The State Highway Patrol said it found Barbara Bellamy's car down a mountainside, 25 miles away from her home in Statesville.
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Family members said more than a dozen loved ones and friends began driving the roads near Bellamy's home looking for her.
"I have no idea what happened," Tammy Williams, who is Bellamy's daughter, told ABC affiliate WSOC. "I think maybe she must have went out to the store somewhere and just got turned around."
Bellamy was described by loved ones as a central figure in their lives.
"She's the matriarch of the family," said nephew Wade Ikard. "She has kept us together. She's like the rock of the family."
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Bellamy's family said she had some memory issues but was still able to drive.
According to firefighters, they have responded to several wrecks on that stretch where Bellamy went off the road.
They said there are no warning signs or guardrails along Brushy Mountain Road. They are hoping the North Carolina Department of Transportation will now change that.
The NCDOT is expected to investigate the area in the coming weeks.