Influencer Hannah Moody’s cause of death discovered a month after her body was found near Arizona trail – We Got This Covered

The authorities have finally found the cause of the tragic death of hiking influencer Hannah Moody.

Moody was a 31-year-old Christian influencer with over 40,000 followers on Instagram. Her content was specifically about her faith, family, and most importantly, her love for hiking around the plains of Arizona. People was able to reach her friends to give a more in-depth overview of Moody.

One friend described Moody as being very kind and very thoughtful. Always going out of her way to make a stranger’s day — whether it’s buying them a coffee or being overly complimentary to them. Moody sounds like she was an overall joyful person.

Her brother Joel Moody said something similar, saying she really loved making friends with strangers and focused on others, always ensuring they felt loved. And this overall perspective flowed to her online persona — she didn’t just show people a great view, but rather wanted to also make her followers feel like she cared about them, interacting with her.

And then everything changed on May 21, 2025, at around 7:50 pm. Like most missing person cases, some friends got worried and reported her missing. As usually is the case, the police responded immediately, they were out on foot, they used drones, and even got a helicopter. They kept that up until midnight and had to call it off.

The next morning, their team expanded, and the search wore on, this time with extra assistance from the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department. You’d hope that these are the kinds of sheriffs the president starts championing instead of the corrupt ones, but I digress. Other members of the public also joined to search, a real community effort, which just goes to show how much people care about each other, where Moody was brought up. Sadly, the search did not end well.

Hannah Moody’s body was found about 600 yards off the trail from the hike. Which is a detail of note. That suggests that she got perhaps disoriented or something else dire that led her off the marked path. Which makes things much more dangerous and the job much harder for search and rescuers in case of an emergency.

The official cause of death was finally announced as environmental heat exposure, and the manner of death was determined to be accidental. The temperature on that day was reportedly 102 degrees F. That kind of heat, and sustained exposure to it, can be a massive immediate risk; dehydration and, as is clear here, even accidental death are possibilities. Even in places you know, experienced hikers should always stay alert to cases of drastic temperature changes.

The impact on her family is heartbreaking. Her mother, Terri, told the publication, “Yeah, it’s been… it’s numbing. I feel like it’s not real.” As sad as grief is, it sometimes reminds us just how special some people closest to us are and how we’re so lucky to have each other.

Another thing grief does effectively is it brings those of us who remain a reason to come together. A friend reportedly organized a sunrise hike on May 31, which was supposed to be Hannah’s birthday, in her honor. What a moving tribute.