Hikers cutting a trail near the South Yuba Fork Bridge in Nevada City discovered a suspected human skull on March 25 and alerted authorities. Deputies recovered the remains the next day with assistance from Chico State’s Anthropology Department. On Dec. 16 officials identified the remains as Aaran Sloan Taylor, 55, who was known to visit the Miner’s Trail area. The death is not believed to be suspicious; the cause is pending autopsy and next of kin have not yet been located.
Hikers Find Skull Near South Yuba Fork Bridge; Remains Identified Nine Months Later as Aaran Sloan Taylor, 55
Nevada County Sheriff's Office/FacebookHuman remains were discovered near the South Yuba Fork Bridge in Nevada City, Calif., on March 25.
A group of hikers reported discovering human remains near the South Yuba Fork Bridge in Nevada City, California, on March 25, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said. The discovery prompted an investigation that culminated on Dec. 16 with the identification of the decedent.
According to the sheriff’s office, the hikers had cut their own path through brush and navigated rugged terrain when they came across what they believed to be a human skull. With little to no cell reception in the area, they walked to the South Yuba Fork Bridge to use an emergency phone and call 911.
“The hikers had cut their own trail in the brush and traveled through rugged terrain when they came across a suspected human skull and immediately hiked to the South Yuba Fork Bridge to call 911 where an emergency phone is installed (there is little to no cell phone reception in the area),” the sheriff’s office said.
Deputies responded and were led back to the improvised trail by one of the hikers. Officials confirmed the skull was human and located additional skeletal remains at the scene. The remains were retrieved on March 26, with assistance from the Chico State Anthropology Department, which helped estimate the decedent’s gender, race and approximate age.
Nevada County Sheriff's Office/FacebookHuman remains were discovered by hikers near the South Yuba Fork Bridge in Nevada City, Calif., in March
Identification and Investigation
On Tuesday, Dec. 16, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, citing the California Department of Justice, announced the remains had been identified as those of Aaran Sloan Taylor, 55. Investigators said Taylor was known to frequent the Miner’s Trail area of Nevada City.
The sheriff’s office said the official cause of death is pending a final autopsy report but that the death is not believed to be suspicious. The county coroner has been unable to locate next of kin and is asking for public help.
Anyone with information that could help identify or locate relatives of Taylor is asked to contact Nevada County law enforcement at coroner@nevadacountyca.gov or by phone at 530-265-1321.
