A hiking influencer who vanished in the Arizona desert has been found dead after a huge search, according to police and her heartbroken family.
The body of Hannah Moody, 31, was discovered near a trailhead parking lot at the McDowell Sonoran Preserve Thursday, more than a day after she was last seen there, according to the Scottsdale Police Department.
“Tragically, Hannah’s body was located by search crews. Our hearts go out to her family and friends,” the department confirmed.
The body of Hannah Moody, 31, was discovered near a trailhead parking lot at the McDowell Sonoran Preserve on May 22, 2025. Instagram / @itshanrose
Moody vanished while hiking in the Arizona desert in Scottsdale. Instagram / @itshanroseHer family also confirmed the news, which her brother Joel Moody called “strikingly unfair.”
“My heart aches… I love you, sis,” her other brother, Ethan Moody, wrote on Facebook. “Joel and I and Mom and Dad and so many others miss you more than words can express.”
Moody’s worried friends reported her missing just before 8 p.m. on Wednesday after not hearing from her, police said.
Hannah’s family spoke out after her death. Instagram / @itshanroseShe had last been seen that morning at the Gateway Trailhead area of the preserve.
Police immediately began a wide search of the area and located her vehicle in the trailhead parking lot. A ground and air search was called off around midnight, but resumed again the following day with additional resources from the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
Moody’s body was discovered around noon on Thursday — just 600 yards off-trail from the parking lot area, police said.
Moody’s worried friends reported her missing just before 8 p.m. on Wednesday after not hearing from her, police said. She had last been seen that morning at the Gateway Trailhead area of the preserve. KNXV-TV“This is an active investigation,” police said, while stressing that “there are no signs of foul play.”
Moody regularly posed on hikes for her nearly 50,000 Instagram followers — posting a video from a sunset hike just days before she went missing.
Hannah was an experienced hiker who posted on her socials about her outings. Instagram / @itshanroseIn that one, she discussed how she tries to avoid “focusing way too much on the negative” — and how she was “stressing” at having had a big pay cut with a new job at a restaurant.
Her brother Joel called her “a fierce competitor” who was “continuously dedicated to self-improvement.”
Hannah Moody was found dead near a trail she was last seen, officials said. Instagram / @itshanrose“Hannah was also a nomad, a free spirit, searching for a place to belong and to call home after leaving our parents’ house,” he said of her adventures.
“I hope that, in death, she has found the home she sought in life. I just wish I could see her once more. I love you and miss you, Hannah.”
Her manner of death will be determined by the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office.
