spokesman.

Witnesses last saw the women alive around 10 a.m. Tuesday at the trailhead, on the northeastern edge of Mount Pilchuck.

A little more than four hours later, a hiker called 911 from a pay phone to report finding the bodies. After making the discovery, the 911 caller had to hike back down the trail and travel several miles to reach a campground, which could have taken a significant amount of time, Niebusch said.

That leaves a window of only a few hours between when the victims started their hike and when they were found.


		Joshua Trujillo / P-I
	The trailhead at the Pinnacle Lake Trail, where two women were found dead Tuesday.

"We have an unsolved homicide at this point. We haven't developed a suspect, and we're asking people to take extra precautions if they're going to go up there and hike," Niebusch said.

Niebusch did not disclose how the victims died, other than that they had suffered trauma. They were found in the open, not far from the trail. No one had tried to conceal them, he said.

The man and woman who found the bodies called for help from the Gold Basin Campground, about 12 miles from the trailhead. Charles and Anne Keller, who manage the campground, spoke with the couple, who said at first that they couldn't tell if the women were dead.

"At first they thought they were using the bathroom because they were hunched over in the fetal position," Anne Keller said. "The closer they got, they realized they weren't alive."

They said the condition of the victims' bodies made it difficult to discern they were women, according to the Kellers. The couple appeared "visibly upset," the Kellers said.

About 30 people, including detectives and rescue workers, scoured the surrounding area for possible evidence.

Authorities had to haul the bodies several miles on foot because the sheriff's helicopter was grounded by foul weather, Niebusch said.

News of the violence evoked questions and uneasiness among Northwest hikers who posted their thoughts on "Trail Talk," an online forum provided by www.nwhikers.net

"This is not something that happens very often," said Lauren Braden, communications director for the Washington Trails Association, during an interview.

Andrew Engleson, editor of Washington Trails Magazine, said Tuesday's slayings are the type of news that hikers dread, but that the risk of something like this happening is relatively low.

"I think when you're out hiking, you're still safer than you are when you're in the city. Statistically, the odds are much better on the trail," Engleson said. "Caution is in order, but I wouldn't blow this out of proportion. But it certainly does make you pause."

Gravity and sprained ankles usually are the biggest threat to hikers in the Mount Pilchuck area, where trails ascend steep and rugged terrain. There have been hikers who died from falls, said Gary Paull, wilderness and trail coordinator for the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

Of the four trails around Mount Pilchuck, Pinnacle Lake isn't the most popular because it isn't immediately accessible from the Mountain Loop Highway, a main road.

While the trail is not as steep as others, it has plenty of tree roots and rocks to stumble over, Paull said.

"It's one of the rougher trails," he said.

Last June, hikers discovered human remains on Mount Pilchuck Road, a few miles from where the bodies turned up Tuesday.

The case was drug-related and two men were charged with unlawful disposal of human remains, Niebusch said. It had no connection to Tuesday's slayings.

TO HELP

Anyone with information on the two hikers found dead in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is urged to call the Snohomish County sheriff's office at (425) 388-3845.

P-I reporter Scott Gutierrez can be reached at 206-448-8334 or scottgutierrez@seattlepi.com.

Soundoff (Read 72 comments)
Two women might have been murdered in the Mount Pilchuck area. Does that make you more concerned about hiking safety?

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