Body of missing hiker found at Joshua Tree

Searchers have found the body of a missing hiker at Joshua Tree National Park in an area popular with rock climbers, park officials confirmed Thursday.

The 41-year-old resident of Vancouver, Canada, was found Wednesday evening near Jumbo Rocks Campground. His name is being withheld.

According to a park spokesman, the camper was reported missing Wednesday morning after he failed to meet friends the previous day. 

Park rangers, volunteer search-and-rescue teams and the Riverside County Sheriff's Department began a ground search, and the California Highway Patrol provided a helicopter to assist.

The camper’s car was found at the Jumbo Rocks Campground and his body was found about 9:30 p.m. in an area of granite cliffs and boulder formations about three-quarters of a mile from the campground.

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-- Julie Cart