An American tourist who died while on a popular hike in the Australian outback's West Macdonnell Ranges was Matt Palazzolo, a beloved gay right activist and actor, according to US media reports.
The 33-year-old Californian went missing on Wednesday afternoon while hiking with another man, aged 40, on the Larapinta Trail about 130 kilometres west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.
His body was located about 400 metres down the track where he had turned the wrong way after splitting with his friend.
WEHOville, a news website from West Hollywood in Los Angeles, said Palazzolo was a well-known actor and writer in the local community.
He was also a member of West Hollywood's Lesbian and Gay Advisory Board. He was a writer and actor on television shows like Bloomers and The Couch. His film Stone Fruit is due to be released in June.
Palazzolo's friends expressed shock over his death on social media, describing him as a "beautiful person."
"I'm heartsick. The world has lost another amazing soul way too soon. @MattPalazzolo was one of the most loving and caring people I've ever known," filmmaker Jeffrey Reddick said on his Twitter.
Palazzolo's death has not being treated as suspicious by the police.
The death took place on a day when the temperature spiked to 42 degrees Celsius in Alice Springs.
Last year, an elderly German couple died while on a walk in the East Macdonnell Ranges, some 100 kilometres east of where Palazzolo died.
