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DRAPER — An experienced hiker missing in Corner Canyon overnight has been found dead of a suspected fall.
Kerry Crowley, 43, was found dead Wednesday morning in "a very steep cliff area" after family members reported she didn't come home Tuesday evening, Unified Police Lt. Lex Bell said Wednesday. It appeared Crowley had left the trail and gone to the cliff edge, perhaps to take a photo, and fell between 200 and 300 hundred feet.
"It just goes to show that accidents can happen to anybody," Bell said. "It sounds like if anyone was prepared and in the kind of shape to hike this peak, she was."
Police believe Crowley fell sometime Tuesday afternoon.
A Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter spotted Crowley's body about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. Crowley had started her solo hike up Jacob's Ladder to the Lone Peak Cirque about 8 a.m. Tuesday and had been expected home before dark.
Jacob's Ladder is described as an extremely steep and rugged 3.8-mile trail that connects to the Lone Peak Cirque and the summit of Lone Peak.
Searchers had remained hopeful that, because of Crowley's experience level, she would be found alive. Investigators were working to determine just how the accident happened and what may have caused the South Jordan woman to slip.
"She's a wife and mother, and has done a lot of these hikes," Bell said. "She's a very experienced hiker, she's the type of person who loved to be outdoors and loved to do this type of adventurous thing on her own."
A GoFundMe* account has been set up by the family.
Contributing: Mike Anderson, Shara Park
*KSL.com does not assure that the monies deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.