The body of a missing hiker has been found nearly a year after she went missing.
Melissa McDevitt, 38, last spoke to her family on Dec. 8, 2022.
Two days later her car was found near Sooke Potholes Provincial Park where she was believed to have gone for a multi-hour hike.
McDevitt was described as an experienced hiker. A string of major searches failed to find any trace of her.
RCMP has not released any details about the search that led to the discovery of her body.
Last June, McDevitt’s parents reported a “monumental shift” in efforts to find her, including confirmation of her recent hiking routes.
Tom and Maggie moved from North Carolina to Vancouver Island in May to continue searching for McDevitt with a growing community of residents — skilled hikers in the Greater Victoria area — who regularly scour the trails to find their daughter. Their collaboration led to a breakthrough, Tom said.
“The process led to a lot of brainstorming. Because of my knowledge of Melissa’s email logins for different accounts … we were able to get into her Garmin-based website,” he explained. “That’s when we determined that there was information up to six months ago.”
Sadly, the search did not turn up any results.
Police said there is no indication of any criminality in her death.
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