The body of a hiker who had become lost at Fall Creek Falls State Park in heavy snow and subzero temperatures has been found by rescue crews.
A Tennessee Highway Patrol helicopter using forward-looking infrared radar found the hiker’s body 700 feet down from the bluff line at Cane Creek Gorge on Tuesday. Crews worked in shifts to make the recovery, according to a news release from the Piney Volunteer Fire Department in Spencer, Tennessee.
Kim Schofinski, spokesperson for Tennessee State Parks under the state Department of Environment and Conservation, confirmed the fatality but declined to identify the person. In a phone call, officials at the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office identified the deceased hiker as Nathan Bayless, 46, of Van Buren County.