A beloved Washington state high school teacher fell 100 feet to his death during a solo hiking expedition in California, just two miles into what was planned to be a long trek from Mount Whitney to Yosemite National Park.

Harris Levinson, 61, of Vashon Island, Washington, departed Whitney Portal on June 23 to begin his journey along the John Muir Trail. The experienced hiker and longtime educator had been planning the ambitious trek for months and was described as excited about the adventure.

Levinson had established a food resupply cache at Onion Valley that he intended to retrieve on June 29. When the cache remained untouched by July 8, a concerned friend contacted Sequoia-Kings National Park to report him missing.

The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office was notified on July 9, prompting an extensive search operation involving multiple agencies. Levinson’s vehicle was located at Whitney Portal, confirming his starting point but raising concerns about his whereabouts along the trail.

Search teams from Inyo County Search and Rescue coordinated with helicopters from the California Highway Patrol Office of Air Operations and Inyo National Forest to locate the missing hiker. The operation utilized data from Levinson’s satellite messaging device to narrow the search area.

Ground searchers discovered Levinson’s body at approximately 9,400 feet elevation in the North Fork of Lone Pine Creek below Lower Boy Scout Lake. The body was recovered on July 12, with authorities determining he had died from injuries sustained in a fatal fall.

Investigation revealed that Levinson had been hiking the Mountaineer’s Route, also known as the climber’s route, rather than the main Whitney Trail. This alternative path is significantly more treacherous and requires scrambling on rocks, making it more dangerous than the standard John Muir Trail route.

According to reports, Levinson chose the riskier route because he had been unable to obtain a permit for the main Whitney Trail, which operates under a quota system. The Mountaineer’s Route has been the site of multiple recent accidents, including three deaths in one week during May of the previous year.

Friend Carrie McCarthy, writing on the Caring Bridge platform, indicated that Levinson died upon impact and did not suffer. She noted that those who interacted with him in his final days described him as joyful, eager, and full of appreciation for his life and the hiking opportunity ahead.

Another friend, Bill Jarcho, revealed that he had spent time with Levinson the night before his departure. Jarcho recounted that when they said goodbye, Levinson remarked, “If I don’t come back, you know that I’ve had a fantastic life and I have no regrets.”

Levinson taught American studies and theater at Vashon High School from 1997 to 2017, where he also instructed Spanish and served as an advisor to the school’s Amnesty International club. In 2017, he transitioned to teaching Spanish and working as a youth mentor at Tacoma School for the Arts.

Beyond his teaching career, Levinson was deeply involved in the arts community. He co-founded the nonprofit Sharing the Stage, which engaged local youth musicians to open for headliners at Seattle venues. He was also recognized as a talented writer, theater artist, puppeteer, and stand-up comedian who regularly performed with local theater groups.

Former students and community members expressed their grief and gratitude for Levinson’s impact on their lives. One parent noted that Levinson was the type of person who could change the course of a life, serving as that influential figure for many students.

The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office and Inyo County Search and Rescue extended their condolences to Levinson’s family and friends while thanking the multiple agencies that assisted in the search operation. The incident underscores the inherent dangers of the Mountaineer’s Route, which has claimed several lives in recent years due to its challenging terrain and exposure to rockfall.

Levinson had relocated from Seattle to Vashon Island in the 1990s and had become widely known and beloved in the community for his remarkable work as an educator, youth mentor, and theater artist. His last local performance was in 2024 with Drama Dock’s production of “The Hatmaker’s Wife.”