ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK, Colo. – Search and rescue teams are braving freezing temperatures and severe and unpredictable weather as they search for a New Jersey man who was attempting to hike Longs Peak late this week.
Ryan Albert of Marlton, N.J., was reported missing by a family member to the Denver Police Department on Friday after they said he was overdue from a hiking trip in the Longs Peak area.
Family told police they believed he was attempting to hike the 14er on Thursday.
After they were alerted by Denver authorities on Friday, rangers were able to find his rental car at the Longs Peak trailhead later that afternoon. A spokesperson for Rocky Mountain National Park said in a news release they do not know what Albert’s planned destination or route was.
Members of the Rocky Mountain National Park’s Search and Rescue team began searching the Longs Peak area including the Boulder Field, the Keyhole Route, The Loft, Chasm Cirque, North Longs Peak and Boulder Brook on Saturday.
Saturday's forecast called for severe weather including snow, hail, sleet, thunder and lightning.
The RMNP spokesperson said Albert was last seen leaving the Denver area early Thursday morning wearing dark clothes and a backpack.
If you or anyone you know has been in the Longs Peak area since Thursday, or if you may have had contact with Albert about the route he was planning to take at Longs Peak, you are asked to call (970) 586-1204.