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An autopsy has confirmed that 58-year-old Tim Keiderling from Ulster Park died from complications of hypothermia while hiking Mount Katahdin in Maine. His death has been ruled accidental by the Maine Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Tim's daughter, 28-year-old Esther Keiderling, died from blunt force trauma after sliding downhill and colliding with boulders near the mountain's summit earlier this month.
The Keiderlings were last seen alive on Sunday, June 1, as they headed toward the summit of Mount Katahdin. The search for the father and daughter involved 25 game wardens, K9 teams, and helicopters from the Maine Army National Guard and Maine Forest Service. Tim's body was found on Tuesday, June 3, near the Saddle Trail, while Esther's body was discovered the following day in a boulder field between the Cathedral and Saddle Trails, approximately 1,000 feet from her father's location.
Baxter State Park officials reported that the weather on the day of their hike was harsh, with temperatures in the mid-30s Fahrenheit, wind chills around 19 degrees, and precipitation including rain, sleet, and snow. These conditions heightened the risk of hypothermia. The snow-covered terrain was described as extremely icy, making navigation difficult without proper gear.
Family members have remembered Tim and Esther as a close father-daughter duo who loved hiking and the outdoors. In a statement, Timothy Keiderling, Esther’s brother, expressed gratitude for the search teams' professional and immediate response, which provided the family with a degree of closure.