SKAGIT COUNTY, Wash. -- A woman was fatally shot by a bear hunter on Sauk Mountain, said Chief Deputy Will Reichardt of the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office.

Family identified the victim as 54-year-old Pamela Almli. Almli was hiking with a friend around 10:30 a.m. Saturday when a group of hunters were also in the mountain.

DISCUSS: What Do You Think?

Investigators said one of the hunters, a 14-year-old boy from Concrete, spotted what he thought was a bear and fired a round, fatally wounding Almli.

Deputies said a preliminary investigation indicates that Almli was stopped on the trail putting something into her backpack when the hunter mistook her for a bear.

Family and friends of Almli said she loved the outdoors and spent a lot of her free time hiking.

"We find comfort in the fact that she did died doing what she loved to do (and) that it was quick. We know she wasn't in pain. We know she didn't have any fear. That's comforting to us, but there is a hole in the family," said Teresa Smith, Almli’s sister-in-law.

The victim's family said it has compassion for the young hunter and his family, but at the same time it's having a hard time understanding how this could have happened.

"It's a tragedy. He made a grave mistake that has affected many lives," Smith said.

Almli was from the small town of Oso near Arlington and had become great friends with many of her neighbors over the years. Some of them are still trying to make sense of her death and the strange circumstances surrounding it.

"You look into a scope you know what you are firing at -- and really and truly that's all I got to say," said Almli’s neighbor, Freda Slack.

The incident happened along Highway 20 west of Rockport. Reichardt said it’s legal to hunt bear in that area and it’s also a popular hiking area. It's unclear how the mountain is marked in terms of hunting season signs and hiking trails.

The hunter was accompanied by at least one other person, police said.

Police said no one is currently in custody, and they continue to interview the hunter.

The following information is from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Hunter Education:

Washington State law requires all individuals born after Jan. 1, 1972, to show proof of basic hunter education training before purchasing a hunting license, said the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Classes are offered year-round and there is no minimum age required to enroll in hunter education, but instructors may require a parent or guardian to attend all classes if students are under 12 years of age.

Non-resident hunters must also provide evidence that they have completed hunter education training before purchasing a hunting license.

In 2007, the Washington State Legislature approved a measure that allows a one-year, once-in-a-lifetime deferral of hunter education training. The deferral option is available to individuals who are accompanied by an experienced hunter who has held a Washington hunting license for the previous three years.