The 21-year-old hiker fell off the trail near the summit of Mount Marcy and was unable to make her way back up.
Mount Marcy (Photo: kevstewa / iStock via Getty)
Published February 17, 2026 11:54AM
An experienced hiker passed away from hypothermia on New York’s highest peak last week after falling from the trail in inclement weather, state authorities said.
The hiker, since identified as 21-year-old Brianna L. Mohr of New Jersey, set out on February 12 to climb 5,343-foot Mount Marcy. At 3:05 p.m., she called 911 to report that she had slipped off the trail near the mountain’s summit and was unable to make it back up without assistance.
Rangers from the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and aircraft from the New York State Police responded, but heavy clouds made it impossible for aerial teams to locate the missing hiker. Eventually one of the rangers in the state police helicopter began ascending towards the summit on foot from the Marcy Dam Outpost, a 5.1-mile hike with 3,000 feet of elevation gain. The ranger located Mohr’s body near the summit shortly before 10 p.m. Weather data from the nearby Lake Placid Airport, which at 1,795 feet is more than 3,000 feet lower than the summit, showed a temperature of -2 Fahrenheit at that time. Search teams recovered Mohr the following day.
In a statement, the New York State Police said that an autopsy conducted by Dr. Michael Sikirica of the Glens Fall Hospital found that Mohr had died of hypothermia.
Located in the Adirondacks, Mount Marcy is a popular objective for hikers. Data collected by the Adirondack Mountain Club in 2017 found that roughly 70,000 people used the peak’s trailhead that year. The most common route that hikers take to the summit involves a 14.8-mile out-and-back trip through wet and rugged terrain. The mountain’s exposed peak can experience frigid, icy, and deadly conditions in winter, and has been the site of a number of high-profile rescues over the years. In March 2024, rangers rescued a 33-year-old New York City man who had become lost in a snowstorm while descending from the peak; by the time they reached him, he was suffering from hypothermia and frostbite.
An Instagram account under Mohr’s name shows her making frequent trips to the mountains, including in winter conditions. At the time of the incident, she had been hiking with a dog, which rescuers successfully located and recovered uninjured.