Dad and daughter vanish on hike to summit of Maine’s tallest mountain, park says

UPDATE: After locating the remains of Tim Keiderling, the body of his daughter, Esther Keiderling, was found at about 1 p.m. on June 4, according to Baxter State Park. She was found in a “wooded area of Katahdin’s Tableland,” officials said. Tim Keiderling’s body was found by a Maine Warden Service K9 search team “on the Tableland, near the summit of Katahdin,” at about 2:45 p.m. on June 3, Baxter State Park said in a news release issued around 5 p.m. June 3.

The original story continues below.

A father and daughter vanished while hiking to the summit of Maine’s tallest mountain, Katahdin, according to park officials, who said a search for them is ongoing.

It’s been two days since Tim Keiderling, 58, and Esther Keiderling, 28, set off on a morning hike after leaving the Abol campground in Baxter State Park on June 1, according to a news release shared by officials the afternoon of June 3. The park is in Piscataquis County in northern Maine.

The Keiderlings “were last seen at approximately 10:15 a.m. heading towards the summit,” officials said.

The next morning, on June 2, park rangers found Tim and Esther Keiderling’s car parked in a lot meant for daily use, leading to rangers launching a search, according to officials.

There was “no sign of the father and daughter,” who are both from Ulster Park, New York, the park said.

Ulster Park is about a 100-mile drive north from New York City.

After rangers searched the Abol and Hunt trails in Baxter State Park on June 2, they widened the search on June 3, according to officials.

The afternoon of June 3, the park said rangers and more than 30 wardens from the Maine Warden Service, found no trace of Tim and Esther Keiderling on Katahdin.

The Maine Forest Service, and the state’s Army National Guard are also using their resources, including helicopters, to look for the father and daughter.

Katahdin’s Hunt and Abol trails are closed due to the search, which “will continue through the daylight hours” on June 3, according to park officials.

At its peak, known as “Baxter Peak,” Katahdin is 5,269 feet tall, according to the National Park Service. The peak is the northernmost point along the Appalachian Trail.

This story was originally published June 3, 2025 at 3:58 PM with the headline "Dad and daughter vanish on hike to summit of Maine’s tallest mountain, park says."

Julia Marnin

McClatchy DC

Julia Marnin covers courts for McClatchy News, writing about criminal and civil affairs, including cases involving policing, corrections, civil liberties, fraud, and abuses of power. As a reporter on McClatchy’s National Real-Time Team, she’s also covered the COVID-19 pandemic and a variety of other topics since joining in 2021, following a fellowship with Newsweek. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, she was raised in South Jersey and is now based in New York State.