Brentwood hiker wrote final goodbyes weeks after search ended
Faced with the prospect of never seeing her family again, Geraldine Largay, the Brentwood woman who died while hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2013, conjured up the strength to leave a few final messages for her loved ones weeks after a search party had ended its efforts to locate her.
"When you find my body, please call my husband George and my daughter Kerry. It will be the greatest kindness for them to know that I am dead and where you found me — no matter how many years from now. Please find it in your heart to mail the contents of this bag to one of them," Largay wrote in a journal on Aug. 6, 2013.
The entry is among several findings released this week in a report by the Maine Bureau of Warden Service. The report provides several details about Largay's final days, including new revelations about a series of text messages the former nurse tried to send to her husband.
"In somm trouble. Got off trail to go to br. Now lost. Can u call AMC to c if a trail maintainer can help me. Somewhere north of woods road. Xox," she tried to say in a text message to her husband on July 22. The message, however, did not send and Largay desperately tried to send it 10 more times.
The next day, Largay tried to send another text, which read, "Lost since yesterday. Off trail 3 or 4 miles. Call police for what to do pls. Xox." That message failed to send as well.
Largay didn't make it to an area on July 23 where she planned to meet her husband so she could replenish her supplies.
When she didn't show, George Largay called authorities, which led to a massive search involving 130 people — including dogs, horses, helicopters and ATVs — that lasted for 10 days. The search was largely contained to a 14-mile area of the trail in the Carrabassett Valley region of Maine.
It was unclear how long Largay remained alive after first getting lost. But according to the newly released report, she may have survived until at least Aug. 18.
When authorities found her belongings, they discovered a small journal that consisted of personal messages detailing her activities and notes to her loved ones. The journal provides a timeline of her thoughts and activities between July 22 and Aug. 10, the report says. "There is one more entry after August 10 and it is listed as August 18. Unsure as to the accuracy of that date."
The timeline indicates that Largay survived nearly three weeks after authorities had halted their search, which, according to the Boston Globe, was one of the largest in Maine Warden Service history.
Her body was eventually discovered in October 2015 by a forester. When authorities found her she was about two miles away from the Appalachian Trail in an area that belonged to the U.S. Navy.
Largay, 66, was an experienced hiker who had researched the Appalachian Trail before starting her 900-mile journey in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., on April 23, 2013.
“She loved camping. She loved outdoors,” George Largay said in an August 2013 interview. “The ultimate hike for someone who really loves hiking as she does is the Appalachian Trail.”
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She was joined by Jane Lee, a companion who ended up having to stop the journey in New Hampshire due to a family emergency. Largay pressed on and continued the journey, which she hoped to end in Millinocket, Maine — about 200 miles away from where her body was eventually found.
Among her many belongings was a journal she left for her husband, which had the words "George please read. Xoxo" written on the cover.
Efforts to reach George Largay on Thursday were unsuccessful.
Reach Joel Ebert at 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.
The hike
April 2013: Geraldine Largay begins hiking the Appalachian Trail in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., traveling 950 miles north before being reported missing.
July 21, 2013: Largay is last seen, according to the Maine Warden Service. She later texts her husband, George, that she is on top of Saddleback Mountain.
7:15 a.m. July 22, 2013: Largay texts her husband, saying she is heading north on the trail and her next stop is the Spaulding Mountain lean-to in Mount Abram Township.
July 22, 2013: Trevor Pike, 18, also from Tennessee, recalls crossing paths with Largay.
July 23, 2013: Largay never makes a scheduled meeting with her husband.
The search
July 24, 2013: Largay is reported overdue, and the Maine Warden Service begins a search.
July 25, 2013: The Maine Warden Service announces it is seeking the public's help in finding Largay.
July 26, 2013: The Maine Warden Service reports about 60 searchers and a Maine Forest Service helicopter are looking for Largay.
July 27, 2013: About 130 people are involved in the search.
July 28, 2013: About 70 searchers scour an 18-mile stretch of the trail for Largay.
July 29, 2013: The search area for Largay is narrowed. About 30 people and a dog unit continue the search for Largay.
July 30, 2013: About 30 people and an aircraft continue the search.
July 31, 2013: The Maine Warden Service seeks searchers with Maine Association of Search and Rescue certification because the terrain is too difficult for volunteers.
Aug. 6, 2013: In a journal entry, Largay asks whoever finds her body to call her husband and daughter.
Aug. 18, 2013: Largay writes a final journal entry.
Oct. 11, 2015: A forester working on a contract for the U.S. Navy discovers Largay's tent and remains about two miles away from the Appalachian Trail.