A hiker missing from the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in Carmel Valley, California, was found dead Friday at the base of a waterfall in the Ventana Wilderness inside Los Padres National Forest.
Caroline Meister, 30, was a resident at the abbey, the oldest Japanese Soto Zen Buddhist monastery in the U.S. She left for a hike in the Ventana Wilderness Monday and never returned, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook.
Ms. Meister had brought supplies sufficient for only a day hike and was reported missing. After four days of searching, MCSO search and rescue personnel found her body.
There were no signs of foul play, and while an autopsy will be done to determine Ms. Meister’s exact cause of death, the body showed injuries consistent with a fall off a cliff, Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said at a press conference Friday.
“We are all deeply saddened and in shock. The sanghas at Tassajara, Green Gulch Farm, and City Center are gathering to support each other in the wake of this distressing news. 108 bells are ringing. Our hearts are broken,” Tassajara Zen Mountain Center posted on Facebook.
Sanghas are members of Buddhist monastic orders.