A hiker from San Luis Obispo who went missing while trekking through Yosemite National Park was discovered dead Saturday morning. According to the National Park Service, Kirk S. Thomas Olsen, 61, went missing at Ostrander Lake while on a backcountry excursion scheduled for August 23-27. Olsen, who was listed at 6-foot and 190 pounds with blond hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion, was due in two weeks, according to a park post on social media Thursday. Park rangers stated no other information was available.
Olsen’s niece, Holly Leeson, told The Tribune that her uncle was a Ventura County native who spent most of his adult life in San Luis Obispo. Leeson stated that her uncle would “never have wanted anyone to take this as a cautionary tale to not go into the park” and discussed his love of the outdoors and urging others to do the same. Leeson told the San Francisco Chronicle that investigators were still looking into how Olsen died but that he could have lost track of the path.
“Take as many precautions you can because even with all the experience in the world, it doesn’t guarantee your safety sometimes,” Leeson told the Chronicle. A man from SLO worked for State Parks at San Simeon. Leeson stated that Olsen worked at Hearst San Simeon State Park and other sites surrounding Clearwater and Donner Lake. He worked at San Simeon as a naturalist and elephant seal interpreter.
Leeson said she didn’t know when her uncle worked at Hearst San Simeon State Park, but his LinkedIn profile said he worked for California State Parks for ten years, beginning in 2014. According to Leeson, Olsen was not employed by San Simeon when he visited Yosemite and was taking this solo journey to figure out his next step. Dan Falat, the district administrator of the San Luis Obispo Coast District of California State Parks, acknowledged that Olsen worked as a senior park aide for the San Luis Obispo Coast District of California State Parks from 2017 to 2020. Falat stated that Olsen’s principal task was at Hearst San Simeon State Park.”Our deepest condolences go out to Mr. Olsen’s family during this tough time,” he said.
