Traveling nurse from Michigan last seen near hiking trail in California found dead

A traveling nurse from Michigan who was last seen near a hiking trail in California was found dead after a search that lasted more than two weeks.

Ann Herford, 66, had been missing since Wednesday, Nov, 15, and was last seen on the Arnold Rim Trail in Calaveras County, California. She was found dead at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30 in an area with dense foliage.

According to NBC affiliate KCRA, Herford is a traveling nurse practitioner from Michigan. She was reported missing after she didn’t show up for work at Adventist Health in Sonora, California. She was staying alone at a Best Western in Sonora.

She had breakfast with a friend on Saturday, Nov. 11, and said she was interested in hiking. On Wednesday, Nov. 15, a resident saw her near a trailhead where her car was found.

Her family told police that Herford enjoyed hiking but did not have wilderness survival skills and never planned on walking more than a couple miles at a time.

Search efforts included searches by air and ground on various types of terrain. Her body was found during a search of an extremely steep and dense section of the search area north of San Antonio Creek and south of Forest Road 5N56.

Herford was found dead on a 35-degree sloped hillside beneath heavy tree canopy and dense foliage, according to the sheriff’s office. That area was north of where her vehicle was parked on Nov. 12, and not within the RIM trail system. Her body was removed with assistance from an California Highway Patrol aircraft due to the terrain and slope angle.

The sheriff’s office said detectives will continue to review the case, but the investigation currently indicates that her death was not suspicious.

Anyone with information about her death should contact the Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office at 209-754-6500.