British university professor dies after cliff plunge in US
A British university professor has died after falling off a cliff during a hike in North America.
Alexei Likhtman, a mathematical physics professor at the University of Reading, is believed to have tripped while taking photographs on the Appalachian Trail in Maryland.
He fell 50ft off a cliff and hit rocks.
Other hikers tried to save him but the 44-year-old died from his injuries about an hour after the fall, said reports.
Mr Likhtman had been walking part of the 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail which features in the Bill Bryson book A Walk In The Woods, recently adapted into a film starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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