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Friends Mourn San Rafael Hiker Found Dead In Sierra

SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK (CBS/AP) -- Friends are mourning the loss of an experienced Northern California hiker whose body was found after a two-day search in the Sierra Nevada range.

Authorities say 31-year-old Thomas Heng's body was found Wednesday on the steep Old Army Pass in the John Muir Wilderness in Central California. They did not immediately provide a cause of death.

Sequoia National Park spokeswoman Dana Dierkes says Heng separated from two fellow hikers on his trek to the top of Mount Langley, one of the mountain range's highest peaks. Dierkes said the San Rafael man was last seen near the summit.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Heng co-led a Bay Area hiking group and scaled mountains every weekend.

Helicopters and crews from Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Yosemite National Parks had been searching for Heng since Tuesday.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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