Missing Massachusetts hiker found dead in New Hampshire's White Mountains by search team

A missing hiker from Massachusetts was found dead by a search team on a trail in New Hampshire's White Mountains on Tuesday, officials said. The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department identified the man as 61-year-old Kent Wood of West Roxbury.

Wood started hiking Saturday morning at the Lafayette Campground in Lincoln "with warm temperatures and clear skies," the department said. His family contacted authorities on Tuesday morning after not hearing from Wood for two days.

"While gathering information on where to search, rescuers learned that Kent was prepared for warmer conditions and not the 3-5 inches of snow that had fallen between Sunday and Monday in the Franconia Notch area," the department said.  

A search for Wood began Tuesday morning in the Lonesome Lake and Kinsman Pond area, with an Army National Guard helicopter assisting. Conservation officers found Wood dead that evening, about 5.5 miles from his car on a remote section of the Kinsman Pond Trail.

"New Hampshire Fish and Game would like to remind hikers that it's still winter in the mountains with deep snow, cold and freeing temperatures," the department said.

Last Friday, three hikers from Haverhill, Massachusetts in their early 20s had to be rescued from Falling Waters Trail because they didn't have appropriate clothing for the weather, the department said. 

And on Saturday, two teenagers from Plymouth were saved from the summit of Mount Washington by state park employees after one of them suffered a leg injury.