Skeletal remains found recently by hikers in Washington state have been confirmed to be those of a troubled mother of three who went missing nearly 18 months ago after going mushroom picking with a friend.
Washington state authorities confirmed the remains were those of Hailey E. Athay, 33, of Cowlitz County, who was last seen in November of 2024 by her family in Kelso, Washington, located about 50 miles north of Portland, Oregon.
Two young men hiking in a wooded area last Sunday discovered two bones and some clothing in Rose Valley and notified authorities, according to the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office.
After a forensic anthropologist identified the bones as human, the Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office and the sheriff’s office conducted an organized search of the area for additional remains.
Nearly complete skeletal remains were discovered as well as items of clothing and personal belongings, according to the sheriff’s office.
“A forensic odontologist examined the recovered skull and compared the teeth to dental records for Athay,” the sheriff’s department statement said. “The odontologist was able to make a positive comparison and identified the remains as those of Hailey Athay.”
Athay was going mushroom hunting with a friend in the Rose Valley area shortly before she disappeared, according to her family.
In a report by one news outlet, Athay’s mother Nicole Brooks said that she suspected foul play.
Her daughter struggled with addiction and mental health issues, her mother told the Daily News in 2025, and had fallen out of touch with her loved ones before, which is why she wasn’t reported missing until January, nearly two months after she was last seen.
Athay’s cause and manner of death remain under investigation.
Any evidence of foul play or possible suspects in her disappearance has not been disclosed by authorities, nor has the name of the friend who reportedly accompanied her on the mushroom search.
“This is an open investigation; no other information will be released by this office at this time,” the coroner’s office stated.
Contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times true crime best seller House of Secrets and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.