PITKIN COUNTY, Colo. — A hiker died after falling down a gully and over a cliff near Heckert Pass in Pitkin County Saturday morning, according to the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office.
The hiker’s body was recovered by a Colorado National Guard helicopter crew after a Mountain Rescue Aspen(MRA) drone located the hiker’s location between the pass and Peirre Lakes Basin, the sheriff's office said in a news release.
A friend of the hiker sent messages to the Pitkin County Regional Emergency Dispatch Center via the hiker’s Garmin inReach SOS device. The call came in around 11 a.m.
The body was taken to the Pitkin County Medical Examiner’s office in Aspen. The hiker’s identity has not been released.
A total of 23 MRA members participated in the mission, as well as an ambulance crew from the Aspen Ambulance District. The Aspen Hope Center also provided crisis support.
