Visitor Killed In 200-Foot Fall

Rangers were contacted by park dispatch around 11 p.m. on October 17th and advised that a man had fallen over a cliff edge near Point Bonita. Rangers and Presidio fire and EMS personnel responded from Marin Headlands and came upon a two men and woman along the cliff’s edge. Rangers interviewed the three and determined that a friend who was with them had been walking along a social trail, stumbled, and fallen 200 feet to the bottom. Due to the extremely steep terrain and darkness, a Coast Guard helicopter and 47-foot motor lifeboat responded to the area. They found the man and a Coast Guard rescue swimmer determined that he’d died in the fall. Body recovery efforts took extra time because the vessel could not get close enough and the helicopter had to be refueled. The body was finally retrieved at 4:30 a.m. and transported to Fort Baker. The Marin County Coroner’s Office and U.S. Park Police Criminal Investigations Branch are continuing the investigation.