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Woman, 24, who married on Grand Canyon rim dies in 300ft fall while attempting to become youngest person in history to hike across it
By Nina Golgowski
She was just 80 miles short of becoming the youngest person in history to hike the Grand Canyon from end to end when tragedy struck, a loose rock some believe, tumbling her 300 feet below.
Beautiful, smart, active and young as a newlywed at 24 years old, friends of Ioana Hociota say she was an experienced hiker, one of the best, but died last month because of one possible misstep.
'It's tempting for people to think that a pretty, beautiful young woman of 24 might have been out there, you know, out of her element and out of her head,' her husband Andrew Holycross told ABC, 'and she absolutely was not.'
Tragedy: Newlywed Ioana Hociota, 24, seen with her husband Andrew Holycross last June, fell to her death while hiking the Grand Canyon in an attempt to set a new record last month
A recent graduate in both mathematics and biology at Arizona State University who had moved from Romania with her mother and sister in 2002, she was introduced to the canyons by Mr Holycross at the age of 18 according to one friend, and fell immediately in love.
Five years later the couple married in a ceremony overlooking the valleys.
She trekked over 850 miles through its trails her husband says, ran in marathons, loved yoga and was literate in four languages of English, French, Spanish and Romanian.
Goal: Ms Hociota was 80 miles short of becoming the youngest person in history to hike the Grand Canyon from end to end when she fell
Her love: Immigrating to America with her mother and sister from Romania in 2002, she immediately fell in love with the canyons and hiked them as often as she could
'She accomplished more in 24 years than a lot of people do in a lifetime and she lived fully,' Mr Holycross said.
On February 25 Ms Hociota and her hiking partner Matthia Kawski marched through Owl Eyes Canyon on its south rim, separating themselves by about 20 yards on their different paths.
While higher up from Mr Kawski, her friends and husband say her path wasn't unusual or unsafe but one they would have chosen for themselves.
It was here Mr Kawski says he heard some small rocks fall from above him, nothing out of the ordinary, until he heard a cry.
Misstep: It was the afternoon of February 25, while with a hiking partner, she tumbled over an edge, falling 300 feet and instantly killing her
Completing her hike: Her husband, pictured with her here, says he plans to trek his wife's remaining 80 miles with friends while carrying her backpack and a lock of her hair
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-21...l#ixzz1pUoC7St7
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