Two Colorado college students found dead after Ice Mountain hike

Summarised from 2 outlets · 3 reports · Updated 29 Oct, 19:39 · Archive

Two Colorado Mountain College students missing since the weekend have been found dead in a mountain basin.

Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, students at Colorado Mountain College Leadville, went missing after leaving campus on Friday for a backpacking trip on Ice Mountain, a nearly 14,000-foot peak in the Rocky Mountains. Friends said the pair planned to return Saturday if conditions felt unsafe, or Sunday if conditions were good. However, weather rapidly deteriorated on Saturday afternoon, with heavy snow dumping approximately two feet across the area.

Searching by helicopter on Tuesday, authorities discovered a tent collapsed under snow containing sleeping bags, a stove and clothing, but the students were not present. The tent appeared to have been set up before the snowstorm began. Deputies also located Matsuda's car with eight inches of snow around it, but none beneath the vehicle. Cellphone records showed neither student had used their phone in the previous 48 hours.

The bodies were found on Wednesday in a basin at West Apostle Mountain, roughly half a mile from Ice Mountain. The Chaffee County Sheriff's Office stated that foul play is not suspected. Autopsies will be conducted before determining what occurred. Colorado Mountain College released a statement expressing devastation at the loss and offering support to the college community.

How it is being reported

• Bodies of 2 Colorado college students who went missing on hike foundThe bodies of two Colorado college students who went missing on a hike last week have been found, local authorities announced late Wednesday.UPI · 29 Oct, 19:20
• Two college students who went missing on Ice Mountain hike are found dead: ‘A gut punch’Two college students who disappeared while trying to scale a Colorado mountain have been found dead after they were caught up in a snowstorm, police said.New York Post · 29 Oct, 11:36
• Two college students missing after going on Ice Mountain hike as search team makes devastating discoveriesTwo college students in Colorado disappeared while on a snowy hike over the weekend — and authorities searching for them say the window to find them is rapidly closing.New York Post · 28 Oct, 16:55

In this story: Kaden Matsuda · Jackson Donlon · Colorado Mountain College Leadville · Ice Mountain · Chaffee County · Colorado

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