Who was Joseph Brambila? Missing YouTuber identified as man found dead at Mt Whitney

It has been confirmed that the individual discovered dead on December 15 at Mt Whitney, California’s highest peak, is YouTuber Joseph Brambila.

Joseph Brambila was a 21-year-old hiker and YouTuber from southeast Los Angeles, as per Daily Mail. Brambila, an adventure enthusiast, had previously attempted to scale Mt Whitney four different times. The news outlet notes that his attempts were recorded and shared on YouTube. He finally scaled the peak for the first time in June 2024, after his first try in April that year.

Brambila went to the Sierra Nevada mountain range, to scale Mt Whitney for a birthday trip back in November. According to Daily Mail, Brambila was reported missing on November 12.

The Inyo County Sheriff's Office, which stated that a deceased individual was reported at a dangerous portion of Mt Whitney on November 12, has now identified that the body belonged to Brambila. While providing an update on the incident, the Sheriff's Office also shared that Brambila seemed to have fallen. In the update, the Sheriff’s Office said,

“On December 20, 2025, the Inyo County Coroner’s Office confirmed the identity of the deceased individual recovered from Mt. Whitney as Joseph Brambila. The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office initially received a report on November 12, 2025, of a deceased individual located in the area known as the 99 Switchbacks, a steep and hazardous section of the Mt. Whitney Trail. Preliminary information indicated the individual appeared to have suffered a significant fall. When Mr. Brambila was recovered, there were no personal items or belongings present that could be used for identification.”

While revealing that rescue operations needed to be planned in detail after an individual was reported dead on November 12, the Sheriff’s Office added,

“Due to the remote location, technical terrain, and multiple storms that impacted the area shortly after the report, recovery operations required extensive planning and coordination. On December 15, 2025, following multiple helicopter-assisted and ground operations, Mr. Brambila was successfully recovered. The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office extends its condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Brambila and appreciates the public’s patience and understanding throughout this complex recovery operation.”

Joseph Brambila was last seen by a fellow hiker at a spot on Mt Whitney named Trail Crest

Joseph Brambila began his solo hike on Mt Whitney on November 11, which is typically a time when the weather is unpredictable on the mountain, as per Los Angeles Times. As per the news outlet, a solo hiker named Luis Buenrostro was most likely the last person to see Brambila at Trail Crest. Later on, other hikers reported that they saw a body on a slope coming down from Trail Crest.

Buenrostro told Los Angeles Times that he thought Brambila would ‘gilassade’ in an attempt to take a shorter route down the slope, which refers to a practice when hikers slide down a mountain.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Buenrostro noted that Brambila had a gardening hatchet instead of a more appropriated equipment, that is an ice ax, to glissade down the slope. However, he did not want to needlessly interrupt Brambila’s plans. He told the news outlet,

“I didn’t want to be that person to Joseph. He said he was gonna be good, so I thought, he’s gonna be good.”

Brambila’s girlfriend, Darlene Molina, previously told SF Gate, that the hiker was not typically afraid to back up from a spot on his hikes if he felt that he could not handle it.