Updated: San Juan Capistrano Hiker Was Bright, Adventurous

Updated at 2:45 p.m. with information provided by the doctor who performed Pack's autopsy. Updated at 5:48 p.m. with information provided by a family friend of Matthew Pack.

The young man whose body was found Saturday dangling from rappelling gear in the Cleveland National Forest had moved to San Juan Capistrano a few years ago to attend school in Orange County and was set to graduate in just a few months, a family friend told Patch on Monday.

Matthew David Pack, 24, grew up in West Virginia and attended high school at Charleston Catholic High School. The tragedy has devastated his family, said Charleston neighbor Gregory B. Chiartas.

“He was an avid hiker and climber and all-around outdoorsman. Most importantly, Matt was a kind, gentle and loving person, a good son to his parents, a great brother to his siblings and loyal to his friends," said Chiartas. “He was a wonderful young man, bright, adventurous and athletic. He was liked by everyone who knew him because of his upbeat, magnetic personality. He was truly unique and will be terribly missed by all that knew him.”

Pack succumbed to mechanic asphyxia while , an autopsy report concluded.  The death was classified as accidental.

 According to Chiartas, Pack spoke with his father, Larry, on Thursday night about the hike and climb at Mildred Falls, with Matt assuring him that he would be safe. His previous hikes and climbs have included Red Rock Canyon in Nevada, Joshua Tree National Park, Sierra Eastside and Suicide Rocks near San Bernardino. He was also an avid mountain biker and runner, Chiartas said.

Christopher Swalwell, the doctor who performed Pack’s autopsy Sunday, said he did not yet have enough details about how Pack was positioned to determine what restricted his airflow and ultimately killed him.

Swalwell said it’s likely that either Pack’s own organs were pushing into his diaphragm or that an external object was pressing against his body.

The latter is classified as traumatic asphyxia, which usually means there’s “compression against the abdomen, which I think may have been the case in this case, since he had a harness around his waist,” Swalwell said.

 Climbers are usually aware of the dangers they face when wearing harnesses, Swalwell added, noting that different theories exist about how hanging in the same position for an extended period of time can kill someone.

“It’s called harness hang syndrome,” he said.

Chiartas said Pack’s family has received very little information about what happened over the weekend.

“As time passes and additional facts come to light, I know that Larry would want others to learn whatever information he can pass on to help prevent this from happening to anyone else,” he said.

Pack's time of death is listed as 5:30 p.m. People in the area reported hearing his cries for help earlier in the afternoon on Friday, but by the time crews arrived to check on him, he was motionless. A search-and-rescue team was requested, but because of the late hour and windy conditions, the rescue was suspended until Saturday morning, authorities said.

 A helicopter spotted Pack at 5:45 p.m. Friday dangling from a rope in rushing water 200 feet below the top of Mildred Falls, said Capt. Tom Stephenson of the San Diego Fire Rescue helicopter crew. The pilot was able to see Pack using night-vision goggles, but the crew was unable to reach the climber, who seemed to be limp.

"There appeared to be no movement," Stephenson said.

A helicopter returned to Mildred Falls at 7 a.m. Saturday to join crews on foot that spent the night near the falls in the Cleveland National Forest, said San Diego County sheriff's Lt. David Brown. They recovered Pack's body at about 1 p.m. Saturday.

Correction: This article correctly identifies the high school that Pack attended.