Search for Missing Writer Called Off as Body Found

Rescuers have suspended the search for missing outdoors-woman Karen Sykes, after finding the body of a woman on a little-traveled part of Mount Rainier, the AP reports. The body hasn't been concretely identified as Sykes, and the cause of death isn't yet clear; the remains have been taken to a medical examiner who will make both determinations.

More than 100 people were searching for the 70-year-old columnist yesterday, including ground teams with dogs and one helicopter team, when the body was found at about 3pm, the Seattle Times reports. The body lay off-trail near a branch of Boundary Creek. "It’s really steep, rough terrain that’s not easy to travel in," a park spokeswoman said. "Hardly anyone goes there." (More Karen Sykes stories.)