A Texas man found dead while hiking in Utah was on the way to scatter his late father’s ashes, according to family members.
Jimmy Hendricks, 66, left his Austin home in mid-July for Nevada, where he planned to scatter the ashes on a mountain. Along the way, he made stops at Guadalupe Peak in Texas and the Grand Canyon.
Hendricks likely died due to a combination of heat, high altitude and dehydration, officials said.
In a Facebook post chronicling his journey carrying his father’s ashes, Hendricks announced he was going to hike in Arches national park in Moab, Utah, in the early morning of 29 July.
In the post, Hendricks wrote: “I cruised east today on the beautifully engineered Interstate 70, towards Moab, Utah. As I crested high mountain passes, and crossed harsh but beautiful deserts, I was put in mind of a certain line from Woody Guthrie’s song Pastures of Plenty – ‘And your deserts were hot and your mountains were cold.’”
On 1 August, workers at the motel in which Hendricks was staying reported him missing. He was found dead that same day near the Sand Dune Arch trail, a typically 30-minute hike park officials grade as “easy”.
In a statement, the National Park Service (NPS) said: “Park rangers located the individual’s vehicle at the Sand Dune Arch trail parking lot and initiated a search of the area. The man was found deceased off-trail nearby.
“An investigation into this incident is being conducted jointly by the NPS and Grand county sheriff’s office.”
Hendricks’ sister, Ruth Hendricks Brough, told the San Antonio news outlet MySA that park rangers believed he died from heatstroke.
This summer has seen record-breaking temperatures, fueled by the climate crisis. High temperatures in Moab during Hendricks’ trip ranged from the high 90s to 101F.
Brough said: “He was a person who spread joy to every living thing he met, and to him, all the universe was alive, from human beings to fossils to stardust.”
Another sibling, Rob, died more than 20 years ago on a trip to Lake Tahoe, California. His remains were only recently found this year. Brough said Hendricks was organizing a memorial service for him.
Brough said Hendricks “was loved by countless people because he was an unusually kind, sweet person who made friends easily. Now all these people are grieving. It was a horrible shock.”
