Where was Gabby Petito last seen? Final picture saw her pose before butterfly mural
Gabby Petito's last Instagram post has been filled with prayers for her safe return after the 22-year-old set out on a tour of national parks in early July and was last heard from on August 25. Her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie who came back alone from the trip, is refusing to cooperate with the investigators.
The last time that Gabby Petito's mother Nicole Schmidt was in touch with her daughter via text, Petito was reportedly at the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. She and her fiancee were reportedly heading for Yellowstone National Park in California, but she never made it. Petito had been documenting her trip on Instagram, posting dozens of pictures from Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Arches National Park. Her last post on August 26 was a series of images of her smiling in front of a colorful mural of butterflies, holding a knitted pumpkin. "Happy Halloween," she wrote as the caption.
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'Praying you return home safely'
Petito has an Instagram account with over 13,000 followers, many of whom prayed for her safe return after coming across news of her disappearance. "I don’t know you but I’m praying you are safe and unharmed. You remind me of my beautiful daughters and I just can’t imagine the heartache your family is feeling," one of them said, while another noted, "Praying you return home safely." A third added, "Praying you return home@safe and sound sweetie." One more stated, "You have an army praying for you & your safe return!" The next commented, "Praying and sending all the good vibes that you are safe and will make it home to your family."
There were also a few internet sleuths who were eager to solve the mystery behind her disappearance and help out in any way they can. One one user pointed out: "I'm sure this has been looked into...but I did some research on her last instagram post. She was holding a pumpkin in front of the Monarch mural, which is outside of https://themonarchogden.com/ I DID think it was odd to hold a pumpkin in August, but then realized they/she may have gone to the artist market there and bought the cute little pumpkin. I looked up local knitting artists in the area, and I THINK she would have purchased from "Simply Fed" since that vendor has sold there before. Simply Fed also sells on Instagram and has a page here on Facebook. Although the post seemed incongruous with her past ones, I think maybe that she was happy after being in a hotel, wearing heels (after a lot of barefoot talk) and heading to the Grand Teton National Park. Regardless, I thought maybe they should look into who was at the Monarch that day. Ogden is on the way from SLC to Grand Teton. Sending so much positive energy. xo" The Monarch mural spotted in Petito's last Instagram post by the internet sleuth is located in Ogden, a city north of Salt Lake City, in Utah.
Where is Gabby Petito?
Petito and Laundrie had been traveling across America in a 2012 white Ford Transit van since July 4. Media has also branded her the "van-life girl' as the couple had also started a YouTube channel to share their road trip, sharing an eight-minute video, titled 'Beginning Our Van Life Journey.'
The couple left from Blue Point, New York, and arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah, in August. They left amid heavy smoke from the wildfires and stopped in Grand Teton on August 25, which is Petito's last known location. They had planned a trip to Yellowstone and were supposed to reach Portland, Oregon, to visit a family friend for Halloween on October 31.
Schmidt is now urging for help locating her daughter after police found the 2012 Ford van Petito and Laundrie were traveling in. "I can’t say much, but she’s no longer with the van. I don’t want to say anything more than that but for people looking for her, I want them to look for her now, not look for that van anymore," she told Fox News. Petito's family has also created a Facebook page to track updates, and opened a GoFundMe to help fund the search for the 22-year-old.