Vikram Mubayi, a chemical engineering PhD student at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), was found dead on August 3 in California’s Inyo National Forest, two days after he went missing during a solo hiking trip in the Big Pine Lakes area.According to local reports, Mubayi last contacted his family on the evening of August 1 before a search operation was launched by Inyo County Search & Rescue.Authorities later recovered Mubayi’s body from Big Pine Lakes, and officials said the circumstances surrounding his death remain under investigation, with no indication of foul play.Born and raised in Hong Kong, Mubayi was described by his family as an experienced hiker.In a post on Reddit, his sibiling urged people to inform if someone had seen Vikram. “My brother Vikram is 6’3, 170lbs, dark hair, and has been out of contact since 8.30pm yesterday in the big pine lakes area in the eastern sierra, specifically around agassiz col. Have attached a link to his route here strava.com/routes/3516945857263630584. Did anyone happen to see him along the way? he last sent an update 8.37PM PST from the following coordinates: 37.10942° N, 118.52428° W” the post said.“He’s a fairly experienced hiker and we think that he reached a reasonably easy part of the route, so would have expected him back by now. his car is still at the trailhead. So sorry if this is not the right place to post. can post somewhere else if there’s a better place,” it added.The official confirmation is yet to come from the authorities.
